Wix or WordPress for Business Websites – Which One Should You Choose?
So you are searching for a content management system (CMS) for your business website. What do you look for in a content management system? Is it features? Ease of use? Or price?
To help you make the right decision, we have put together a detailed comparison between the two most popular CMSs: WordPress and Wix. Below you’ll find a comprehensive guide with everything you need to know about the differences between the two platforms, their features, and which one is the right fit for your needs.
Why Should You Bother With a CMS At All?
With the growth of mobile usage and social media, everyone is doing their digital marketing online. If you’re not cutting edge with your SEO (search engine optimisation) and PPC (pay per click) strategies, you’ll lose out to your competitors.
A content management system allows you to update your website’s content easily while taking advantage of advanced features and an intuitive UI (interface). You can also use a CMS to build your eCommerce store or blog, which often times integrates with a marketing platform like WordPress or Shopify to provide a complete digital marketing solution.
The Differences Between WordPress And Wix
WordPress is the world’s most popular CMS, and for good reason too. It is incredibly flexible, supported by a thriving community, and is extremely easy to use.
Even if you’re not tech-savvy, you’ll have no trouble using WordPress as it is extremely user-friendly. The platform offers a large selection of themes and plugins that allow you to add advanced customisations to your site.
Wix, on the other hand, is a bit more pricey and has a smaller community but also offers a variety of customisations and integrations, which make it a more versatile platform.
The core difference between the two CMSs is that with WordPress you can add and remove themes and plugins at will, while with Wix you need to make substantial changes to the HTML (human-readable code) of your site to effect such changes.
Let’s take a quick tour of each platform and their key features as listed on their websites.
WordPress
The world’s #1 content management system, WordPress is free and open-source software that helps you build websites with ease. Its flexible architecture and extremely active community make it an excellent choice for anyone who is looking for a CMS for their site.
As the most popular CMS in the world, WordPress offers a large selection of themes and plugins that allow you to fully customise the appearance of your site. This makes it easier to achieve an SEO-optimised (search engine optimised) and fully customised (branded) look.
Wix
Wix is a simple, intuitive and powerful content management system that is highly customisable and has a variety of integrations available, which makes it suitable for a range of uses. Though it is more expensive than WordPress, Wix is a great choice for enterprises and businesses who want to fully customise their site’s appearance.
Wix gives you full control over the content of your site and allows you to fully customise the appearance, layout, and content of each page. If you are looking for a platform that offers more features and doesn’t cost as much, you can’t go wrong with Wix.
Which Is The Right Fit For Your Business?
Based on the answers to the above questions, we have classified the following businesses as suitable for WordPress, and these businesses as suitable for Wix.
Medical & Health
If your business is in the medical and health fields, you’ll want to look into CMSs that offer templates for medical and health websites. If your site is aimed at medical professionals, you’ll want to look for a CMS that is built on a robust foundation and is highly customisable.
WordPress is highly suitable for use in medical and healthcare websites as it is extremely customisable and has a large amount of free plugins that enhance functionality. Some of the most popular plugins are WooCommerce, Gravity Forms, and Akismet. All of these plugins allow you to create an eCommerce store, track purchases, and ensure your site is protected from spam.
Financial Services
If your business is in the financial services industry, you’ll want to look for a content management system that is built on a robust foundation and allows you to create complex websites. If a free version is available, taking a look at the source code is a good idea as this will give you an idea of what is entailed in using the product.
WordPress is suitable for use in financial services websites as it is highly customisable and has a large amount of free plugins that enhance functionality and security. Some of the most popular plugins are the WooCommerce and Gravity Forms plugins mentioned earlier, along with the Sucuri plugin that protects your site from hackers and spam.
Education
If your business is in the education field, you’ll want to look for a content management system that is flexible and has a robust architecture. If your school or university is looking for a way to better coordinate and manage their online content, you can’t go wrong with WordPress as it is an excellent option.
WordPress has a built-in class for creating a school or university website. This means that you don’t have to look for third-party plugins to make use of the platform’s features. If you are looking for a CMS that is a one-stop-shop for all your digital marketing needs, WordPress is the clear choice.
Technology
If your business is in the technology field, you’ll want to look for a content management system that offers templates for website builders and software developers. If you are creating a development website or blog, WordPress is again the clear choice.
WordPress has a built-in class for creating a technology website. This ensures that you don’t have to look for third-party plugins to make use of the platform’s features. If you are searching for a content management system that can be used for both personal and professional purposes, WordPress is the clear choice.
An Overview Of WordPress
To get the most out of WordPress, you need to be organised and keep up-to-date with the ever-changing platform. Luckily, automation tools like X-Wrap make keeping track of updates easy.
While WordPress is free and open-source, making money from your website is not. You can use various plugins that are monetised, such as the Yoast SEO plugin, to get monetisation for free. Alternatively, you can use a standalone product like Monetise to monetise your site. We recommend trying both options out and seeing which one works best for you.
The best way to learn how to use WordPress is by reading tutorials and regularly checking the WordPress Codex (the documentation) for new features.
An Overview Of Wix
Though not as popular as WordPress, Wix does offer a robust content management system that is highly customisable and has a variety of templates and layouts available. This product is more suitable for larger businesses who want to fully customise the appearance of their site.
Wix provides a simple yet comprehensive interface that makes it easy to update content without a coding background. As mentioned above, the cost of Wix is higher than that of WordPress due to the fact that it is a proprietary product. Still, you get what you pay for and the features are there to help you with whatever you need.
Similar to WordPress, Wix offers templates for various industries and fields. The templates are fully responsive so they look good on all devices.
If you are looking for a simple solution that doesn’t cost as much as WordPress and also has a variety of templates and layouts to choose from, Wix is the perfect choice. Plus, it’s always good to have options.
Which Is The Right Fit For Your Needs?
From the above, we can see that both WordPress and Wix are suitable for a wide range of businesses and industries. Which one is the right fit for your needs depends on your technical know-how, budget, and the features you need. If you are looking for a free option, WordPress is the clear choice, while if you are looking for a robust solution at a cheaper price, you can’t go wrong with Wix.