So, you’ve decided to take your business online. While this may seem like a walk in the park, the wide variety of options can make online store website creation quite confusing.
Where do you even begin?
One option is to hire a professional web developer to do it for you. But with the fast-changing nature of the virtual world, this can quickly become expensive. The initial costs of hiring a web designer are pricey enough. How much more when you update your web design to match current trends and themes?
Good news! You don’t need to complicate things. You can create your own website, even without coding knowledge. Today’s no-code website builders simplify website building for anyone, and it’s much easier to understand now that even the most novice creators can do it.
What is a website builder?
Think of a website builder as a toolbox with everything you need to complete a project. However, website builders are not just any tools. They have powerful, creative features that are surprisingly easy to use. So, keep the idea of adding custom code from intimidating you. These tools are designed to be beginner-friendly, making the entire website development process stress-free.
How no-code website builders transform web development
In the past, website creation required mastery of complex coding languages, including HTML and CSS. This often meant hiring an expensive web designer. But things have completely changed with the widespread adoption of no-code website builders. Now, you can launch a professional website, even with no technical expertise involved.
See how a no-code website builder works wonders? But how does that happen? One secret is in the drag-and-drop editor. It removes the complexities of website creation, and even better, it allows you to create stunning websites from scratch within hours. Whether you’re setting up an online store or a personal blog, there’s no need to stress over technical stuff. You can enjoy exploring its features while crafting a high-impact design!
How to find the perfect no-code website builder
Before jumping into a project, you must pick the right platform to anchor your beautiful website. You cannot settle only for the cost and the straightforward functionalities. There are several things worth considering.
Here are some essential aspects to keep in mind before you get started.
User-friendly interface
As an inexperienced user, you’ll want the most straightforward platform possible. It should let you arrange design elements visually without difficulty. Good thing many website builders have seamless drag-and-drop editors. They also offer ready-to-use, customizable templates, allowing users to fine-tune the look and feel of their websites easily.
Flexible design capabilities
It would help to have the right mix of images, layouts, and themes. Go for a platform with many customization options to bring it all together. And since your site is a bearer of your brand identity, see that the design aligns perfectly with it. Also, people today have become more dependent on their mobile phones. So, make sure your page looks great and works well on all devices.
Core operations
Not all website builders are created equal. Some may have great marketing tools and SEO features. Others may offer only one or the other. High search engine rankings are crucial to your online success. So, you must choose a platform that supports strong SEO. A higher site ranking will boost your visibility and traffic from potential customers.
Another critical factor is eCommerce functionality. It’s not an issue if you’re building a personal blog that won’t sell or market anything. But if selling is your goal, you need a platform with robust eCommerce features. It must have secure payment gateways and shopping carts to set your online shop up for success.
Lastly, don’t forget to check out its integration with web apps. Built-in marketing tools are essential to your website’s responsiveness. They include email marketing templates, customer inquiry forms, and analytics tools.
Hosting and custom domains
Other than web design, you need a reliable web hosting service like Web.com and a custom domain name. These two are critical components of the site you’re building. You can use your registrar’s hosting service if you’ve secured a domain but lack hosting.
If you’re stuck on finding the right domain name for your site, there are free AI-powered domain name generator available to help you find the perfect name for your site.
Advanced features
You’ll need reliable AI capabilities besides the robust business and editing tools. They should make complex tasks much more manageable. These include AI-powered chatbots and personalized engagements. And with social media feeds vital to online stores, it’s also wise to use CRM integration. It can streamline workflows and boost efficiency.
Scalability
Growing your business is always a top priority, which is why you’re bringing it online. Your online retail shop must attract more traffic to succeed on this journey. More traffic means more sales. Look for the most scalable website builders. They must handle high traffic and support new features as your business grows.
Affordable pricing
Whether you like it or not, website building can sometimes burn a hole in your pocket. Some website builders offer a free plan, but that’s not always true. Often, you’ll find yourself with just a seven-day free trial. Afterward, you must upgrade to get the most value from the chosen service.
Quality assistance or support
Customer support is crucial in any business. But it’s even more important in a website-building project. Why? Small business owners like you may need more technical expertise to fix issues. It would help if you had expert multilingual support that can guide you through the solution when technical glitches occur.
With these tips in mind, website creation will be a cinch, even if you don’t have coding skills. This allows you the creative freedom to focus on the exciting parts of website building. So why worry if you lack technical expertise? Besides, you can leave all the technical details to the website builder’s powerful features.
5 popular no-code website builders
Excited to jump into action? Before kicking things off, take a moment to explore some of the well-known website builders out there. Know their features, benefits, and drawbacks. This will help you decide on the right no-code website builder that can set your big or small projects off to a good start.
Number 1: Web.com
Web.com powers the digital space with a reliable, AI-based, no-code website builder. Its intuitive drag-and-drop editor is expertly crafted to make the website design process effortless.
Web.com’s AI-enabled site builder is not only user-friendly, but it also offers a suite of high-performance tools that make you worry less about your coding knowledge. If you’re still unsure, here are some of its key features worth exploring.
Design flexibility and customization options
Web.com offers a wide collection of professionally curated templates tailored for various industries, including travel, lifestyle, home improvement, and fashion. With seamless media integration, you can effortlessly incorporate multimedia elements into your site.
Enhanced eCommerce functionalities
Web.com is with you as you conquer the digital marketplace. It has vital payment gateway integrations, like PayPal and Stripe, to help your online stores run smoothly. It even has an AI copywriting tool to help you promote your products effectively.
Robust SEO tools
To truly thrive online, you need a powerful set of tools that help boost your ranking in search engines. Web.com offers SEO features that can give your site the edge it needs. It has keyword research tools that drive traffic to your site and on-page optimization that helps you rank higher.
Mobile responsiveness
Adaptive accessibility is a critical aspect of a truly impactful website. If you want to offer your visitors a seamless browsing experience, choosing a platform that ensures optimal performance across all devices is necessary. Thankfully, Web.com has you covered!
Round-the-clock support
By now, no-code website builders might seem less intimidating. But it’s reassuring to know you get expert support when system errors or performance hiccups arise. Web.com’s dedicated customer service is available 24/7 via chat and phone from 8 AM to 9 PM ET. You can also explore Web.com’s knowledge base and blog page for practical guides and tips to resolve issues on your own.
Number 2: Wix
Wix is one of the widely recognized no-code website builders that offer a suite of tools for creating websites. It’s particularly suitable for small businesses as it’s equipped with a range of eCommerce features, including marketing, scheduling, web forms, and CRM. On top of that, it’s free, so you can put together fully functioning web pages without paying anything. You can upgrade to a premium plan if you want to use its advanced features.
Wix currently supports around 2.7% of websites across the digital landscape. Known for its web design features, it’s a reliable option even for those with little technical knowledge.
Here are some of the key features to consider about this platform:
Website creation flexibility
Wix offers two easy ways to set up web pages. One of its features is the AI website builder. It gives design freedom to create professional-looking websites using simple text prompts. With its smart AI tools, you can customize your design and optimize your site’s content on a wide scale.
If you’re not satisfied with what the AI website builder generates, you have the option to tweak it. It offers free design elements. Just take the time to find the perfect design to match your brand.
Drag-and-drop editor
The AI-powered Wix website builder lets you bring your vision to life in no time. It has a drag-and-drop editor with thousands of customizable templates. There’s no hassle, as these intuitive design tools require no coding skills.
Full-scale small-business tools
In addition to its eCommerce features, Wix provides solutions for small businesses to help streamline workflow, such as CRM and scheduling. These advanced features ensure the smooth operation of your business, so you can sell anytime, anywhere.
Third-party integrations
Apart from the powerful SEO tools, this free website builder offers seamless integrations with third-party eCommerce web apps. These integrations are mobile-optimized, so you can be sure your site will look great on a mobile device.
24/7 customer support
Dedicated support is very important, and it pays to consider upgrading your free plan. With premium plans, you’ll have instant access to expert assistance via live chat or phone. This will ensure you get the help you need right when you need it.
Number 3: HubSpot CMS Hub
HubSpot is a great choice for a free plan that offers high value. It’s equipped with powerful free content management system (CMS) software, allowing users to build websites that are easy to manage. It has user-friendly tools that ensure you have a high-performance site that perfectly aligns with your brand, regardless of your technical background.
HubSpot also has a drag-and-drop website builder, but let’s take a look at its other unique features and assess its perks and limitations.
Extensive website template and media
HubSpot has hundreds of royalty-free images. They help launch beautiful websites in a snap. Its stylesheets and templates have much to offer to meet your needs. Plus, you can build websites from scratch without the need for custom code.
Integrated CRM solutions
You should have compelling marketing tools to better connect with your target audience. HubSpot excels here. Its free CRM integration can revolutionize your marketing strategy.
Built-in analytics tools
Tracking marketing performance can be a challenge. But you need accurate insights. They ensure you drive revenue and make data-driven decisions. HubSpot’s marketing analytics gives you all you need. It lets you track your site’s progress without third-party analytics tools.
eCommerce features
Optimizing online stores involves more than just strong SEO performance. You need breakthrough retail platform functionalities that help drive results. HubSpot has built-in revenue and payment reports. They show how your site performs and help you sell your work.
Automation tools
While the free plan offers value, switching to a premium plan empowers you with enhanced customization options for workflow automation. These include chatbots, lead nurturing, form submission, and more. If you’re worried about your technical skills, it features a no-code interface, so you’re safe.
Number 4: Webflow
Webflow Designer is a web development tool known for its intuitive visual design interface. But, unlike other website builders that allow design freedom, Webflow targets its experience to specific users. It has tons of templates, but they’re customized based on who you are and what you do. That’s why Webflow takes time to assess your needs, industry, and preferences before you can start the design process.
Webflow has a steeper learning curve than other website builders, but if you aim for a dynamic and beautiful website that speaks perfectly of your brand, this one’s for you!
Here are some of the key features you must know about this platform.
Customization options
Webflow offers comprehensive customization options without the need to add custom code unless necessary. Its page editor provides many design facilities that anyone accustomed to button-heavy web apps will get comfortable with.
Design flexibility
Webflow’s free plan comes with easy-to-use designs and features. It’s an ideal tool for those building personal websites or small projects that don’t need a custom domain. Its app library has plenty of templates that help your site notable. The free starter package doesn’t have as many options as the premium plan, though.
SEO tools
Everyone intends to drive as much traffic to their site as possible. An influx of visitors often translates to money. To achieve this, you need a platform with promising SEO capabilities to ensure your site dominates the SERPs. Webflow lets you edit key SEO elements, like metadata that includes your meta description. This will guarantee your target audience doesn’t end up on other landing pages but yours.
Ease of use
While Webflow is one of the most powerful platforms available, it takes time and work for beginners. It has a user-friendly interface. But a novice user needs time for a tutorial. It’s not a typical drag-and-drop builder.
Pricing
Webflow is one of the free, no-code website builders. But it’s best to upgrade to a premium plan to use its unique features. The free version usually lacks most features you need for a high-impact website.
Number 5: Google Sites
Google Sites is a highly beginner-friendly no-code website builder. It’s available to anyone who wants to build simple sites. The platform is built within the productivity suite of applications of Google Workspace. And the best thing about it is that it costs nothing.
However, being a basic website-building platform, it only has limited customization options and lacks SEO tools. But here are some key features that can make it an ideal tool for you.
Cloud-enabled collaboration
Like Google Docs and Google Sheets, Google Sites lets you work and share with collaborators. Think of it as a site built in the cloud since everything will be saved in Google Drive. And though it doesn’t have any SEO settings, you can still work on the project by setting one page after another custom paths with no custom codes necessary.
User-friendly interface
Google website builder is straightforward. It doesn’t have a steep learning curve, and you don’t need to write code. Unless you want to build superbly professional-looking websites, you may want a more advanced platform. Nonetheless, Google Sites offers intuitive tools and options to help create a clean, nice-looking website.
Customization flexibility
Google Sites has several themes and templates you can work with in a blank canvas. More importantly, it has no challenging learning curve. So, you can create custom themes with little to no difficulty if the standard ones don’t work for you.
Fully integrated ecosystem
As a Google product, Google Sites integrates seamlessly with other powerful Google web apps like Google Analytics, Google Search Console, Google Sheets, and more. All these Google tools work together. They share data and save everything in its built-in database, Google Cloud. So, it’ll be easy to manage them all from a single server.
Cost-free
Google Sites has no premium plan, and it’s entirely free of charge. All you need is a Google Mail account to start creating websites. This is especially great for you if you’re a beginner who just wants to try out no-code website building.
Ready to build your website?
Given all this, you should feel more confident in turning your website design ideas into reality. Your lack of coding skills doesn’t have to limit your success in the digital world. All you need is the right tool to make your dream online platform happen.
No-code website builders are the secret ingredient to a successful online presence. Their user-friendly interfaces, configurable templates, and advanced integrations let you build a fully functional website in a fraction of the time. So, embrace your design freedom, whether you’re a small business owner or a creative visionary.
Prepare to create a website that resonates perfectly with your target market!