Introduction
Building a website from scratch used to require strong coding skills. But with intuitive website builders like Unicorn Platform, this is no longer the case. These visual web design platforms provide startups, small businesses, and entrepreneurs the ability to create beautiful, functional websites quickly and easily - with no coding required!
For non-technical startup founders with limited resources and expertise, solutions like Unicorn Platform are game-changers. They allow anyone to build professional looking sites through intuitive drag and drop editors. You simply point, click, edit and customize. The platforms handle all the technical backend like hosting, maintenance, updates and security.
The Problem with Coding
Coding websites from scratch has some major downsides:
- It requires knowledge of HTML, CSS, JavaScript and other languages - skills many people don't have. The learning curve is steep.
- Hiring a professional developer is expensive, often costing thousands. This is out of reach for many new startups and businesses.
- Building a site from scratch takes weeks or months compared to starting with a template. It's extremely time-consuming even for experienced coders.
- Coding errors can easily break a site or create vulnerabilities without proper testing. Maintaining custom code is complex too.
- As technologies change, developers often need to rewrite code to implement new features. This makes updating costly compared to platforms that handle this automatically.
Why Website Builders are Game Changers
Website builders revolutionized web design accessibility:
- They allow anyone to build professional looking sites through intuitive drag and drop editors, no coding required. You simply point, click, edit and customize.
- They provide hundreds of professionally designed templates for different industries, aesthetics, and site types - allowing you to quickly start with a theme that matches your brand.
- Leading website builders have baked-in SEO best practices, security features, speed optimizations, and web standards compliance out of the box.
- They offer powerful tools like forms, ecommerce, email marketing, live chat, appointment booking, and more to enhance your site and capture leads.
- The platforms handle all the hosting, maintenance, updates, speed optimization and security behind-the-scenes so you can focus on your business.
Key Website Elements to Include
While website builders make launching sites easy, you still need the right elements for an effective online presence:
Clean, Professional Landing Pages
These focused pages are designed to convert visitors into leads and customers.
- Choose a template aligned with your brand style and tone. Customize colors, fonts, layouts.
- Craft compelling headlines, subheads and text to engage visitors.
- Include strong calls-to-action like email signup forms, free trial buttons, etc.
- A/B test different elements like headlines, images, offers.
- Ensure mobile responsiveness across devices.
Blog to Share Content and Build Authority
Blogging establishes expertise and drives organic traffic.
- Pick a blog template matching your brand personality and style.
- Create valuable posts resonating with your target audience.
- Incorporate visuals like images, videos and embeds to boost engagement.
- Link to related products, services or resources mentioned in posts.
- Promote new blog content across social channels.
- Allow user comments to encourage community.
Forms to Capture Leads and Feedback
Forms convert visitors into subscribers, customers and clients.
- Contact forms let visitors message you directly with questions.
- Survey forms provide customer needs and pain point insights.
- Email signup forms grow your mailing list.
- Booking forms allow scheduling appointments or calls.
- Online payment forms enable ecommerce transactions.
Top Website Builders Compared
Here's how the top platforms compare:
Wix
- Drag and drop editor with 500+ designer templates
- SEO Wiz provides metadata and optimizations
- Accept payments through Wix Payments
- Ideal for blogs, online stores, portfolios
Squarespace
- Beautiful templates with minimalist aesthetic
- Built-in analytics, marketing, and SEO tools
- Integrates with MailChimp, Google Analytics, etc.
- Great for creative brands and ecommerce stores
Unicorn Platform
- Intuitive editor and templates tailored for startups
- Built-in lead generation, SEO, marketing automation
- Accept payments through Stripe integration
- Perfect for landing pages, knowledge bases, SaaS sites
Webflow
- Advanced editor for rich interactions and animations
- Robust ecommerce functionality
- Integrates with Zapier, Salesforce, MailChimp, etc.
- Used by startups and agencies for animated, interactive sites
WordPress
- Open source CMS with thousands of themes and plugins
- Woocommerce enables building online stores
- Managed WordPress hosting on Bluehost, SiteGround, etc.
- Highly flexible for blogs, magazines, member sites, stores
Conclusion
In summary, website builders have made it simple for anyone to create professional looking sites quickly, without coding expertise. With intuitive drag and drop editors and templates, you can easily build landing pages, blogs, forms, stores, and more. This empowers startups and small businesses to establish an effective online presence.
While WordPress offers advanced customization, Unicorn Platform provides the ideal blend of simplicity and power for resource-constrained startups. With its focus on lead generation, marketing automation, and startup-tailored templates, Unicorn Platform is a top choice for lean founders.
Explore Unicorn Platform with a free trial to experience how easy it is to build your startup website today.
