Template or Bespoke Built Website, that's the Question...
Is it time for your business to invest in a new website? With all-new decisions to move on from your current website to a new one, one question remains… ‘Should I continue to use a templated website, or should I invest in a bespoke design and build?’ In this blog, we will discuss the pros and cons of both options and what may suit your business more.
Templated Websites
It is very common nowadays for businesses to use the CMS ‘WordPress’ and use templates from their most known providers, such as Elegant Themes, Divi Builder or ThemeForest, as they provide a broad range of templates for a vast majority of businesses. However, this doesn’t guarantee that all of these themes and their templates are fully responsive.
Pros:
- Templates are good for low budgets as they have a low upfront cost.
- They tend to have a lower development time.
Other CMS services like Squarespace and Wix also provide similar theme or template choices with the options to edit sections within the chosen website frame. These are very quick solutions to get your website built. However, there are limitations.
Limitations:
- Lots of other businesses will most likely be using the same template which will affect how your website will stand out amongst similar competitors.
- You are limited to the template - what you see is what you get.
- It is likely that the template won’t work on all devices.
- Often, templates aren’t built with your website’s SEO in mind and this can affect how visible your brand is.
- Not many templates or themes have good support systems as you would with a developer working with a bespoke website.
Want to learn more about WordPress websites vs bespoke websites? Read a previous blog here.
Bespoke Built Websites
When you commission a bespoke built website, often these come with a team full of creatives, developers and marketers who work to understand your target audience, who you need to reach, and how you want the website to look.
In most cases, SEO plays a huge part in the bespoke built process, as many web agencies will know that a good SEO foundation means that the website will be more successful. As there are so many rules when you build a website - which not all themes or templates follow. This is why a bespoke built website is more superior. The developers involved with your bespoke website are completely capable of optimising your website for search engines like Google during its creation.
Pros:
- The website will be completely unique as it’ll incorporate your business’ branding and be solely focussed on what your business needs from the website.
- A bespoke website means that you have adaptability within your build.
- Your website will be tried and tested on different browsers and devices.
- The website will be built with SEO in mind and therefore will be search engine friendly.
- The company that provides the website will also be your call for support if you need it.
- If you need additions added, later on, the company that built your website will be able to incorporate this.
However, there are some limitations, as these bespoke websites take more time than an off the shelf theme or template as bespoke really means that your website will be built from the ground up to fully cater to your business needs.
Limitations:
- A bespoke website will be more expensive than an off-the-shelf website.
- The build process will take longer than a ready-made theme or template.
Ready to Optimise your Business for the Digital Space?
Here at FUZE, we know that you only get one chance to make a great first impression, so make it count with a totally bespoke website build that meets the exact needs of your business and your target audience.
Got a project in mind? Get in touch with FUZE today.
