DIY website building tools are certainly growing in popularity. They are the ideal choice for anybody who wants full control over how their business website is going to look and feel, enjoys getting creative, and wants to save money on getting their online presence off the ground. However, if you’ve never built your own website before, you could be missing out on some of the awesome features available from DIY website platforms. To make sure that you are making the most of what you’ve got, keep these top tips in mind. 

Choose the Right Platform:

First of all, it’s important to make sure that you are using the right platform for you. Shopify won’t be great for you if you don’t need an online shop, for example, while WordPress might not be ideal if you want to have full customization freedom over your site without having to code, although you can buy useful plugins like Elementor which can be used to add elements without coding. Before you get started, learn how to choose a website builder for a small business based on what you need for your site, your skills, and how much work you’re willing to put into learning how to use the platform. Website Ninja is an excellent resource for getting started, with lists of the most popular website and eCommerce building tools plus the features that they offer. 

Do Your Research:

Once you’ve picked a platform that you like the look of, do some research into it. Read reviews from current and past users and figure out some important things like how good the support is, how SEO friendly the websites are, and how user-friendly the platform is. If there’s a free trial period available, it’s a good idea to sign up so that you can have a look around, have a play with the tools and decide whether it’s a platform that you could see yourself working on. 

Decide How Much Freedom You Want:

Some website building platforms offer much more freedom than others when it comes to customization. Decide whether you are happy simply changing colors, fonts and a few other basic elements on a pre-designed template or theme, or whether you would like to have free reign over your website and the ability to change how it looks and add anything you like. The last thing that you want is to go into building your website feeling seriously restricted. 

Check Out the Blog:

All good DIY website builders will have a source of information for their clients to use, whether it’s a blog, YouTube channel, or a tutorial section on the website. Before you get started, make a list of the things that you’d like to be able to do with your site design and search for these tutorials. You will be able to find out exactly how to get the results that you want without having to waste time with a lot of trial and error. If the website platform you’re looking at doesn’t offer very much in the way of tutorials and knowledge-sharing, it might be time to consider a different one. 

Find Social Media Groups:

Social media can be an excellent resource for learning new things, and there are plenty of groups on sites like LinkedIn and Facebook catering to people using certain DIY website builders. For example, if you’re using Wix, you might be able to find groups of people who all use Wix for their websites, where you can share ideas, offer advice, ask questions, and generally support one another. It can be a great way to learn new things and make some new friends in the process. 

Take an Online Course:

Online course sites like Udemy offer a wide range of options for learning almost anything that you’d like to know, and there are plenty of online courses out there to help you get better at using certain DIY website builders. If you’re using Shopify, for example, there are plenty of short online courses at various levels whether you’d like to get to grips with the basics of using the site or want to learn how to do more advanced designs. Many online courses are quite affordable and it’s a great way to improve your knowledge both before you start and alongside building your site. 

Ask for Support:

Ideally, you should choose a DIY website builder with a strong reputation for customer support, so that you’ve always got the option to pick up the phone, send an email or use a webchat service if you need help with anything. A reputable DIY website building tool will have dedicated support staff who will be happy to answer your questions and help you figure out how to do whatever you’re trying to do. 

There are plenty of great DIY website builders out there, but are you getting the most out of the one you’ve chosen to use?