We talk to businesses every single day that are mislead to believe they have a "custom" website, or that all websites are "built on WordPress.” But what do these things even mean? The most important thing is to understand the platform you use for your online presence and the myths that others present as truth just to make a buck.
What is WordPress and what does it do?
We see it all the time. Online forums and Facebook groups are flooded with business owners asking other business owners about websites and what providers to use. WordPress continuously surfaces as the "anti-template" platform that promises an open source playground that gives seemingly unlimited access to "things" a website can do. But how many "things" does a small business owner actually need? Advanced database functionality?
Yes, WordPress is a platform that is great for large companies to have a scalable solution for their business.
But for small business owners? No way!
Do you want to learn WordPress? Here's an example: their "Getting Started" help document page alone is 5,000 words long. 5,000 words! Just to figure out how to get started with a website. This is crazy!
Also, Step 1 in the process is to read. Small business owners are craftsmen; men and women honing a craft and selling that craft to a captive audience. It doesn't make sense to take away from your craft to become a web designer or SEO expert. In other words: your time is money. So it's crucial to find a solution that doesn't require extensive training, reading, or searching for answers.
Isn't WordPress the way people get custom websites?
It’s one way. But most WordPress websites aren’t even custom. Usually, “custom" means purchasing a pre-made template (built by some shlub from who knows where!) and then tweaking the code yourself.
But even if you hire your own WordPress designer, there is a bigger problem at hand. Freelancers often charge high up-front design fees, then disappear after you launch. And when it's time to update your site, you're at the mercy of the designer's workload – and you’ll likely have to shell out more money for each update.
The true lost art is post-design support – the essence of what a small business needs.
In the end, WordPress is just a website.
WordPress doesn’t actually come with a magic unlimited box of tools and features that let you do anything you want. It’s just a website platform. Sure, you can buy plugins that might do something special, but again, they’re developed by some guys somewhere who won’t help you out if you have any problems — and they require constant support, patches, upgrades, and maintenance just to not break your website.
So then what is PhotoBiz?
PhotoBiz serves both those that want to take a "Do-It-Yourself" approach and those that prefer a more "Do-It-For-Me" style of building their online presence.
We help photographers, artists, and small business owners create great-looking websites that are packed with tools that you can launch today. And if you truly need a custom website that’s built just for you, we do that too. Our designers create award winning custom websites that are easy to manage.
PhotoBiz also comes complete with all the tools and features you need to manage your online presence. You can get Ecommerce, Proofing, Forms, Client Messaging, Email Marketing all built right in – we even have our own mobile app! (Try finding all that in your WordPress control panel.)
But really, the real difference isn’t about products, templates, or even design details.
The Real Difference is Our People
PhotoBiz is a dedicated team of creative experts who are passionate about making your business successful. We don't just walk you through how to do something in your control panel. Our focus is on helping you create an ideal website that is a digital version of your business. We believe in the value of working together – not just to find a solution to one problem, but the best set of web solutions to fit the individual needs of each business.
It's about getting to know our clients personally, and understanding how their business works. That's why we have always offered phone support. Questions should be answered by real people, in a real conversation. If you don't have a team of experts ready and willing to provide you with relevant business advice that is rooted in experience and expertise, then I challenge you to think differently.
You are a craftsman that is an expert at a craft. Lean on a team for help with things that would take your time and focus off of just that.
Want to see more about how PhotoBiz stacks up against WordPress?
We break down the details, including site speed, code integrity, site maintenance and more. Visit our PhotoBiz vs. WordPress guide to learn more.
5 Comments
May 6, 2016, 3:09:41 PM
Joyce - I had a very frustrating road until I found Photobiz. The day I tromped into their office without an appointment and was treated to an immediate tour of their facilities and a walk through of their process, I was sold. I say "sold" but I didn't feel like I was force fed in any way. Since that day, I have been a very happy camper with the product, but especially with the access I have to support for MY needs. I still don't understand much of website building or maintenance, but I like how my site looks, loads, etc. I love how I can call or email and get immediate help or answers to my questions. Photobiz, you are awesome!
May 3, 2016, 5:16:31 PM
Hashim Warren - I have a long professional history with SEO, Wordpress, and PhotoBiz. I can tell you that Wordpress has zero advantage when it comes to ranking in Google and Bing.
The two most important factors for search rankings are:
1. The content on your page, and how well it matches what someone just searched
2. The links from other websites to your page, signaling to search engines that your site is trustworthy.
Neither of those factors have anything to do with who hosts your site!
The website with the strongest SEO in the world is Wikipedia. Why? because:
1. Wikipedia has content that matches what people search for
2. Many sites link to Wikipedia
Wikipedia doesn't run on Wordpress! It doesn't matter who they or you host your site with when it comes to SEO.
May 2, 2016, 11:00:53 AM
PhotoBiz Growth Hub - Great question, Danielle!
We actually hear this idea a lot – that somehow just having a WordPress site means you’ll automatically rank higher, but that just isn’t true.
Here’s why:
Search engines don't give you “Bonus Points” just for having a WordPress site. There are WordPress plugins you can install that will let you write meta data for each page, but guess what? Your PhotoBiz site does all that for you without a plugin!
PhotoBiz sites automatically generate meta titles, descriptions, and keywords for each page based on its content. And if you want to fine-tune your meta data, you can enter your own! Click the “SEO” button (grey circle with three vertical lines) on each page in the builder to access SEO settings for each page.
This is a huge conversation – and you’ve inspired me to write a full article about it! That’s coming in the next couple of days. But for now, rest assured! Your PhotoBiz site stacks up well against WordPress :)
Thanks for writing, have an awesome day!
Holly H
Apr 29, 2016, 8:30:41 PM
Judy dawson - You guys were the perfect solution for our business website! I'll never forget how helpful Anna was with helping me get started. Any follow up questions I've had, you guys were quick to answer. Thanks so much!
Apr 29, 2016, 6:31:57 PM
Danielle - First, I love photobiz.
Recently I heard that for seo with Google (to improve page rankings) Wordpress is the way to go. Can you speak to this?