When I first opened my design studio, I tried a few of the main website builders like Wix, Squarespace, and Webflow. Wix wasn’t flexible enough for me, Squarespace was too simple (I know, like girl what!?) and Webflow was a little too complicated for me. I never even considered WordPress until a friend asked for my help on a project back in 2019. At this time I was unaware of the Showit platform. I will admit I didn’t even know how to login to WordPress’ backend! Shonna* if you’re reading this, this is my confession!
To preface this blog, let’s take a look at some of the key differences between WordPress & Showit. Both have their strengths and unique features, so let’s talk about it.
WordPress is a highly customizable CMS with a million (I’m exaggerating) themes and plugins. The best part about having a WordPress site is that it is open-sourced and free to use, with a paid hosting plan. Hosting plans can be as low as $12 per year. I use and always recommend for my clients to use IONOS* hosting. IONOS provides you with a dedicated team member whenever you need, and I haven’t ever had extreme issues with the hosting IONOS provides.
I think when people hear WordPress they also think of coding and I’m here to tell you that you don’t have to know how to code to use WordPress. There are website building plugins that you can use for a more drag-and-drop approach. Elementor* comes highly recommended from Sol Co. and clients love the easiness it provides when it’s time to make updates.
When it comes to functionality and features, WordPress has a plugin for probably anything you could imagine. If you need to build an eCommerce site, write SEO with advanced tools or even create a membership site WordPress has those options available for you.
On the other hand, Showit is an in-house website builder, meaning the hosting and design is all through Showit. Pricing ranges from $19 per month to $34 per month with the month to month plans. The platform also provides complete creative control with its drag-and-drop editor, enabling you to design your website pixel by pixel. This in turn, offers more flexibility in terms of visual design, making it ideal for creatives.
Functionality for Showit isn’t as vast, but still does offer built-in features for blogging, SEO optimization, and device responsiveness. Showit does not allow you to blog directly on their platform but uses WordPress as a third-party plugin to import your blogs as you post them. Showit does the setup for this making it less of a hassle for you, so no worries there!
Now compared together, WordPress is great for its scalability and can handle large-scale websites with no problems. Large companies or corporations might benefit from a WordPress website. Showit, is better for smaller-scale websites, more specifically, for small business owners like you and I.
Depending on your businesses’ needs, you might go back and forth between WordPress or Showit and in some cases you’ll go with neither. That’s OK too, because you always want to build your website on a platform that is easy for you to use and makes sense for your business.