As far as business is concerned, gone are the days when one would survive without a website. After all, online shopping has become the new norm. The Internet makes businesses reach a huge pool of potential customers at a relatively low cost.
That’s where web design comes in to assist business owners to expand their horizon. However, the concerned parties often find themselves in a dilemma, not knowing whether to go for a custom design or a template-based one. This article discusses them in detail to help you choose what your eCommerce needs. Read on to find out.
Pros & Cons of Custom Website Design:
As the name suggests, this is a design made with your company and only that in mind. Every aspect of it is tailored towards achieving the functions you need your website to do and, above all, based on your target audience. All you need is to find an ecommerce developer, explain your requirements to them, and they will use their skills to develop from scratch.
Pros:
- It becomes easy to achieve uniqueness since it is fully customizable
- The developer integrates user experience, SEO services, and performance as they develop the site
- If a need arises, scaling it becomes easy
- Integrating it with other third-party features, including Google Maps and MailChimp, is a breeze
- Great customer support is usually part of the services the expert offer in their package
Cons:
- The custom design will cost you quite a handsome amount of money
- You should also expect it to last for a relatively long period
Pros & Cons of Template Based Web Design:
On the other hand, this website design approach means starting from an already developed template instead of right from the beginning. The template usually contains some web pages that you can customize to match your company’s requirements. Just like the custom design, this strategy also has its advantages and disadvantages. Here is a summary.
Pros:
- It is relatively easy; hence no need for an eCommerce developer
- Under such circumstances, it goes without saying that you won’t have to pay much to have a website for your eCommerce
- There are many templates with various features and designs to choose from
- People often relate well with the design making ease of use and navigation great
- Last but not least, you will be done with the development within no time
Cons:
- It is hard to have a unique website because you have no control over someone who chooses that same template for their web design purposes
- At the same time, it is not fully customizable, and there are quite a number of things that you can’t change
- In fact, you may not be in a position to view to code of some templates as it remains hidden; hence untouchable
- Don’t expect too much support
- You will take the responsibility of figuring out the SEO services to use and also incur the cost
- Most of them also come at a price
- Interestingly, sometimes all you get is the right to use the template rather than the design itself
Conclusion:
From the above discussion, it becomes easy for you to decide what your eCommerce needs. Is it the custom design or the template-based web design? Compare the pros and cons of each and see what it is that suits your business the best. Some things can help you make the right decision. Consider the timeframe, goals, and budget. Additionally, think about the target market and the niche competition and borrow some tricks from businesses already doing well online. Consequently, the design that you will have will be perfect for your niche, no doubt.