Business today isn’t what it was ten years ago; and it’s worlds apart from where it was ten years before that! The internet has profoundly changed the business landscape, the way people conduct business. Brick-and-mortar stores are still continually marginalized by online options, and even giant names are no longer safe from the innovation of startups: from Uber to Netflix to Amazon, no matter what industry you turn to, new web-based innovators have shaken up the scene.
And that’s just the beginning! You might have the next big business idea to do the same. And it all starts with building a brilliant-looking website that’s clean, modern, organized, searchable, and handles like a dream either in-browser or via mobile device. Luckily, these website builders all have strong ecommerce tools to help you go from nothing to live, sometimes in as short as a day; and offer all the tools you need to do business, including checkouts, payment gateways, and product options.
Website Builder
Website builder is aptly named, and one of the popular options that has everything you need, with an easy drag-and-drop website builder suite that allows you to customize a selected template. What it lacks in blog functionality, which can be a little unwieldy, it makes up for in other options. Unlike many other options, it allows you to purchase a set of ecommerce related capabilities in an ecommerce plan, or to add them a la carte. You can check them out here: www.websitebuilder.com.
Shopify
It’s one of the biggest names in ecommerce, and for good reason; it has a massive amount of options, with over 100 website design and template options for those who don’t know how to code, though you can even opt to go full-custom. It’s user friendly and easy to handle even for those who know relatively little about handling a shop, and it offers item-specific SEO options. Its cart option allows you to select options for global payments, accepting roughly 70 different kinds of payment gateway, and it allows for mobile site versions to capitalize on mobile shopping habits.
Wix
Wix is another website builder option which offers the complete package. Wix offers a stunning array of website themes and access to some amazing professional imagery; and on top of a full suite of website maintenance and blog packages, it also offers some fantastic shop tools, include shipping cost calculators, easy social sharing for items, payment gateways, and top-rated SEO tools. All Wix stores can be mobile-responsive.
Highwire
A smaller name where website building is concerned, Highwire is nonetheless worth noting; it helps you build more customized sites from scratch and themes and allows you upgrade options which include ecommerce capabilities. Its gallery-style product displays are one of the features which bump it up to a contender, and has encrypted checkout processes as well as some fantastic store management tools, including the capability to run promos with codes and front-page discounts.
Bigcommerce
Bigcommerce is another big dog in the website builder arena; their builder portal is top-notch, and they’ve got hundreds of additional shop-related plugins and options. The only downside is that most of them incur a fee! Other than that, it’s notable because its SEO tools are by most considered industry-leading, and it also offers solid marketing and promotions oppers like newsletters, abandoned cart savers, and even ready client lists.
Weebly
Weebly, you guessed it, is another competitive website builder with a comprehensive set of options: but this one is unique and worth mentioning not because of the fantastic quality of any of its shopping elements (which are still pretty solid), but because of what’s included in their free plan: an unlimited amount of website pages, and up to 5 products. That’s a lot of value, compared to what’s offered on other free plans!
