Closed Source Website Builders vs. Open Source CMS

There are a number of website builders or parties that let you easily create a website in a visual way. In recent years, this market has grown more and more, and its popularity is increasing. However, a website builder has some strong disadvantages compared to using an open source content management system. In this blog, let's take a look at the pros and cons of both options. And how you can make the decision to use one for your business. Read on quickly!

Closed source website builder examples.

There are a number of providers on the market that allow you to build a website without having to code, such as

• Jimdo
• Wix
• SquareSpace
• Shopify (focus on web stores).

These are not all the options available to you, but they are the most popular ones.

Examples of open source content management systems

There are many different types of open source content management systems, some options that are successfully used by many of our clients are:

• WordPress
• Joomla
• Umbraco
• Drupal
  

By far the most popular content management system is WordPress, which initially came about as a way to make blogging more accessible. Anno 2022 is a versatile website builder that is widely used by both individuals and businesses. Umbraco is a versatile, if a bit more technical, option for businesses looking for a stable system.

Advantages of closed source website builders

The use of closed source website builders is primarily aimed at self-employed individuals or businesses that do not have technical staff or knowledge under the roof. Designing, setting up and maintaining a website is easier with a closed source website builder and is done for you or done in a way that makes it easy for anyone to create a website. You can choose from a number of fixed templates that will set up your website in one go, or you can get to work yourself using the drag-and-drop system, which is often possible. So, you can simply select parts or elements that you want to see on your website from a list and drop them on your website. And all this without coding.

Even for larger companies and entrepreneurs who don't want to spend too much time on this, this is a great way to set up a website quickly and easily. This way, any employee can quickly make a change without having to call in a third party or a designer first.

Advantages of open source content management systems

The biggest advantage of open source content management systems is that you have more choices. You can go in many different directions, and there are virtually no limits to what you can accomplish with them. WordPress, for example, has a huge user base that allows you to set up many different components on it. There are thousands of free and paid themes, and thousands of plug-ins that can be installed to enable almost any feature you want for your WordPress website.

What's more, open source content management systems are free and can be hosted with virtually any hosting provider in the Netherlands and worldwide. And you can go wherever you want. So, you only have the cost of the hosting package and your own domain name. Apart from that, you won't incur any additional monthly costs.

The disadvantages of using website builders.

Closed source website builders in almost all cases have no way of transferring your website to another party, the software you can use to create your website must not be exported to other websites. Because otherwise it would quickly become worthless.

So all the effort you would put into a website cannot be transferred to another hoster or another way of creating a website. We often see this with clients who, for example, want more or want to go in a different direction, and the bottom line is that they have to start over at step 1. This can involve a lot of work and negate many results achieved, for example in the Google search engine. Also, the monthly cost of a website builder is higher than that of another solution.

The bottom line is that with a website builder, you are often more bound by these conditions. And don't switch 123 to another solution.

The disadvantages of open source CMS

Of course, there are also disadvantages associated with using open source content management systems, for example, you have more to do with keeping your website up to date yourself and ensuring its security. Usually, if you encounter an error on your website, you have nowhere to turn except to a support forum where you can ask your question. At MijnHostingPartner.nl, we have set up a separate service for this, to better help you as a host. You can find more information on the overall support page, or create a ticket for your website requirements.

You are also much more responsible for making sure your website is intact and optimized. Ultimately, it's up to you, the user, to make sure your website is functioning optimally. So, you will often need to dig into information and therefore spend more time creating and maintaining a website.

With WordPress, for example, it is highly recommended to make updates at least once a week and perform some checks.

How can you decide which option is best for you?

Which path you take when building your website is ultimately your own decision. As a hoster, we naturally lean more towards an open source solution, since we can host it directly. However, you should be aware that this will require you to invest a bit more time and educate yourself. For this reason, we also keep a very extensive knowledge base for you, where you can quickly and easily progress with the help of videos, images and clear explanations.

However, creating your website with a builder also has its advantages: you'll be a bit more hands-on, and security and regular updates are also taken care of. With our managed WordPress hosting, you can enjoy the same benefits, but still enjoy the advantages of WordPress.

If you'd like to discuss your website and requirements, feel free to start a conversation via our online chat. We'll be happy to help you with your choice.

Using website builders at MijnHostingPartner.nl.

As mentioned earlier, we can't support Closed Source Website Builders on our hosting, but you can use our mail if you choose to. With a DNS reference depending on the party, you can then forward the website to the website builder and continue using our mail servers. Exactly how this works varies from party to party. So if you have any questions about this, please contact us. We can then advise you further.

What do you choose for your website? Let us know via social media!