If you do your homework though it doesn’t have to cost you a fortune. Make sure you check the small writing – the first year prices are to get you using their system but come second year many tend to charge a lot more.

You need to pay for:

• hosting,
• SSL certificates (no longer just for sites that have online shopping functions),
• business emails,
• domain name and more.

• You have access to fewer templates for free. The better ones require you to buy them.
• You have access to fewer editing tools
• For some website builders you can only have a certain number of pages.
• If you’re looking for certain features for your website like slideshows, image galleries, contact forms, etc this might not be possible or you may have to pay
• Limited social media integration
• In some instances a basic understanding of coding is required
• For your site to rate high organically an understanding of SEO is required

Is a free website the best option for my business?

Ok so we established that a free website isn’t really free. But the question remains – is using a free website builder the best option for your business?

• your business goals
• the purpose of your website
• although fairly basic to use, if the sight of a website builder’s dashboard sends you into a panic and
• whether you are prepared to put in the time to your content and SEO.. After all, what’s the point of having a website if no one can find it?

If you have:

1. No experience building a website and don’t need to rank. If you don’t have much or any experience in web design and just want a webpage and don’t need to rank high on search engines or need your customers to find you then a free website builder that you do yourself will be fine.

2. No experience building a website and WANT to rank high. If the purpose of your website is to be found by your customers but you have little to no experience building a website, a website builder is still fine. But unless you want to spend months researching all the key elements to make your website rank high we suggest you get someone who knows what they are doing.

3. Basic experience building a website. If you are great with computers and designing website and understand what is required to get your site seen a website builder should also be fine. The best advice is to make sure you compare hosting, domain and other related prices and ongoing costs.

4. Experienced. If you have the time use WordPress, Concrete 5 which allows a lot more customisation. Find the best hosting service