These days, there is no reason to think all-inclusive when you hear the word βweb developerβ. In fact, these days there is so much specialization in the world of website creation, you can hire a different person for every single task. Better yet, these days you can do many tasks related to website creation yourself.
And the great thing is, when you are picky about whom you hire to perform specific web designing tasks, you can sometimes get a better deal because there is so much competition vying for your business.
However, there is one such task when it comes to creating the perfect website that we here at WP Mayor encourage you to do yourself β page building. When you utilize any of the available powerful WordPress page builder plugins, you eliminate the need to rely on a web developer, have no need to learn code, possess the ability to design your site just how you want it, and of course, save money.
What is a WordPress Page Builder?
A page builder is typically a plugin you add to your website, though sometimes this function comes built into your premium WordPress theme. However, when page building comes with your themeβs features, you are usually limited when it comes to customizations and the end result is a website that looks like everyone elseβs in your industry that is using that same theme.
That said, today we are going to look solely at page builder plugins and why they are so great for website owners such as yourself.
Page builders are a plugin solution for creating custom websites from almost nothing by simply moving around block elements within a visual interface to gain a desired look. They require no coding knowledge and some consider them advanced versions of the WordPress default visual editor that comes with everyoneβs WordPress website.
They are responsive in nature, display in grid like fashion for easy page building, and work similar to a widgetized sidebar area that drag & drops elements in place. More so, they help you customize things such as columns, parallax backgrounds, full width images, content sliders, and more. Plus, they work in real time so you can see your design layout as your work. This eliminates the fear that your website will not look as you hope when it goes live.
3 Reasons You Should Consider a WordPress Page Builder
There are several reasons why ordinary website owners are looking to capitalize on the powerful features a WordPress page builder plugin can provide. In fact, recent years have shown that more than ever website owners want a quick, easy, and cost effective way to style their websites, and they are buying page builders to prove it.
Fast Website Creation with Minimal Effort
If you ask most website owners that are utilizing a page builder on their website, chances are they will not tell you it is because they dream of becoming the next best web developer in all the land. In fact, most will say quite the opposite.
Because the majority of website owners are not experts when it comes to web design, having the support of a page builder plugin allows them to design website pages quickly and without having to outsource the work to experienced web developers. Instead, they follow the lead that the highest quality page builders provide even novice website owners, and build their sites as they please with a simple drag & drop tool.
In addition, many website owners are not interested in understanding the coding behind website creation. It is either boring, too complicated, or not something they want to allocate time to understanding.Β Welcome page builders. For many, there is no reason to know the βhowβ or βwhyβ behind a page builderβs code. Website owners just want page builders to perform requested actions, no questions asked.
Time Spent Wisely is Important to all Website Owners
Page builders offer website owners an efficient way of making changes to their websites. Rather than waiting on a developer to answer your calls, possibly disappear, or even overcharge for changes you didnβt like anyways (which can all be extremely frustrating), page builders let you do the work yourself.
And, if you are using a quality page builder plugin and happen to run into an issue, there is likely to be extensive documentation, video tutorials, support forums, and even a support team on hand to answer all of your questions via phone, live chat, email, or a support ticket system.
Money Saved is Money Earned
Besides saving money on a professional web developer, page builders also save you time in terms of theme purchases. As I mentioned earlier, many WordPress themes (and quality ones at that) offer a built-in page builder feature. While this can be a wonderful added benefit when it comes to purchasing a premium theme, therein lies a hidden issue.
Many website owners will cycle through multiple premium themes before finding the one that works best for their websiteβs needs. This problem then becomes twofold when it comes to relying on a pre-packaged page builder:
- Any future themes you apply to your website must come with this added functionality to achieve the same results you are looking for. This can take time to wade through all of your theme options looking for one with the functionality, plus a page builder, that you require for your site.
- This added feature can make future theme purchases quite expensive, because some premium themes build special features like this into their prices. This is not necessarily something that you want added into your theme budget.
Rather than focusing on premium themes that have the features you need in terms of design and functionality (cue page building ability) you should simply focus on themes that will give you the needed functionality to provide your site visitors the best viewing experience, both operationally and visually.
From there, you should invest in a quality page builder plugin that can carry from theme to theme and give you the needed tools to design your website from behind-the-scenes quickly and easily.
What to Look for in a Quality WordPress Page Builder Plugin
If you are convinced that investing in a WordPress page builder plugin is the right move for you, there are some things to consider before making your first purchase. Here is a list of criteria any good page builder will have:
- Ease of use regardless of technical knowledge
- Mobile friendly/responsive design
- Translation support with popular translation plugins such as WPML
- Live Preview option
- Drag & drop functionality
- Compatibility with other themes
- Multisite compatibility
- eCommerce support with platforms such as WooCommerce
- Layout re-use
- Shortcode and widget support
- SEO optimization
- Multiple available page building components
Any quality WordPress page builder will provide these major features.Β And, it just so happens that one of the most popular page builder plugins on the market today β Beaver Builder β has all of these features and more.
What is Beaver Builder?
Built as an impressive and flexible drag & drop page building system, Beaver Builder has everything even the most novice of website owners need when it comes to website creation.
It has 16 landing page templates…
…and 12 inner content templates to choose from.
In addition, Beaver Builder has a front-end editing function. This way, you can see all of your changes live as you make them.
More so, Beaver Builder has a whole list of modules that come included so you can build your website to match exactly what you envision.
Here is an overview of some of the available modules included with Beaver Builder:
- Button
- Contact Form
- Icon
- Video
- Call to Action
- Photo
- Slideshow
- Map
- Sidebar
- Testimonials
- And more
Additionally, you can add any WordPress widget in the admin area that is available, even while the plugin is active.
To top it off, if for any reason you choose to stop using Beaver Builder on your website, uninstalling it will not erase all of your hard work. In fact, everything you create is secure in the WordPress editor. Albeit it wonβt appear on your website in an organized way, it will still be available for you to use.
That said, if you decide that you love the Beaver Builder plugin, and find yourself wishing that there was a custom theme designed especially for Beaver Builder, look no further.
The team at Beaver Builder provides an exclusive Beaver Builder theme framework for both the Pro and Agency Packages. This theme not only comes packed with enough tools to create your website from the ground up without a professional developer, it provides your website with the perfect balance between functionality and design.
Final Recommendation
If you are looking to build a professional looking website in minutes, rather than months, Beaver Builder is the page builder plugin for you. As a new website owner or even a seasoned professional, this plugin has everything you need to make compelling landing pages and enticing inner pages, all with a live preview so you know your site is building just as you want it to.
In the end, creating a website using a WordPress page builder is one of the trendiest things you can do these days. And rightfully so. They save you loads of money, release you from relying on a web developer that does not have the same vision as you, and provide you an easy, quick, and efficient way for you to build the website of your dreams.
Have you used a WordPress page builder to create your website? More so, have you tried Beaver Builder? I would love to hear all about it in the comments below!
6 Responses
Hi David Waumsley,
Thank you so much for sharing your personal experience with Beaver Builder. This is the kind of testimonial readers really look for – actual everyday use of a plugin we are reviewing to be excellent.
I am so pleased that it has never caused you problems, especially across multiple sites. Unfortunately many plugins, even the exceptional ones, cause issues every now and again on an update. That’s why we at WP Mayor always encourage regular backups π That said, I agree that you chose well and I hope you continue to spread the word that you enjoy using this wonderful plugin.
~ Lindsay π
Indeed Lindsay backup are so important. Beaver Builder, of course, does get unexpected conflicts as they all do. I see the changelog of fixes, but they seem to be edge cases and minor.
I’m a big believer that Page Builder are the way forward. As time goes on and they begin to style more than just pages they could be seen as the CMS equivalent of what CSS was to HTML.
There is a lot of choice out there for Page Builders. I like Beaver Builder’s concentration on the structure of its core code and focus on the long term consequences of their actions.
Experience has made me mistrustful of products that appear over night and can do everything for everyone. They tend to burn brightly for a short time. I don’t see that with Beaver Builder.
Great stuff Lindsay. Thanks.
What I look for most is reliability. There’s nothing I hate more than updating and finding unexpected work.
I’m over two years with Beaver Builder. I’ve seen constant and incredible advances with it… and there’s more coming. Yet, not once has an update caused a issue and on scores of sites.
I think I chose well π
Hey, guys! Great article. Thanks for the Beaver Builder mention. We really appreciate it! π
Welcome Robby!
Hi Robby,
Thank you so much for your kind words. It was pleasure to share with WP Mayor readers all about Beaver Builder.
~ Lindsay π