We all know time is money, and when something takes longer to create, someone foots the bill. So why keep doing something if there is an alternative way that doesn’t sacrifice quality, performance, and ease-of-use?
For years I would create websites in WordPress the old fashion way, custom coding themes that would constantly require my presence to execute a client’s vision anytime something would change. Not only that but going from design to code would take forever. This time and effort usually got billed to the client. This was and is in many ways seen as the de facto way to develop WordPress websites.
WordPress is great, after all, roughly 39.5% of all websites on the internet use it. Though without the right set of tools, it can be a nightmare to work with for designers, developers, and clients alike.
There just has to be a better way…
Three years ago while working at an agency I pitched them on the idea of using the Elementor page builder on top of WordPress. Elementor is a drag-and-drop page builder plugin for WordPress. I haven’t looked back since they got on board. This is coming from a person who has built a good chunk of his career on programming. So for me to swallow my pride as a developer, to develop less, should speak volumes.
So when I started SiteTent I knew I wanted to use the Elementor page builder as the foundation to build small-business websites. Besides most small businesses just want what will work best and save them money.
Here are a few key reasons why we use Elementor:
Create websites quicker, and easier too!
This should be obvious from my preamble but we’re able to create websites in a lot less time than before. Not only can we do it, but clients can learn to build out flexible content-rich pages themselves once we’ve established a solid system of components and modules to use.
From concept to a functional website we’re able to cut hours out of our process by using Elementor.
No Limitations.
Sure it would seem like using a drag-and-drop page builder would limit you to the functionality it can provide. Here is the thing with Elementor though, it is extendable! There are cases when the suite of Elementor widgets or Elementor add-ons just won’t cut it for functionality. This is a reason why partnering with an agency (such as SiteTent) is a great opportunity, as we’re able to create our own custom widgets and functionality. So all those years as a programmer aren’t for not, they still come in handy when clients have a vision that cannot be contained by a page builder.
Looks great on all devices.
Elementor makes the process of getting a website to be responsive to different devices a breeze. Before Elementor, I’d have to write a ton of code to target how different website elements would look on phones, tablets, and desktops. Now with Elementor inside the drag-and-drop builder, we can test how elements will look and quickly make adjustments.
Summary
As great as Elementor is, and I’ve certainly sung its praise, it isn’t one-size-fits-all. This is why it is important to always evaluate what problems businesses are having so the right solution can be recommended.
You might be thinking, “why would I hire an agency if Elementor is so easy to use?” Truthfully, you don’t have to. It is that easy. Though it is still a time investment. The reason you would hire an agency is for all the factors you simply cannot account for. Anybody can and should be able to make a website, but it’s the level of experience and talent that separates a top-tier agency from Aunt Florence’s 12-year old nephew. I’ll save all the in-depth reasons for another article!
In closing, as long as Elementor does great things for our clients, we’ll continue to build with it! We’re always evaluating other platforms to make sure we’re offering the right solution for the problem at hand.
