Website builder companies like Wix and Squarespace are racking in the cash from business owners who bought into their pitch for easy website creation. But, as with just about everything that is “too good to be true”, these eager business owners are buying into an outdated platform that is essentially built to fail.

Most of the website builders use Flash based software. Flash is out of date, slow and cannot be read by Google. This means Google has no idea what your website is about because its’ bots cannot read Flash. Often, the website builders do not let you add more content, which is huge factor in Google’s ranking of websites. While you might be able to create a good-looking website in minutes, the website will not be scalable and likely never reach top search engine results.

Still not convinced that website builder software is a waste of time and money? Consider these ten reasons not to use site builders.

1. No website structure – website builders offer just 1 page for you to design a website on. This prevents you from ever growing your website or adding different pages to provide structure to your site.
2. Lowers your businesses credibility – recent studies have shown that around 50% of people cited that a websites design is the #1 factor in deciding the businesses credibility. The generic templates on Wix and Squarepsace are used by hundreds of thousands of other businesses. Customers will be able to see that the site is cheap looking and likely question the company’s credibility.
3. Not mobile friendly – In an age of constant smart phone use it seems crazy to not have a website that is optimized for mobile devices. A website made with a site builder may look good on your desktop but when you check it out on your phone, it is an entirely different story. Having a website that looks bad on mobile is almost worse than not having a site at all.
4. No Support – website builder companies do not offer support after the sale. This means that it is up to you to trouble shoot problems and make the fixes. Not exactly what you signed up for when you thought you could make a professional looking website in five minutes. Fixing a website builder designed website is more difficult than creating a WordPress site from scratch.
5. Not CMS – this stands for content management system and is important because it organizes all your files, designs, documents and images. Website builders are not CMS and simply a page of HTML – the super confusing code that takes years to understand. Be sure to re-read number four about no support because if you want to fix your site builder website, you better learn HTML.
6. Very Slow Website – most site builders pack you in to the same server as millions other users. This creates a big drop in site speed and results in visitors leaving your site.
7. You don’t own the website – As crazy as it sounds to have paid for the site builder for your new website, you do not actually own the website. It is like leasing a commercial space; you pay for the tenant improvements and the landlord keeps it when you leave. Because site builder website cannot be migrated, the work you do on your Wix or Squarespace website stays when you are ready to leave.
8. Advertisements – most site builders will keep a link (or more) on your website in hopes other unsuspecting victims like your website and want to make their own. You don’t earn any commission off the sale you have provided them and your website looks cheaper because of it.
9. No domain name – You domain will likely have the site builders name included. For example; yourbusiness.wix.com or mystartup.squarespace.com. This will cause consumer confusion and lower the credability of your website.
10. It’s a quick fix – You are building your company to be successful and to grow so why not do the same for your website? An add free website on Wix will cost you around $120 a year. This money could have gone to hiring a web designer or buying a custom theme for a WordPress website.

The appeal is there for a novice internet user who wants to, “build a good-looking website in minutes”. However, the money spent on this quick fix will be going to waste as the monthly $5 – $25 fee adds up over time. Additionally, your website is unable to evolve as your business grows. This means the investment in time and money towards you site builder website goes down the drain when you are ready to build a real website. Take the time to explore other options and talk to a website designer before you commit to website builder software.