Why Bespoke Web Design is Better than a Template
25/11/2024
In this article, we will explore why investing in bespoke website design offers significant advantages over using generic templates. While templates can be a convenient and cost-effective option, ultimately they are very limiting and lack the flexibility to tailor to your exact business needs and preferences. At 360, we provide bespoke website design solutions, these are created from scratch, tailored to your business and user needs.
What is a Website Template?
A website template is a ready-made design, the layout, structure, functional components, colours and fonts are all pre-determined. The only real input required from the user is to insert their own text and images, and if they wish to, they can customise parts of the design by dragging and dropping various elements. On paper this may sound like an attractive option, they are quick, cheap and easy to use and if you have a tight budget or in a rush to set up your website this may seem like a good solution. However, templates also come with some major negatives, which in our view, far outweigh any advantages.
Advantages of Custom Website Design
1. Tailored to your Brand Identity
Your website is often the first impression potential customers will have of your business, so it needs to reflect your brand accurately. A custom design allows you to create a website that aligns perfectly with your brand identity, every element can be perfectly tailored to match your brand's unique style and personality. Templates, on the other hand, are designed for mass use. Even if you modify the colours and images, you’re still using a structure that other websites are using, meaning it will look similar, or even identical to thousands of others. A custom design ensures your website conveys exactly what makes your brand special and the specific messaging and image you want.
2. Scalability, Flexibility and Long-Term Cost
As your business grows, so will your website’s needs. Sooner or later you may want to add some complex functionality, provide a service unique to your customer's needs, expand to new markets or integrate a new platform. Custom web designs are built to be scalable, meaning they can grow alongside your business and handle any of the modifications your business requires, all without compromising on performance or appearance. Templates, however, come with limited flexibility so if you require specific features or need to make substantial changes you will likely find yourself constrained, forcing you to either compromise on your website’s capabilities or invest additional time and resources into reworking it. This is why, while custom web design may require a larger initial investment, it pays off in the long run due to its scalability, flexibility, and reduced need for future reconstruction.
3. User Experience
Templates use a generic, one size-fits-all approach, this means the same template could be used by different businesses in totally different industries. Therefore, it hasn't been optimised to the specific goals of your users or your business. Templates can also be loaded with unnecessary features or widgets that you can't remove, which can overcomplicate and slow down your site. Whereas before starting a bespoke web design project we take the time to talk with you, learn about what you are looking to achieve and carefully consider how we can ensure the most seamless experience for your user's. This process involves researching user behaviour, integrating intuitive navigation, mobile responsiveness, and a user-friendly design optimised for your audience.
4. SEO
While a lot of templates claim to be “SEO-friendly,” they are often not optimised for search engines. Template designs may include redundant code, use outdated practices, and you are limited in how much you can change structured data. Whereas with a custom website everything is built from scratch, meaning our developers can build SEO best practices directly into the site's code, including optimising metadata and ensuring fast loading.
5. Maintenance and Support
Template developers cannot provide support to all of their customers 24/7. Instead, they direct you to an FAQ page or troubleshooting guide, and if that doesn't help you fix an issue, you may have to wait for them to fix the problem, which could take a while. Additionally, if the template developer stops supporting updates, your website may become outdated or even incompatible with some web technologies over time. On the other hand, with a custom built website you would have direct communication with the experts that know your website best because they built it. We can quickly fix problems, answer queries, and generally maintain and update your website to ensure it stays working efficiently.
6. Security
Website security is more important than ever, especially if your website handles sensitive customer data or processes online transactions. Custom-built websites are typically more secure because they are uniquely developed and designed with your specific security needs in mind. However, Templates are often targeted by hackers because the same one is used by many businesses. Therefore, a vulnerability found in one popular template could affect thousands of websites at once. Additionally, if your template is not regularly updated, or uses lots of third-party plugins, this can result in a security risk if everything is not maintained properly.
Invest in your Future
While templates might be tempting due to their lower upfront cost and convenience, they fall short when it comes to performance, scalability and personalisation. Whereas bespoke website design provides a solid foundation with the flexibility, uniqueness, and robustness that can grow with your business. So while there may be a larger initial cost, and they take longer to develop compared to a template, ultimately it is a strategic investment that positions you for long-term success.
Interested in providing your users with a bespoke experience? Get in touch today!