Why we use a WordPress page builder

When you think of website design, what comes to mind? Coding? Complexity? That may have been true back in 2003 when our agency first opened its doors, but it’s not the case any longer.

We at T&S are big fans of WordPress in general, and for many reasons. It’s a very versatile platform, and one of the tools we use through WordPress is a page builder plugin to create clients’ websites. Our team can still dip into the code when needed, it’s just not needed nearly as much now as it used to be.

Beaver Builder is our page builder of choice, so let’s look at what it offers and why we like it.

What is a WordPress page builder?

Before going into depth about a specific page builder, it’s important to understand what it is and does. Some premium website themes make customization challenging because of their unique interfaces and some even require you to know code (HTML). However, third-party plugin and theme creators have created drag-and-drop page builders that make it possible to create a much more versatile website than would otherwise be possible, or at least affordable.

Although you don’t have to know code, any automatically-generated HTML can have a negative impact on your website’s technical SEO. You don’t have direct control over the code, and it can often become bloated, which has a negative impact on your website’s Google ranking. However, there are page builders that have good, clean code, and that’s one reason we chose Beaver Builder.

Why Beaver Builder? 

Aside from Beaver Builder generating decent code, there are lots of other reasons we chose it. Some of those reasons include:

• Drag and drop feature: allows you to drag and drop different elements and contents.
• Templates: you can customize, reuse, and share page templates.
• Theme styles: serves as a starting point for pages, and you can switch themes without losing content.
• Modules: you can use modules to build unique pages, such as FAQ or Q&A pages, and you can include slideshows, call to action (CTA) buttons, contact forms, and more.
• Support: offers live support, training, and tickets for help

Other benefits include being mobile-friendly, can be used by anyone, works with different themes and plugins, build any type of site, and more. Beaver Builder has a lot of tools, which take time to learn to use, but once you get the hang of it, it’s basically a life saver. 

For our higher-end clients, we also like the flexibility that comes with combining other plugins with the Beaver Themer add-on, making extremely customizable layouts possible for blog articles and other pages as well.

And the Beaver Builder theme provides a clean starting for all of our websites as well, meshing well with both the page builder and Beaver Themer.

More WordPress page builders 

While most of our clients have us create their websites, we also work with clients who love their websites but use a different page builder. While we sometimes convert those to Beaver Builder, other times we will leave them on the page builder they were created on.

Here are some other drag-and-drop page builders you can use.

• Divi: This plugin is very easy to use and has over 20 templates for different types of websites.
• Elementor: You can easily start creating sections and columns, and you can see your changes live as you edit.
• Oxygen: Designed to be a lightweight page builder, Oxygen has a reputation for being extremely fast-loading.
• SeedProd: You can choose from over 100 pre-made templates or create a fully-custom layout. It’s quick and easy to use.
• Themify: It comes with ready-to-use modules for your website pages, and it has over 40 pre-designed layouts if you don’t want to start from scratch.

Really, the only page builder we’ve had consistently poor experiences with is Visual Composer from WP Bakery. Of course, your mileage may vary.

Whether you are building a website or making changes to certain pages of your website, a WordPress page builder is easy to learn and use. Before deciding which one to go with, always research and test them out. Always go with a page builder that meets your expectations and helps reach your goal. Beaver Builder is a great place to start, and makes great-looking page designs possible for both the experienced professional and business owner running their own website.