Dreamweaver Vs WordPress: Which is Better for Small Business

Whether you’re starting a hobby or need an eCommerce site, you might have looked around and become overwhelmed by website-building platforms, not to mention hosting sites that can offer their own problems.

Two platforms we think are worthy of mention are WordPress and Dreamweaver, which are two widely known suite builders that can cater to different user types, but which one will work for you? Find out below as we take a detailed look at both of them. 

Dreamweaver & WordPress: At A Glance 

• Dreamweaver is best for individuals and medium-sized businesses who want more control over their processes and have some background in website design platforms.

• WordPress is ideal for those who have a small business or starting their own website and want a straightforward interface with easy-to-access tools and templates.

What Features Do These Platforms Share?

Can Both Be Coded By hand

Even though you don’t need any coding experience to use WordPress, or not even use it at all, you may find you want to expand on what you can create and uses program language like PHP, CSS, and HTML. This is similar to Dreamweaver, with the only difference being how much each platform relies on this feature. 

Both Support Plugins

You can find a good range of plugins for either platform. However, you’ll find a lot more on WordPress, and with Dreamweaver, these are made with the developer in mind, as you can even integrate them with other Adobe programs. 

What Is Dreamweaver?

Adobe Dreamweaver might be the program you’ve been looking for, as you can build and publish web pages nearly everywhere, and it supports CSS, HTML, Javascript, and many others.

Once you get started, you’ll find starter templates that can get you going, and choose from customizable HTML emails, blogs, e-commerce pages, newsletters, and blogs to tailor the site to your liking. 

Pros

• Coding is very flexible- You can easily scan code, spot any errors, and make changes accordingly, especially if you need to identify what type of code it is while being able to switch between the code and the design view to see your changes.

• Have more control over your site- If you’re SEO-minded, you can load your website at great speeds and don’t need to rely on plugins like you would for WordPress.

Cons

• Requires a level of knowledge– You can technically use this as a beginner who doesn’t know too much about coding, but the interface will take some time and may overwhelm some users.

• Isn’t Web-based- As it’s more of a software package, you may find the end result on your site looks different, so you’ll need to check the impact on the browser, so you may not be able to rely on using the software alone.

Dreamweaver Is Best For

• Those who already own or are familiar with Adobe software as they can integrate other services, such as creative cloud, to import images.

• For individuals and businesses who want more control over their website and can build it from the ground up, especially those who are comfortable with using code such as HTML. 

What Is WordPress? 

This is one of the most recognized website-building websites out there, as it powers many sites, from creators to businesses who want an easy-to-work-with content management system. It is made even better with the range of plugins and themes you can add as you go. 

You also have access to a platform that you can make your own with a page-building tool that lets you put your mark onto the website, making your brand more distinct from the crowd, and have we mentioned that you can use and modify it for free? 

Pros

• Plugins go a long way- With over 55,000 plugins, you can find ones to help you with automation, firewall security, contact forms, analytics, and customization, just to name a few so you might get lost looking through them all. 

• Is Scaleable- If you’re worried you might outgrow your site, not to worry, as you can create many posts and pages as you expand your horizons, you won’t find any restrictions, as it’s very flexible.  

Cons 

• Plugins can affect website performance- With significant assets, a lot of wording, and added plugins can slow your site down, so if you have e-commerce capabilities, this might be detrimental to your business.

• Not great for SEO rankings- If you’re looking to attract more traffic through keywords, the service from WordPress isn’t enough to get you ranking on Google, so you may have to use other services, especially if you’re in a competitive market. 

WordPress Is Suited To

• Bloggers who want to manage their content and view comments with plugins that are specifically designed for this purpose make it a popular option for personal projects.

• Small businesses have a small budget and need to create a site or a landing page for promotion or chasing leads that are all displayed on a reliable platform. 

Which One Is The Better Choice?

Across the board, WordPress seems the better choice as it suits a broader base of users, including eCommerce, as you can install a plugin that can easily be integrated with your site.

If you need more technical solutions, Dreamweaver might be worth considering, but it’s worth noting that it’s limited when it comes to 3rd party tools. If you’d rather have software instead of a web application and already use Adobe services, it makes sense for users to at least try out the package to see what they can do with it. 

Frequently Asked Questions 

Do I Need To Purchase Hosting For Either Of These?

Both of these platforms have hosting capabilities built into them, but after some time, your traffic may improve, and you may want to fork out a bit extra for hosting, which in some cases, might give you an added layer of security. You can also find a stable hosting plan that meets of your site, especially if you have a lot of words and assets on your site. 

Is Cloud-Based Hosting The Better Option?

With many site builder users opt for this option as it offers more convenience, as you only have to pay for what you use, and if you need to upscale, you can simply pay as you go so that you can try this out by a plugin for either service. 

Be aware, though, that some cloud-based services are tailored to WordPress, so any sites that don’t use this platform may struggle to use this and for Dreamweaver, you can integrate it with WordPress, giving you more options. 

Conclusion 

WordPress can practically be used for free, and Dreamweaver gives you a 7-day free trial, so you don’t have to commit to one of these straight away, as we know that picking the right platform can be a minefield, but you may find WordPress is the more inviting.

This may be because there is a lot of potential to create a personalized website that you can tinker with more as you learn the building blocks of site design and functionality.