What I learned building my own website (and how to pick the right platform)

Why platform matters more than it may seem

Working with service businesses, I often see how the wrong website platform choice causes more pain than it needs to.

A business picks something quickly – usually based on a recommendation or an ad they saw – and builds on it. A year or two later, they've outgrown it, can't implement the features they want, or it doesn’t integrate with other services easily. Migration is painful – it costs time and money. 

But this is totally avoidable if we ask the right questions first.

Note: this applies primarily to service businesses. For D2C or e-commerce, the considerations are different.

Start here, not with the platform

Before comparing tools, it’s worth answering these questions:

• Do you need a CRM, email, or booking system built into the website – or do you already have one elsewhere?

• How often will you update the site, and who will actually do it?

• Are you planning to invest seriously in SEO or run paid ads?

• Do you expect the site to grow in complexity – a blog, a client portal, a course, or checkout?

Your answers will eliminate most options immediately and it will be much easier to navigate the options below.

The four main categories

Pure website builders

Examples: Squarespace, Wix, GoDaddy 

The simplest starting point. Easy to edit without a developer, reasonable cost, basic SEO. No CRM included – you'll connect one separately. Best if your site is primarily informational and you want to maintain it yourself.

All-in-one platforms

Examples: GoHighLevel, Kajabi 

These include CRM, pipelines, email/sms, automations – the website is just one feature among many. Makes sense if you want to consolidate tools and the platform's ecosystem matches how you run your business. Design capabilities are limited. Higher cost, and harder to migrate away from later.

WordPress 

The most flexible option and the strongest foundation for SEO. Setup usually needs a developer, and maintenance requires more attention, but customization is all there. Best for businesses making a serious long-term investment in organic search and/or paid media, or those with complex requirements.

AI builders

Examples: Lovable, Durable 

The fastest way to get something live. Output quality has improved, but for professional services, your website is a credibility signal — and generic-looking results can work against you with the clients you're trying to attract. Customization, SEO, and integrations can become a problem very early on.

What I landed on — and why

I went through this same process recently to finally launch the Rain City Marketing website:

raincitymarketing.org

It took me a while to get to this point. 

(A weird thing a lot of agency owners can relate to: you can make something confidently for clients, but somehow it’s so hard to do it for yourself)

I don’t consider myself a perfectionist, but I didn’t want to start with just any website. I knew that it was supposed to be evergreen and be the front of the business - that’s why I wanted to do it right. Find the right wording, right visual style, and build it on the right platform that can scale over time.

Design

For the visual part, I was lucky to find Alexandra Ivanova. She's a talented art director who not only creates beautiful designs but also understands the business side and can translate that into the visual domain. Some AI solutions now promise a website “within minutes” – I didn’t want that for my business, as I needed a really high design quality that comes from a true professional.

Copy

AI for copy wasn't the way to go either, because I didn’t want it to sound vague and generic. It was a process for me to find the right words and the right tone to sound the way that feels authentic and easily digestible for potential clients. I'm not a great writer by any means, and the copy isn't perfect — but I'm comfortable with that. It's a learning curve.

(Btw I’m very much open to feedback – please let me know if something feels off and feel free to share your comments via LinkedIn DM or send me an email to evgeniya@raincitymarketing.org)

Platform

Even though my site is not technically complicated at all, it would be frustrating to build it on one platform and then painfully migrate to another. So I went through the consideration process and ended up with Wix. To make it come to life, I’m glad to have Sasha Slesarchuck on my team, who helped me figure out the solution and build the site fast and clean.

The answer wasn't "what's the best platform." It was what fits this business, at this stage, with these specific constraints.

Now it is finally live and it feels like an important milestone, like the business became even more serious than it was before 🙂 

And there is more to come, so stay tuned!