Why we use beaver builder?
Not too many years ago page builders had a reputation for poor code and terrible SEO. Most web professionals would not entertain them. But, as always, things change rapidly with online technology.
Why we use a page builder?
Before getting on to Beaver Builder specifically let's look at the general pros and cons of using a page builder.
Pros:
- Faster website builds with almost no compromise.
- More control over content and style for non-coders (clients).
- "Frontend" editing allows you to see what edits will look like before publishing.
- We can progressively modernize rather than redesign every couple of years.
Cons:
- It makes us more dependent on 3rd party software.
- There is typically an ongoing subscription cost for the software. *
- WordPress is also changing and becoming more like a page builder.
Of course, we can't predict the future. Most software is likely to become obsolete one day, but it does not look like page builders are going anywhere soon.
* is probably more of a pro than a con. Software companies rarely can get large community support like WordPress and without funding may not be able to support the product.
Why we use Beaver builder?
There are many page builders to choose from today. Most are relatively new. Some have already gone as the competition is fierce. A significant number have come from WordPress theme companies who switched to page builders. Many have used the licensing freedom to borrow the code of others to launch their own.
Beaver Builder was different. They were a web design agency who built their own solution from the ground up. They started the "2nd generation" of page builders which did not rely on messy shortcodes.
Pros:
- Everything is 'Open Source'. You are not locked into their service.
- Proven stability and ability to scale for larger sites since 2014.
- It does not try to be everything to everyone but is constantly improving.
- They innovated a way to control WordPress dynamic content and lead in this field.
- Their integrity, respect for others and thoughtful community.
Cons:
- They don't pack in as many features as some.
- They don't offer as much for free or cheap as some.
- Many have more DIY templates.
- Their marketing is not as wide (and there's that silly Beaver name).
- Their growth is not as fast as some who've followed them.
We view all of the cons as positives. Having seen the short life cycle of popularist WordPress themes we ultimately chose the company who focused on the long term needs of professionals. As with themes before, many page builders are competing with each other by continually adding more features.
We believe this approach leads to technical debt, software conflicts and complexities to an existing site's user interface. Beaver Builder is the only open source page builder we know of that is committed to avoiding these issue.
Additionally, Beaver Builder is not beholden to investors to capture the larger DIY market, yet is established enough to be around for the long run.
That said, we were early adopters of Beaver Builder and took a risk based on the trustworthiness of the people behind the company. We are very honoured to have become good friends with the founders. We've enjoyed some social time with them and they have always been extremely accommodating to our suggestions
In a world of rapidly changing technology, we believe Beaver Builder will continue to make lean and pragmatic choices and will not rush in unrelated additions to increase sales.