Cross another one off the 35 Before 35 list - I wrapped up number 35 and got my professional website up and running. I had started it previously (and posted about it), but ended up going a slightly different design direction than I had originally started. Basically, I just wanted to keep it simple.



I used Wix to create it (instead of Wordpress) mostly because it was fairly simple and had most of the features I wanted. I do plan to eventually migrate over to Wordpress, but this certainly works for now.

My main issues with Wix are some basic usability problems, including the lack of ability to add a search box (seriously, people are Google-ized - sites need search boxes!), no hover states on links (other than those that appear in the main navigation), non-responsive designs, and a totally separate mobile interface for mobile sites. I've also got a few functional issues with Wix, like the fact that I don't have access to the code and CSS on my site, I can't modify page url names, and there is no blog capability included in the Wix platform.

All that said, Wix isn't so bad, I promise, especially if you don't want to mess with installing Wordpress and self-hosting. The drag-and-drop interface makes it really simple to create pages. Overall, if you build your site correctly on Wix, you'll get a functional, clean looking site. While I don't recommend it for more complicated sites for many of the reasons mentioned above, if you're looking to build a fairly simple site and have a solid grasp on design principles and how websites function, you should be able to create a good, usable site with Wix.

Up next for me: tweaking my pet photography site. It's in a sad state at the moment.