Idea #1.) Make a short, watermark branded, promotion video with all the talking points you’re bringing up in your post above. Video is one of the best ways to engage your audience. Make sure you show the logos of the “big clients” that are currently using Webflow (get permission) and, if possible, get testimonials/social proof from no less than three of them. If you can, get them in the video saying how much they love it, that would be great! Then, show how easy it is to edit the content is Webflow. Close the video out with a great CTA.
Idea #2.) Make a dedicated landing page (CRO style) to link to from an email you send prospective clients, especially the ones that want a WP site. Use the same ideas as I outlined in this post: FILLED - Designer Needed for Website - #5 by itbrian40. Instead of a Hero Image, you could use a Hero Video, captioned as to how easy it is to make edits in Webflow, then showing it in the video.
Idea #3.) Send ALL your WP client prospects to ME!
Seriously, If there is something you think I can help you with, I’ll be happy to do so, as I’m sure others here would as well.
Take care,
~B.
Edit: I just looked you up and see that you do Digital Marketing, so I’m sorry if any of this is redundant for you.
One more comment…the WordPress issue typically comes up in the first or second conversation with a prospect, so I’m working on a conversational response. While videos, landing pages, CTAs, etc. are great I think my best first step is to tighten up the language I use while I’m actively chatting with a prospect.
@rebeccajg I always talk about the lightning fast Amazon S3 hosting and how high grade it is.
And I already mention how dangerously easy the content management system is.
Remember it’s about finding out what issues the client will or may be facing, then coming up with the solution… Hopefully invoicing webflow, so they may not be very tech savvy, then you could mention how easy webflow is to use, they may be worries about reliability and webflow is a managed solution so no issues there with yearly updates and maintenance, bringing costs!
It would be cool if the Webflow team made a video specifically for this purpose. One that would highlight the benefits of Webflow vs. a traditional CMS like WordPress.
Whenever someone wants me to compare Webflow to Wordpress, there are three things I like to tell people.
Security - Webflow hosts websites on Fastly.com 's secure CDN. This is the same servers that are used for big news sites like The Guardian ( Guardian : Case Study ) . Also, automatic backups are kept on Amazon Web Servers
Optimized code - Webflow sites do not rely on plugins for common Website features. This makes sites load faster than Wordpress sites since the code is very clean.
CMS Editor - The unique editor lets users edit their sites on the page without having to use a completely different admin panel that looks nothing like the actual website on the front-end. Here is what the editor looks like: CMS & dynamic content | Webflow University
I agree with what @itbrian40 and @PixelGeek wrote however it is in my opinion that its your job to give your client the best solution that suits their needs and budget. Right now Webflow is not able to compete with WordPress on many different areas and that is okay as it is not Webflow’s intention (yet) but that does not mean the client needs WordPress.
@PixelGeek Mentions how easy it is to manage the content front end and I agree 100%. That is and has been my issue with WordPress. Despite I provide my clients with a custom edit area of WordPress it is still not intuitive for them to edit content without being able to see it front end real time. So with this in mind then Webflow is great for many clients. Those who want a nice looking site with interactions perhaps and the possibility to write a few blog posts and maintain perhaps a team page etc.
So if under the discovery phase you realise your client fits the above then I would use arguments and perhaps a video mentioned by @itbrian40 to convince them that Webflow is all they need and they can “perhaps” get it cheaper than a custom WP site.
However does your client want more than that then Webflow is not really the best choice for your client (but I hope Webflow will be with the API launch). I believe we are moving towards visual coding or page builders as they save time so I am really hoping Webflow will get to a place where I can make a switch from WP to Webflow.
@PixelGeek mentions plugins can be bad however that is only if they are written bad. I use premium well written plugins and custom themes without bloat so I can achieve quick loading similar to Webflow’s sites however this is likely to cost a bit more than Webflow though I generally agree with @PixelGeek that code maintained by Webflow is better. Similar to Apple. They make both hardware and software and that is why they run better (imho). You could use a similar argument here regarding Webfow. That they have built their software to work well together.
I personally do not think you should try to convince a client to go with Webflow if you know they some time down the line need for example Membership, advanced forms, “big” eCommerce, native comments, search and so on. You will probably just end up with a angry client that will never refer work to you or re-hire you for a new website or another project. Repeat business and referrals are VERY important in this business.
If you are more of a designer than I suggest when you get a client that obviously will not be able to use Webflow contact a WordPress developer and team up with him/her. This happens a lot. Especially since coders are not designers. I am a coder and I often get PSDs that I need to convert to a WP site. There are nothing wrong with NOT being able to do everything yourself. I sometimes say that someone who does everything is master of nothing. A bit harsh but its to make people understand that its okay you can’t do everything. A freelancer doing design, coding, bookkeeping, marketing, hosting is likely to be less skilled at coding for example than a full time coder.
It’s possible that the big (underlying) objection causing your prospect to be adamant about using WordPress is that many businesses want to manage their own content after handover - once their site is tested and fully operational.
Due to its longevity and the amount of info and free training out there WordPress has become “famous” for its usability for even a novice. I disagree with this as it can be a total minefield for non-techy types and we all know how badly that goes.
I’d cover this objection in a video - as also suggested in one response here.
Getting inside the head of your “ideal client” and covering all of their pain points and objections before they even get to talk to you means you can have a much more powerful conversation with them when you do connect.
I have a motto - never say NO to a client if they want something done a certain way when I know I have a better solution. Say YES first. That removes the friction. Then in the space that opens up you could say (for example in this particular case) - "Wordpress is great because (keep this simple). Why do YOU like WordPress so much? (listen intently to their reply, and go deeper with this questioning so they reveal more underlying beliefs with each new “why” from you).
This short conversation will give you the fodder for how you will be abe to address all of their “WordPress desires” by using Webflow “but with all of these EXTRA benefits”. It should be a “no brainer” for them to go with Webflow if you have not ONLY covered ALL of their WP desires but added a bunch of extra benefits to them and their business by using Webflow instead of WordPress.
Once again I remind you that this conversation will have the most powerful outcome if you know your “ideal client’s” pain points. Therefore doing your homework on your ideal client and building all of your marketing around addressing THAT client’s pain in your marketing will attract warmer leads for you to convert into sales (with your new approach to the sales conversation
FOOTNOTE
I’ve been in sales and marketing my whole career. Have had several businesses over 40 years. My last (until 2015) was as an agency owner for 19 years. So I sit very much at the intersection of SALES /MARKETING / PRODUCTION / CREATIVITY as the Catalyst that makes things happen and manages projects end to end.
I’m currently developing my next biz - an online “school” for small business owners - courses, training - and coaching (am accredited as a coach) across design, marketing and income growth. Just sayin’…I rarely have time at the moment to comment on posts but I decided to “enjoy my morning coffee with you today”. I wish you every success. Go get 'em Goddess!
Wordpress has turned into a mess of development flaws - the biggest being the amount of templates and plugins that blur the vision of the tool. Finding the next plugin that fits with both WP and your already selected plugins is a nightmare.
Further it is impossible to find out how long time it is since the plugin fitted with other plugins and also to find out if it will still work tomorrow.
Bottom line: WP has turned from excellent to a mess.
For your client this means that they can be taken down an alley where they do not want to be: dysfunctionality and costly redesign, redevelopment and re testing things they ALREADY payed for. So the cost of ownership is something to consider. The cost of development is already covered by the centralized concept of Webflow.
Hi @rebeccajg and all, first, I am sorry to hear that a client was lost because they wanted to go with Wordpress over Webflow.
I can feel your pain on that, and I think that Team Webflow can help to provide some good information to use when bidding on client sites hosted in Webflow vs Wordpress.
I believe that a simple and effective communication of the Pros and Cons of Webflow vs Wordpress, would be helpful
I would love if others who are interested, to provide input and send their comments to me as a PM or list those here on the post:
To the Wordpress experts in the community could you send me a PM, what technical items you are wanting to see that is in Wordpress specifically, with no plugins, that does not exist or is implemented natively in Webflow.
To the designer doing the bidding: When having specific questions from the client regarding Wordpress, i.e. they may think they need Wordpress “because…”, it would be helpful to know what those client pre-conceptions / feature requests are.
List of WP plugins you really love but do not have a corresponding plugin in Webflow. We might not have a particular functionality built in native yet, but it may be done using a jQuery plugin/custom code, and perhaps we can make list of good jQuery plugin alternative, until the feature in question is added natively
This list will also help the Webflow team to know what kind of features already implemented in WP that people are wanting
