Two Great Paths, One Local Team: Site OnCall® vs. WordPress
Custom CMS vs. WordPress: Which Is Right for You?Shopping around for a new website? Let's clear up the biggest question first. |
When businesses start shopping around for a new website, there's one question we hear more than any other: "Should we go with WordPress or a custom CMS?" And right behind it: "Where will my site live, and is it secure?"
They're big questions, and it's easy to feel overwhelmed when every agency seems to give a different answer. Some only build on WordPress. Others only do custom. So naturally, that's what they recommend.
Here at Visionary, we're here to ease your mind. We build both WordPress sites and custom sites powered by our own CMS, Site OnCall®, and we host them on our own secure servers. That means we have no reason to push you one way or the other. Our only goal is to match you with the right fit for your goals, timeline, and budget. Here's a friendly breakdown to help you figure out where you land.
Meet the Two Options
WordPressWordPress takes care of a lot of the groundwork, so we can launch your site faster and at a lower cost. We start from a carefully selected template and tailor it to your brand, so you get a polished, responsive site that's easy to update, without it looking like everyone else's. |
Custom CMS with Site OnCall®A custom site is designed and developed from the ground up by our in-house team, then powered by Site OnCall®, the content management system we built ourselves right here in Des Moines. It's a data-driven site you can update on the fly, and it can connect to the other tools and software you already use. |
WordPress Might Be Your Match If...
| You want to launch quickly and affordably. Because WordPress handles the foundation, projects can get up and running sooner and at a lower cost. |
| You need a beautiful site that's easy to manage. You'll get a responsive design built around your needs that's simple to edit and update on your own. |
| You're running a blog, a smaller site, or an online store. WordPress is a great fit for these, and it can grow right along with your business. |
Learn more about our WordPress web development services.
Custom CMS with Site OnCall® Might Be Your Match If...
| Your site needs to talk to other systems. Need to pull data from a program you use every day or send info to a third-party platform? We can plug into existing APIs or even build a custom one for you. |
| You need more than a website. Custom tools, portals, and web applications are where custom development really shines. |
| Your business has unique workflows. If off-the-shelf features would mean working around your processes, a custom build can be designed around them instead. |
| You want to build pages your way. Site OnCall®'s block-based page builder and customizable navigation let your team create and organize pages without developer help. |
| You'd like the right tools built in. Site OnCall® includes a toolset tailored to your site, like Blog, Events & Calendar, Staff Directories, Resources, Testimonials, and a File Manager. |
| You want support from the people who built it. Since Site OnCall® is ours, questions go straight to the local Des Moines team that created it. |
Learn more about Site OnCall® and our custom web development services.
A Quick Side-by-Side
| WordPress | Custom CMS with Site OnCall® | |
|---|---|---|
| Timeline | Faster to launch | Built from scratch, so it takes a bit longer |
| Budget | Lower starting cost | A bigger investment for a one of a kind build |
| Design | A selected template, tailored to your brand | Designed from the ground up |
| Editing | WordPress dashboard | Site OnCall® page builder and tools |
| Support | Our Visionary team | Our Visionary team, who also built the CMS |
| Integrations | Great for standard features | Custom APIs and connections to your software |
| Hosting | Secure shared environment to keep costs and maintenance low | Secure shared environments or servers built from the ground up for your needs |
| Best for | Blogs, smaller sites, online stores | Web apps, portals, complex or data-driven sites |
Still Not Sure? Ask Yourself These Questions
You don't need to know the answer before you call us. But thinking through these ahead of time will help point you in the right direction:
- When do you need the site live? A tight deadline often points toward WordPress.
- Does your site need to connect to other software? Think CRMs, databases, scheduling tools, or internal systems. That's usually a custom CMS conversation.
- Who will be updating the site? Either way, we'll make sure your team can make changes without calling a developer.
- Where do you see your website in three years? Planning for growth now helps us choose the right foundation.
Good News: You're Not Locked InStarting with WordPress and outgrowing it later? No problem. If your needs eventually go beyond what WordPress can do, we can transition you to a fully custom site powered by Site OnCall®. Since we build both, you'll never have to start over with a brand-new team. |
Secure Servers, Built Around You
Choosing a platform is only half the story. Your website also needs a safe, reliable place to live. Every site we build is hosted on our secure servers in a highly controlled Midwest facility with redundant power, and maintenance is scheduled in the wee hours of the night when traffic is lowest.
But we don't take a one-size-fits-all approach to hosting, either. Here's how our system administrator explains it:
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"We customize the hosting environment to the needs of the client. We can use out-of-the-box templates and plugins in a shared environment to reduce costs and maintenance for the site, while for custom needs we build servers from the ground up, or anything in between." Mike Hughes, System Administrator at Visionary |
| Shared environment: Out-of-the-box templates and plugins on a secure shared server. A smart, budget-friendly choice that keeps costs and maintenance low. |
| Anything in between: Need a little more room or a few special requirements? We'll set up an environment that fits right in the middle. |
| Built from the ground up: For custom needs, we build servers from scratch, configured specifically for your site, your data, and your traffic. |
Whichever path you choose, you'll know exactly where your site lives and who's taking care of it: us.
What You Get Either Way
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Responsive design |
Built with accessibility in mind |
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Secure, tailored hosting |
A real local team |
Let's Figure It Out TogetherShopping around for a new website? Before you decide, talk to a team that builds both and hosts both. Tell us about your project, and our Des Moines team will give you an honest recommendation, no pressure and no guesswork. |
