xsitepro or wordpress?? heeelp!

[jamel]

Hi, please help..
So I know some about both wordpress/xsitepro, but what I want is to cut to the chase and just ask for answers as to which is likely to be the easier on the 'learning curve' side for a beginner in web design? I was steering towards a static blog IF I used wordpress anyway as I don't really want that over bloggy look. I do have a preference to static sites with a blog added when needed but I just want to get my site up as soon as possible so would go with iether.
I understand there IS things to learn, but I would rather take the one that is likely to have a lesser learning curve at the beginning! I am quite bright (I think ;) I totally understand all the SEO, linking, datafeed etc, but NOT really into the tech side of web design so want simple. However I do not want just a page of posts as in a blog look so I understand I would need to change things around if I used wordpress but how hard is it??
I hear people say over and over wordpress is super easy, but then I see so many 'how to' questions everywhere and then the replies show lots of code changing so it gets me thinking is it really?? Is xsitepro more a drag and drop kind of thing?
Thank you for any help! I am in a frustrated period where I want to take more action so I can actually have a website rather than just the plan but this has me stuck! I don't want to be stuck need to take action... :)

[nar321]

Things to consider. WordPress is free, XSitePro costs money. Yes both have a learning curve (come to think about learning curves most things in life do have one).

You can purchase customized versions of WordPress. You can also have someone install either of the two(WordPress & XSitePro)for you. It's boils down to time vs money and since no one can be a expert on all aspects of Online Marketing, you have to decide what to attempt and what to outsource. Your customer won't care which you use, there concern would be how easy to deal with are you.

To wrap up both are good,both can cost money, both have learning curves and only you can decide based on your situation which way to go. Hope this helps and let us know what you go with.

[Suzi]

Well, I can just tell you that I used XsitePro when I had absolutely no knowledge of how to do any of this stuff (i.e. BEFORE I ever used WordPress) and it was fine.

The instructions are pretty clear, but you have to be prepared for doing a bit of tweaking and fiddling around to get it to look just how you want it to - well, I did anyway.

Unless of course you go for one of those templates. I haven't done that - but they look pretty simple to use.

Suzi

[angienewton]

I personally use both so my opinion would be to go with XSitePro (http://www.angienewton.com/xsiteproreview.html) and use WP if you ever want to add a blog on to any of the XSitePro sites. I find XSP easy to use, Wordpress has taken me longer BUT I do like it and can pretty much do what I need to with it.

It really just depends on what you prefer!

[msliz]

Hi, I also use both Xsitepro and Wordpress. I've used Xsitepro for years and I think it's very easy to use, they also have pretty good support when I have a question, which I think is important as well.

I've also been using Wordpress for a few years but it took some getting use to. Wordpress can be quirky at times, for example I've done things to my blog that have screwed things up pretty bad and to this day I can't tell you what I did, so backups are a must ;-)

For what it's worth I've always felt more comfortable with Xsitepro.

If you have other questions I'd be glad to help, just PM me. Good luck :-)

[jamel]

Thank you so much for your replies they have really helped. I was swaying towards xsitepro as I prefer the static look and would rather add a blog later. I understand I have to learn on any platform I use but I suppose I just wanted to hear some others experiences about xsitepro, as it always seems all wordpress! Everyone raves about wordpress and I think it seems good too, and has its place. But it's not where I feel I want to start only because it is so bloggy even with alterations and I feel I want my site to be more static looking with a blog added later. To be honest I am just at a point where I want to take that leap so I was prepared to do a blog if it got me going. However I can see there are a few here using xsitepro so at least I know I can ask questions if needed.

What is typical is the fact I sway towards the paying one not the free. I am like then when I am shopping I will see one thing the whole time I am shopping and it will be the most expensive! :) well although I would rather have a 'free' start I suppose in 'business start up' costs xsitepro and affiliate marketing is still a pretty cheap business to start!
Please keep any comments on xsitepro/wordpress coming as I give some more thought to it..and again thank you this forum is a great support network for me! :)

[angienewton]

I just thought of something else that I absolutely LOVE about XSitePro and use all the time and that is the ability to quickly make redirects. It's soooo simple! There are so many things I love about XSP. Feel free to ask questions!

[Thom McCarroll]

Hi, please help..
So I know some about both wordpress/xsitepro, but what I want is to cut to the chase and just ask for answers as to which is likely to be the easier on the 'learning curve' side for a beginner in web design? I was steering towards a static blog IF I used wordpress anyway as I don't really want that over bloggy look. I do have a preference to static sites with a blog added when needed but I just want to get my site up as soon as possible so would go with iether.
I understand there IS things to learn, but I would rather take the one that is likely to have a lesser learning curve at the beginning! I am quite bright (I think ;) I totally understand all the SEO, linking, datafeed etc, but NOT really into the tech side of web design so want simple. However I do not want just a page of posts as in a blog look so I understand I would need to change things around if I used wordpress but how hard is it??
I hear people say over and over wordpress is super easy, but then I see so many 'how to' questions everywhere and then the replies show lots of code changing so it gets me thinking is it really?? Is xsitepro more a drag and drop kind of thing?
Thank you for any help! I am in a frustrated period where I want to take more action so I can actually have a website rather than just the plan but this has me stuck! I don't want to be stuck need to take action... :)

I can use both but I have found and I think most would agree (I hope) that WP gets faster indexing and ultimately better ranking ... not saying HTML is dead but from the start WP for me. There are tons of training video on the different themes as well as support if you purchase one of the premium type themes.

Thom

[lindastacy]

I've never used xsitepro so I can't really compare the two, but it sounds to me like using either "out of the box" is pretty easy. It's when you start trying to customize and change things that the real learning curve starts.

If you use xsitepro, you'll still have to learn WordPress eventually (or some other blogging platform). So you might consider using WordPress to start and having just one learning curve.

I disagree that WP static sites necessarily still look bloggy, but then there's customizing to learn in order to avoid that. It seems to me that the lines between static site design and WP design are getting more and more blurry. I have several sites that use the WP platform but I don't think they look anything like a blog. For example, http://www.homedecorbusiness.com uses WP. It's original design was very much like http://www.goodfoodbusiness.com/ with a different header and different colors.

[jamel]

thanks angie and don't worry I will have more questions as soon as I take a deeper look at it...but for now... do you do well enough in the search engines with your xsitepro site? or is it your blog that does that..if you know what I mean..do you have to work harder to get noticed when you start a static website?
Again one of the continued things I hear about wordpress and yet is it not still skill at SEO,linking etc etc that ultimately matters blog or no blog..just a passing thought as I type :)

[jamel]

hi lindatracy can I just ask you, on your comment 'start trying to customize and change things' is your site you then refer to then further down not customized?
is this a blog still? or are is that a static blog though..sorry if the questions seem simple I am just not over familar yet with wordpress´...thanks

[lindastacy]

The WP static site example I gave is customized. It's not a blog.

Some clarifications of terms might help. WordPress is not a blog, it's a blogging platform (a script that can be used to produce a blog).

A blog (short for web log) originally was a public journal or online diary that was used primarily to share personal information, not business. More and more people use blogs for business now, but it still pretty much means a site that is regularly updated with journal-like entries. Another major feature of blogs is the interaction - readers can post comments. Oh.. and RSS is another popular feature.

I choose to use WordPress for static sites mainly because of the ease of updating and because it's free (I still have some html sites and use a wysiwig editor to manage them, but I prefer WP now).

[angienewton]

thanks angie and don't worry I will have more questions as soon as I take a deeper look at it...but for now... do you do well enough in the search engines with your xsitepro site? or is it your blog that does that..if you know what I mean..do you have to work harder to get noticed when you start a static website?
Again one of the continued things I hear about wordpress and yet is it not still skill at SEO,linking etc etc that ultimately matters blog or no blog..just a passing thought as I type :)

It doesn't matter whether or not you use XSP or WP as far as SEO goes. It's all in how you optimize each page of any site or blog. I disagree that it's harder to get a html/static page indexed over a WP blog. It all depends on how well you optimize everything, linking, etc.

[Clay Franklin]

I think Word Press is super easy.
I showed my sister in law and wife how to use it and it was easier to explain and for them to learn than how to use the TIVO.

i am currently hooked on Thesis theme and if you want great typeset and no customization it is nice out of the box. For lots of customizations, xsite pro maybe easier although I have not used it I looked at the site and product.

For that matter Dreamweaver will let you drag and drop and build a site from scratch pretty easy and they have templates to use also.

[AlexNewell]

"do you have to work harder to get noticed when you start a static website? "

No because your ranking in the search engines depends on the quality and relevance of your writing and the overall SEO of your site.

SEO is affected by your web code being clean or crap and so the web editor or blog has some effect.

I had a site with tons of good original content, built with xsitepro which persisted with zero PageRank for ages.

I had an expert SEO review the site and he spotted crappy code which he reckoned was sabotaging the site.

I had the site rebuilt with FrontPage - itself not exactly a paragon of virtue - and within a couple of weeks my site went from PR=0 To PR=2 and PR=3

And WordPress is a lot easier for me than any HTML editor.

WordPress can look however you want it to. I'm guessing that plenty of sites you visit and think of as static sites are really WordPress.

It all comes down to a personal decision about how you like to work and what you feel comfortable with.

All The Best

Alex

[jamel]

Is it also true as I have been told that 'because of the plugins available for WordPress it's a clear winner over XSitePro' so tell me then you who use Xsitepro your arguements for that comment please ;)

[jamel]

oh and another thing about wordpress I have also read that you should not, to quote: ¨'just use Fantastico... it's a bad idea. You need to learn to "do it right" so you can upgrade' I know what Fantastico is barely (seen it in cpanel) but would like to understand better about the upgrades statement..thank you!
Sorry I ask a lot of questions but just want to understand better :)

[AlexNewell]

"Sorry I ask a lot of questions but just want to understand better "

Hey, Jamel, this place is perfect for asking questions, keep going!

I've installed a lot of blogs and never done things the long, boring, complicated way that a Wordpress Geek would do it.

All my blogs have been installed using an automatic blog installations wizard.

In the early days that was using fantastico, then fantastico de lux and now my host recommends using Simple Scripts

If there is any advantage of doing things the long way I don't know what it is!

I like things to be simple!

All The Best

Alex

[Danielle]

I use both word press and xsitepro. You can do a lot with both. As a newbie I new nothing about word press and have had problems with it. If you have too many plug ins or a plug in is outdated it can mess up the whole site. Those things drive me crazy!!

That is why I prefer xsitepro. Xsitepro is really easy to use and you don't have to get into the technical part of it. But it is not a blog! So I still have both!