Yesterday, the widget-based site creator announced Weebly Designer Platform, a white label content management system (CMS) that will combine everything from website design to hosting to client management into one centralized interface.
Designer Platform will be based on Weebly' s easy to use drag-and-drop website builder interface and will provide designers with all of the tools they will need to create their site's faster, manage more clients, and, not to be forgotten, make more money. Not only that, but it will help out clients by giving them the ability to easily update their own websites using a special portal that will be branded with the designer's logo and colors.
Still, designers will have full control over their clients' sites and permissions. They will also be able to authorize additional staff to speed up the development of the websites and to help support more clients, if needed.
Also a part of Weebly Designer Platform is an integrated solution that will not require clients to purchase hosting from any third party web hosts, because the hosting will be provided by Weebly's data center redundant, cloud-based infrastructure that currently powers over 7 million websites. Thanks to this, designers will be able to generate additional revenue from clients through monthly recurring hosting fees.
Here are some of Weebly Designer Platform's key features for those of us who like lists:
- Re-brandable CMS Portal - Web designers will now be able to manage all of their clients from a centralized interface, branded with their logo and colors, that gives them full control over each client and their permissions.
- Intuitive, Drag-and-Drop Website Builder - After selecting one of Weebly's hundreds of potential themes, content can added to a page by simply dragging and dropping on things like text, pictures, or video. Designers can also manipulate the site's theme with Weebly's theme editor.
- Reliable Cloud Hosting - Weebly's very strong, data center redundant infrastructure, which is already powering millions of websites all around the globe, will provide secure and dependable hosting.
- Easy Client Editing - Surely many designers dread handing over their creations to clients much the same way parents fear handing their 16-year-old the keys to the car, but with Designer Platform clients can log in to check stats and make changes to the site based on the permissions the designer sets.
- Website Previews Link - During the development of a site, designers are given a special preview link that they can share with their clients for free in order to gather feedback and collect payment before Weebly charges anything.
- New Revenue Opportunities - Since designers can now charge clients for hosting directly, they can also start to generate recurring monthly revenue that they would have normally paid out to a hosting company. And, since they can also start to build and manage sites faster and more efficiently, they'll also be able to support an expanded base of clients. That should help bring in some cash.
- Affordable pricing - Website Designer Platform pricing plans begin at $7.95 a month per website. Building the site will be free and designers are only going to be charged when client sites are published live. Their plans are all in-line with standard hosting rates, but there are no upfront fees and designers are able to charge clients any monthly price that they want.