Strikingly Review: How This Website Builder Stacks Up Against the Competition?

So you're looking to create a website but don't know where to start. With so many website builders, choosing the right one for your needs can be challenging.

In this comprehensive Strikingly review, we'll take an in-depth look this popular website builder known for its beautiful one-page websites. We'll cover everything you need to know, from features and templates to pricing and ease of use.

What is Strikingly?

Strikingly is a website builder launched in 2012 that makes it easy to create elegant single-page websites. The platform is geared towards individuals, bloggers, entrepreneurs, and small businesses who want a professional online presence quickly and easily.

Some key things to know about Strikingly:

• Drag and drop editor with predesigned sections and templates
• Mobile responsive design
• Built-in blogging and e-commerce capabilities
• Free plan available
• Paid plans start at $8/month

Strikingly aims to provide users with an intuitive website-building experience without coding skills. The editor allows you to customize different sections and elements on your site with just a few clicks.

While Strikingly specializes in one-page websites, their paid plans allow you to create multi-page sites. So, it's flexible enough for both simple and complex sites.

Strikingly's Key Features

Strikingly comes equipped with a number of useful features to help you build your website:

Drag and Drop Editor

Strikingly uses an intuitive drag-and-drop editor that makes building your site visual and easy. Rather than dealing with lines of code, you can simply click and drag different elements like text, images, and videos onto your page.

The editor allows you to customize different sections of your site, with options to change the layout, colors, fonts, and more. You can also easily rearrange sections by dragging and dropping them.

Mobile Optimization

Strikingly's templates are optimized for mobile, so your site will look great on any device. The sites adapt seamlessly to mobile screens, ensuring visitors have a smooth experience.

You can also access mobile-specific features like click-to-call, click-to-email, and location buttons for enhanced user experience.

100+ Templates

Strikingly provides over 100 templates spanning categories like business, portfolio, online store, and blog. The modern, professional designs will surely give your site the look you want.

You can easily preview and switch templates to find the perfect one. When you do, all your content will transfer over seamlessly.

Built-in Blog

The integrated blog feature lets you quickly add blog posts to your site. You can categorize your posts, allow comments, add images and videos, and more.

Blog posts are displayed separately from your main one-page site for a more traditional blogging experience.

Simple Store

Strikingly offers simple e-commerce capabilities to sell products or services directly on your site. You can add product pages, checkout options, and accept payments.

You can offer coupons, manage inventory, and access other advanced selling features with paid plans.

Apps & Integrations

Enhance your site's functionality with Strikingly's apps and integrations. Add an email newsletter, embed social media feeds, and install live chat.

Popular integrations include MailChimp, Facebook, Disqus, Google Analytics, and PayPal. Most require upgrading from the free plan.

Detailed Analytics

Understand your website visitors with the built-in analytics dashboard. See your traffic volume, top pages, geography, and other data.

Strikingly's analytics provide key insights to inform your content strategy and marketing.

Strikingly Pricing

Strikingly offers a free forever plan along with three paid tiers. Let's take a look at what each pricing plan includes:

• Free - Unlimited sites - Strikingly subdomain - Up to 5 pages - 500MB storage - 5GB bandwidth/month - 1 product listing - Strikingly branding
• Limited - $8/month - 2 websites - 1 custom domain for 1 year - 50GB bandwidth/month - Remove Strikingly branding - Priority support
• Pro - $16/month - 3 websites - Unlimited bandwidth - 20GB storage - Up to 100 pages - Advanced e-commerce features - Site search - Password protection
• VIP - $49/month - 5 websites - 100GB storage - Unlimited products - Email marketing - Priority phone support

Some key things to note: 

• Longer billing cycles (annually or biennially) offer discounts of up to 30% off
• Transaction fees apply on some plans when selling through Strikingly (2% for Pro, 0% for VIP)
• Add-ons like extra storage or priority support have additional costs

Overall, Strikingly provides flexible and affordable plans. The free option is very capable for basic sites. Paid plans unlock more advanced capabilities and are competitively priced compared to some rivals.

Using Strikingly's Website Builder

Now, let's dive into the actual website-building process with Strikingly. We'll take a look at how easy it is to use and some key steps:

Step 1: Select a Template

First, you'll need to choose one of Strikingly's pre-made templates. You can browse by category or keyword to find the perfect design.

Strikingly provides preview options, including mobile previews, so you can visualize how your content will look. Choose your favorite template to start.

Step 2: Customize Sections

Your template will have different sections like "Hero Header", "About", "Services", etc. Click on each section to customize it by adding text, images, videos, etc.

Strikingly offers handy formatting options within the editor to tailor your content quickly. Make each section your own.

Step 3: Modify Design & Layout

Tweak the template's colors, fonts, and overall styling by accessing the left Style Editor menu. You can create a color scheme that matches your brand.

Additionally, some sections provide different layout options you can switch between. Drag and drop to rearrange sections as needed.

Step 4: Add Pages

Use the Pages menu to create new pages and assign page titles for multi-page sites. Link pages together through the navigation menu.

Note that single-page sites scroll through sections, while multi-page sites have separate URLs for each page.

Step 5: Publish Site

When your site is ready, click the Publish button to make it live online! Share the link and start inviting visitors.

You can always access Strikingly to edit anything on your live site. Changes will sync and update instantly.

Ease of Use

Strikingly's editor is intuitive and easy to navigate for beginners. The ability to visually build sites section by section makes the process straightforward.

However, some limitations around customization and integrating external apps can cause headaches for more advanced users. The editor isn't suited for complex, multifaceted sites.

So, how easy is Strikingly to use? Let's recap the key pros and cons:

Pros

• Intuitive drag-and-drop editing
• Helpful formatting options within editor
• Reorder sections by dragging
• Mobile previews simplify the responsive design
• Easy publishing process

Cons

• Limited customization beyond set parameters
• Integrating external apps and code requires workarounds
• Multi-page management can be unintuitive
• No undo button

Overall, complete beginners will be able to build a basic website with Strikingly's user-friendly editor. But those wanting more advanced customization may find it overly restrictive.

Strikingly's Templates

The templates provided by Strikingly range from minimalist portfolios to vibrant online stores. Here's an overview of what their template library has to offer:

• 100+ Professionally Designed Templates. Strikingly curates a selection of modern templates focused on aesthetics and usability. The designs are attractive and make a good first impression.
• Responsive & Mobile-Optimized. Every template works seamlessly on mobile devices out of the box. Pages reformat and rescale for optimal viewing on phones and tablets.
• Suitable for Various Industries. Choose from website templates tailored to different sectors like retail, fashion, design, writing, and more.
• Easy to Preview. Preview templates instantly and see how your own content would appear. Switch between templates freely while preserving your changes.
• Customizable Sections & Layouts. Start with a template, then customize it by modifying individual sections and switching layouts.
• Uniformly Polished Designs. Even simpler templates benefit from Strikingly's polished, cohesive style. Every design looks updated and unrefined.
• Limited Stylistic Diversity. While Strikingly's templates are professionally designed, they lean homogenous in their minimalist aesthetics. Few unique or flashy options.
• No Ability to Save Custom Templates . Once you customize a template, you can't save it to reuse the exact design. You'd have to rebuild it from scratch each time.
• Section Customization Restrictions. The set layouts and elements of sections limit how much you can modify the template design. Custom CSS workarounds are required for advanced styling.
• No Video Backgrounds. Some competing website builders like Wix support video backgrounds, which can add visual impact. This option isn't available with Strikingly.

Strikingly offers an appealing collection of modern templates catering to different industries. They provide a polished starting point for your site's design. However, customization is limited unless you have CSS skills to work around the editor.

How Does Strikingly Handle E-commerce?

Strikingly provides basic e-commerce capabilities so you can sell products through your site. Here's an overview of its e-commerce features:

• Sell Physical/Digital Products. Offer tangible products, virtual downloads like ebooks, or online services for purchase. Add buy buttons, pricing, inventory tracking, and more.
• Payment Processing Integrations. Connect Stripe or PayPal to accept credit card payments securely. Strikingly also supports Alipay and WeChat Pay.
• Coupons & Discounts. Encourage purchases with percentage discounts or dollar amount coupon codes. Collect emails with discount offers.
• Order Management System. View and manage orders, shipment status, inventory counts, and other key metrics from your dashboard.
• Abandoned Cart Emails. Remind shoppers about items left in their cart with automated abandoned cart emails to recover sales.
• Limited Design Customization. The shopping pages use your main site's design, so you have little layout or style control.
• No Native Shipping Options. Strikingly doesn't integrate with shipping carriers like USPS or FedEx to calculate real-time rates.
• Transaction Fees Apply. Most plans incur an extra fee on top of Stripe/PayPal charges per transaction, from 5% to 2%.
• Limited Product Capabilities. Free plans can only sell 1 product. Paid plans have caps ranging from 5 products to 300 products maximum.

Strikingly provides the basic e-commerce features for a simple online store with a few products. However, it lacks powerful selling tools and customization dedicated e-commerce platforms offer.

Advanced stores would benefit from a standalone e-commerce solution like Shopify, BigCommerce, or Wix Stores. However, Strikingly suffices for small-scale shops.

Essential Marketing & SEO Tools

Having the right marketing tools can take your website to the next level. Here are some of the key capabilities Strikingly offers related to marketing and SEO:

• Email Marketing Integrations. Connect Mailchimp or SendGrid to collect emails and send newsletters to subscribers. Limited capabilities without a paid plan.
• Site Search. Let visitors search your entire site content with the built-in search bar only for paid plans.
• Social Media Integration. Embed Facebook comments, Twitter feeds, and other social plugins to foster engagement.
• Google Analytics. Integrate Google Analytics to access detailed data on traffic sources, top pages, and conversions.
• SEO Meta Tags. Customize SEO title, description, and keywords for each page. Strikingly also provides SEO guidance.
• Blogging. The integrated blog lets you regularly publish content to help drive traffic and boost SEO.
• Limited Native Email Marketing. Strikingly's email capabilities, like opt-in forms, autoresponders, and email series, all require costly add-ons.
• No Landing Page Builder. Creating dedicated landing pages for campaigns is ideal but not directly supported.
• Lacks Lead Capture Forms. No built-in way to easily create and embed conversion-driven forms for capturing leads.
• No Automated Marketing. Helpful marketing automation based on visitor behavior isn't natively supported like with some builders.

Strikingly covers the basic marketing must-haves for small websites like SEO optimization, analytics, blogging, and social media. However, more advanced options require third-party tools. Marketers may want a website builder with more robust email marketing and lead-gen features.

Strikingly's Memberships & Online Courses

With Strikingly, you can offer memberships and online courses to generate recurring revenue. Here's an overview of how it works:

• Paid Memberships. Let members access gated content in return for a monthly/annual subscription fee.
• Membership Tiers. Provide different membership levels at varying price points with customized benefits.
• Online Payment Collection. Integrate Stripe or PayPal to accept membership fees seamlessly.
• Digital Downloads. Share documents, videos, ebooks, and other files with members.
• Drip Content. Automatically provide new content drips to members over time to encourage retention.
• Online Courses. Sell access to online courses with video lessons, materials, and quizzes.
• Limited Membership Management. Membership administration requires using external tools for advanced segmentation or automation.
• No Native Course Creation. You'll need an external course platform to create courses and then link them to Strikingly.
• Few Membership Insights. Strikingly doesn't provide deep analytics on membership activity and engagement.

Building a membership site on Strikingly is achievable, thanks to integrated payment processing and content-locking capabilities. However, you'll still need third-party systems for creating course content and managing memberships long-term.

For a more robust membership site building all-in-one, check out platforms like MemberPress or Memberful that are purpose-built for this model.

Does Strikingly Have Good Technical Support?

Having access to support can be a make or break, especially for non-technical users. Here is an overview of Strikingly's customer support:

• Knowledge Base. Extensive library of tutorials, guides, and troubleshooting articles for self-help.
• 24/7 Live Chat. Friendly support agents are available around the clock for instant 1-on-1 answers.
• Email Ticket Support. Submit email tickets for non-urgent issues to get responses within 1 business day generally.
• Active User Community. Ask fellow Strikingly users questions and feedback in the forum community.
• Help Widget. The floating widget connects you to live chat, knowledge base, or sending a ticket.
• Phone Support (VIP plans). Get dedicated phone assistance if you subscribe to the highest VIP plan.
• Customer Reviews. Users praise Strikingly's timely, thorough support across various channels.
• Limited Phone Support. Phone support is only available for high-paying VIP plans. All other plans are chat or email only.
• No Screen Sharing. Some competitors offer screen sharing for personalized walkthroughs, which Strikingly lacks.

Strikingly delivers exceptional customer service according to users. Their stellar support team and robust self-help content make troubleshooting issues a breeze. Phone support is the only notable gap - albeit one reserved for top-tier plans only.

Who is Strikingly Best Suited For?

With its capabilities and limitations considered, Strikingly is an ideal website builder for:

• Individuals - Artists, musicians, bloggers, consultants, and other solopreneurs who want a polished online presence.
• Small Businesses - Local businesses, agencies, professionals like photographers who don't need advanced ecommerce or complex sites.
• Beginners - Those without web design expertise who want an easy introduction to launching their first website.
• Basic Sites - People who need a quality single or few-page website without demanding features or customization.
• Mobile-First Projects - Entrepreneurs focused on launching mobile-optimized sites for today's mobile-dominant world.
• Membership Sites - Coaches, teachers, influencers offering online memberships with gated content.

Strikingly isn't recommended as much for:

• Advanced Users - Experienced web designers who want total creative control and customization.
• Enterprise E-commerce - Large online stores with thousands of products and complex needs better suited for dedicated e-commerce platforms.
• Agencies - Web design agencies managing many client sites that would benefit from broad account management capabilities.
• Maximum Customization - Users who want to dictate every pixel of the site design and layout.
• Advanced Automation - Marketers who need built-in automation, landing page builders, and advanced email and lead capture functionality.

Strikingly Alternatives

Strikingly is far from the only option when it comes to website builders. Several rivals exist that may be better suited depending on your needs.

Let's compare Strikingly to a few top alternatives:

Wix

Wix is the most popular and full-featured website builder overall. It provides 500+ templates, a drag-and-drop editor, and powerful e-commerce capabilities.

Wix is better for advanced users wanting maximum design flexibility. But it has a steeper learning curve for total beginners than Strikingly.

Squarespace

Squarespace offers beautiful templates alongside an elegant content management system. It supports advanced design settings for true customization freedom. It's a great choice for creative professionals and brands. But it is also pricier than Strikingly.

Weebly

Weebly makes creating an online store or blog easy with its intuitive drag-and-drop editor. It has more e-commerce features than Strikingly, plus better multilingual support. But Weebly's templates tend to seem a bit outdated by comparison.

Webflow

Webflow provides visual customization with a code-free editor and granular CSS, HTML, and JavaScript access. It empowers web designers while being accessible to clients and non-experts with pre-made templates.

But it's focused more on designers and lacks the beginner-friendly guidance that Strikingly provides.

WordPress

WordPress powers over 40% of the web. The open-source software has limitless customization and supports thousands of plugins. But WordPress requires hosting, maybe coding skills, and technical expertise that Strikingly avoids. 

However, WordPress is much more scalable and cost-effective in the long term, and it has some great options for website builders like Thrive Suite and free Elementor.

Looking at the alternatives, Strikingly stands out for its simple yet visually appealing websites, ideally suited for beginners and mobile usage. For advanced customization or large e-commerce stores, other builders may work better.

9 Pro Tips for Building Your Best Site on Strikingly

Ready to make your site shine on Strikingly? Keep my expert tips in mind:

• Pick the Right Template - Browse industry, feature, and style templates thoroughly to pick the perfect foundation.
• Take Advantage of Sections - Use sections wisely to chunk information and make the site scannable.
• Highlight Visuals - Break up text with relevant, high-quality images, videos, and graphics.
• Write Strong Calls to Action - Well-worded CTAs encourage visitors to convert to your desired outcome.
• Mobile-Optimize Navigation - Ensure menus and navigation buttons are thumb-friendly on mobile.
• Integrate Social Media - Embed relevant social feeds to boost engagement.
• Blog Regularly - Refresh your site and give search engines new content to index by blogging consistently.
• Analyze Performance - Use integrated analytics to identify high-traffic pages and conversion points.
• Leverage Strikingly's Support - Get help instantly via live chat or explore the knowledge base for tips.

The Final Verdict on Strikingly

So, what's the final call on Strikingly as a website builder?

The Good

• Incredibly easy-to-use editor perfect for beginners
• Beautiful mobile-optimized templates
• Very affordable pricing plans
• Top-notch customer support

The Bad

• Limited design customization capabilities
• No ability to save custom templates
• Advanced features require workarounds or external apps
• Few unique templates compared to competitors

With its elegant templates optimized for single-page sites, intuitive editing for non-technical users, and great support, Strikingly excels for individuals, small businesses, and mobile projects.

Total newcomers can comfortably build their first website with Strikingly. However, major corporations, complex sites, and advanced customization needs may want to look elsewhere or take advantage of integrations.

While not as full-featured as leading players like Wix or Squarespace, Strikingly holds its own as a budget-friendly solution for launching simple yet visually appealing sites.

So, consider your needs carefully to decide if Strikingly has the right mix of ease of use, quality templates, and helpful features. Ultimately, Strikingly provides an impressive website-building experience targeted at beginners - just within some limitations.