Empowerkit vs. WordPress – A Better WordPress Multisite Alternative

A number of digital marketing agencies (specializing in SEO, SEM, Lead Generation, etc.) partner with us, because they gain a lot of value from using Empowerkit to manage networks of local websites for their clients – often as a WordPress multisite alternative.

Typically the advantages our partners value most about using Empowerkit are:

1. Faster Setup Per Client Account

2. Much Less Ongoing Management Overhead

3. Less Exposure to Risk

When we start a partnership discussion with an agency, they’ve generally been using WordPress Multisite or Drupal or another CMS, and want to know what makes Empowerkit a better solution for them.

So, without further adieu, here’s a side-by-side comparison of the most important considerations when evaluating Empowerkit against WordPress or Drupal:

Empowerkit Wordpress
SupportDedicated professional support is included (phone, live chat & email) Self-serve forums often give incomplete and confusing advice
PluginsEverything you need is included, optimized and maintained for your peace of mind Waste your time picking, supporting and depending on 3rd parties you can’t trust
SecurityConstantly monitored and managed to avoid potential security issues Security vulnerabilities are common, putting you and your clients at risk
BackupsAutomatic backups are done 2x daily You’ll need to manage your own backups
ThemesFull layout builder and design engine that can easily support almost any custom design A jungle of choices which are difficult or impossible to change after implementation
Platform UpdatesManaged by a dedicated team and constantly updated and optimized Constant manual updates required with many conflicts to resolve each time
Design ChangesDesigners can directly make style changes within the visual editor, without coding Design, slicing and implementation are all done separately
Content ChangesDone through an intuitive edit-in-place interface by any member on your team Good luck figuring out what is where, and how to make complex changes
Layout ChangesPage layouts can be modified easily and on-the-fly by anyone with admin access Carefully modifying theme coding is necessary and layouts can break easily
New Page Creation Create new types of pages, with their own unique layouts and designs, within seconds Restricted to predefined “templates” that are inflexible
Apps / ModulesHuge library of tested and maintained apps included Search for and install widgets, make them work with your theme and support them
Integrated Site Creation Create sites via APIs and integrate them within your workflow Non-existent process - manual site creation is required
Responsive Design & Device OptimizationAdvanced mobile optimization comes standard for all websites on the platform Custom development is typically required, even for basic responsive design
Built for MultisiteDedicated multisite platform - our customers’ requests guide our product roadmap A platform that can go in any direction at any point - you have no control
Brand & Style ControlsPowerful style controls that are easy to access and manipulate Non-existent
Modular Content Management & PublishingCan be done by any member of your team within minutes Requires custom development
Hosting Management / Scaling / MonitoringFully managed and supported by our team of senior system admins Requires your ongoing time and resources to properly manage
Fast Serving PagesManaged caching layer + CDN for ultimate speed Your responsibility on an ongoing basis to properly optimize

 

Think Empowerkit may be a good solution for one of your clients? 

Let’s jump on a quick call, and I’ll be happy to give you a demo and discuss your needs further: (510) 859-8452

July 8, 2013

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