Member-only story
Modalities of Web Site Builders
Site Builders
Examining a broad range of website builders, ranging from full-scale website builders like Wix into page builders like Carrd to Link in Bio builders like Linktree, one can observe four major user modalities and combinations.
User Modalities
Type Into The Canvas
You select a template and get a preview that looks like the actual site. You go to a position in the preview, click in, and edit the text, or replace the graphic assets, such as images and icons.
Wix is a prominent example of this modality. Popsy, which uses the Notion user metaphor of searching for blocks with commands, is based on typing into the block canvas.
Form Side By Side with Preview
You see a form on the left and a preview of your page on the right as you fill out the form. The preview is immediately modified to reflect the details you fill into the form along the way.
Umso is based on the side-by-side modality
Drag and Drop Elements
There is a canvas showing a preview of a web page, with a few blocks of different types displayed. And to the side, there is a palette of block types. To add a new block, drag it from…
