Over the past year, we’ve heard the same refrain from prospects and clients alike: “We’re just going to build a site with AI.”

It’s a fair pivot. AI and DIY website builders are everywhere, promising fast, cheap, and effortless results.

But here’s the part we find fascinating: Every single one of those projects is still unfinished.

Months later, the sites are often stuck behind a “Coming Soon” page — not because the business owners aren’t smart or motivated, but because generating pages is not the same thing as building a business asset.

We’ve been designing websites for nearly 30 years — long before WordPress, long before DIY drag‑and‑drop, and certainly long before large language models. We’ve watched every “this will replace designers” wave come and go.

Here’s the honest truth about the AI vs. DIY vs. WordPress debate — and why the so‑called easy route so often leads to a dead end.

The Allure: What AI & DIY Builders Actually Do Well

AI & DIY builders aren’t bad — they’re just misunderstood. They are high‑speed drafting tools, not finished‑product machines.

They excel at:

• Rapid mockups – getting a visual vibe on screen quickly
• Solving the blank‑page problem – giving you something to react to
• One‑off landing pages – simple, low‑stakes use cases

The verdict: AI & DIY is excellent at starting. It’s notoriously bad at finishing.

Where the AI & DIY Promise Falls Apart

Once the novelty of the first prompt wears off, reality sets in. This is where most AI and DIY‑built sites stall.

1. Content Without Soul

AI & DIY platforms can generate copy, but it can’t interview you. It doesn’t understand your history, your nuance, or why clients choose you over someone else.

Eventually, most owners realize: “This sounds and looks fine… but it doesn’t reflect who we are.”

And fixing that requires human clarity, not another prompt.

2. The Trap of Decision Fatigue

A designer doesn’t just make things look good — they act as a filter.

AI gives you infinite options and zero prioritization. Without someone to say “this matters, this doesn’t,” business owners second‑guess every section until momentum dies.

3. SEO & Scalability Are ‘Day Two’ Problems

Most AI & DIY builders treat SEO as a checkbox. They don’t think in terms of:

• Site architecture
• Content growth over time
• Advanced integrations or technical SEO

It’s a black box. Fine for a demo. Risky for a business that needs to be found.

4. The Closed‑Garden Risk

Many AI & DIY platforms are locked ecosystems. If pricing changes, features disappear, or the company pivots, you can’t simply move your site.  You start over.

Where DIY Platforms (Wix & Squarespace) Break Down

Wix and Squarespace sit between AI builders and fully custom platforms. They made it possible for non‑technical users or “designers” to get online — and for very small, very simple sites, they can work.

But most businesses outgrow them faster than they expect.

1. Design Control That’s Mostly an Illusion

DIY platforms promise creative freedom, but it’s tightly boxed.

You can drag blocks around, but you can’t easily:

• Control layout systems across breakpoints
• Build reusable design components
• Scale design cleanly beyond a handful of pages

What starts as easy quickly becomes fragile — especially on mobile.

2. SEO Is Surface‑Level

SEO exists, but it’s treated as a checklist, not a strategy.

Common limitations include:

• Weak control over site architecture and internal linking
• Limited flexibility for advanced metadata or schema
• Blog structures that don’t scale well

The result: a site that exists, but doesn’t compete.

3. Customization Hits a Hard Ceiling

DIY platforms feel fine — until you need something slightly non‑standard:

• Custom form flows
• CRM or booking integrations
• Ecommerce tweaks beyond the default checkout

At that point, the answer is often “you can’t” — or “you’ll need to rebuild elsewhere.”

4. Ownership Isn’t the Same as Control

Like AI builders, DIY platforms are walled gardens.

You don’t own the system, migrations are limited, and platform decisions are out of your hands. When you outgrow them, evolution often means starting over.

The Shared Failure Point: Finishing & Scaling

This is where AI builders, Wix, and Squarespace all intersect. They help you start. They don’t help you finish.

They don’t:

• Clarify positioning
• Say no to unnecessary features
• Design for growth instead of today

That work still requires strategy, experience, and judgment — the parts that can’t be automated.

Understanding the Landscape

The Real Question Isn’t “Can I Build It?”

It’s this: Can this site grow with my business — without starting over?

That’s the line most AI and DIY platforms quietly cross — and why experienced designers still matter.

Ready to discuss your website project? Book a virtual or on-site meeting today!