Subscribers to Microsoft’s premium Office 365 business package will now also have access to another service.
Wix.com announced Feb. 4, 2015 that its drag and drop Web design tools have been integrated into the Office 365 package. Office 365 offers a full suite of Microsoft tools, including Word, PowerPoint, and Excel for multiple users on multiple devices. It also includes newer, cloud-based apps like OneDrive and OneNote.
A collaboration between Microsoft and Wix.com will allow Office 365 subscribers to create and launch websites using the easy-to-manage site builder, according to a release issued today.
Microsoft closed its native public website offering as part of feature cuts from its SharePoint service last year.
In the official release, Wix co-founder and CEO Avishai Abrahami explains:
“Both Microsoft and Wix share the common vision of enabling small and medium-sized businesses to access and utilize cloud technology to operate all aspects of their business.”
With the new Wix integration, subscribers to the Microsoft service will be able to build and launch their own site from scratch entirely within the Office 365 platform.
And current Microsoft subscribers with their own Microsoft-hosted domain will be able to point that address at a site they build with Wix, the company says.
Abrahami adds:
“Wix simplifies the website and mobile site creation and management processes, all critical for any business today, by providing enterprise class functionality to every business, no matter how small.”
Wix has also been steadily compiling add-on services that complement its website creation tools.
These include apps that are specifically designed for business management and those that improve the overall look of the sites its users create. Last year the company also announced acquisitions and collaborations aimed to improve the design and function of its websites.
For example, the Wix acquisition of OpenRest in November 2014 added an online reservation function for restaurant websites built with the tool. The Wix collaboration with Bigstock, also in November, offered site administrators a huge selection of high resolution photos for the sites they design.
Abrahami says the latest Wix venture with Microsoft is aimed at attracting small businesses in need of an easy-to-build web presence.
He adds:
“Through Office 365, we are excited to provide even more business owners with an easy and affordable platform on which to create, manage and grow their business online.”
Image: Wix.com
[“source-smallbiztrends”]
