First, let us briefly define website platform. Wikipedia defines it as: "a website in which additional functionality can be seamlessly integrated by means of an external application programming interface (API). The platform should provide integration points. These integration points are places in the application where new functionality can be plugged in."

So what does that mean? It means that the website has the ability to add feature sets.

Let's say that you want to add e-commerce to your website. With a platform-enabled website you could add a plug-in application to accommodate this feature.

Another common feature is the ability to integrate your blog and social media into your website. The ability to easily add functionality to your website as your offerings grow and change is important.

Before you choose a platform, ask yourself what features are most important? Is it e-commerce? Scheduling events? Blogging and social media?

If you sell products, you might also want to know how many products are supported on the platform? Can it be upgraded to support more?Platform-enabled websites are quite powerful. And the ability to customize them to meet your immediate and future goals is a valuable asset to you. The scalability of your website is very important. Before you commit to a design, make sure that you will be able to add the desired functionality.So how important is your website platform? I'd say very.