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The big news
Finsweet acquired Wized!
Finsweet recently made a major acquisition that we're excited to share with our community. We're known for our transparency, but this one was kept secret for a year.
We quietly acquired and rebuilt Wized within Finsweet, bringing on board Jonas Beisswenger, the original creator of Wized. V2 was built collaboratively with Jonas and the new Wized product team at Finsweet.
In this article, we tell the story behind this acquisition and explain why we started this journey.
Prefer this information in video? Watch the video announcement.
What is Wized?
Wized is the brain that acts as the communication bridge between Webflow and other applications, enabling the creation of complex web applications without any coding.
It serves as a web application layer on top of Webflow projects, designed specifically for Webflow developer workflow. We build the front-end in Webflow and then add web app functionality in Wized.
What makes Wized unique is that implementation is built for Webflow developer workflow. Wized is not for all front-end web development builders. Webflow only.
Wized allows us to:
- Integrate any REST API with Webflow
- Render (show) data from apps on Webflow
- Send (post) data from Webflow to apps
- Custom login and authentication functionality
- Design custom and complex application flows
- Stripe payments
- And lots more
With Wized, the possibilities are endless, making it a unique and indispensable tool for Webflow developers to build custom and complex applications with ease.
Whether it's integrating data from other apps, designing intricate application flows, or implementing custom functionality, Wized empowers Webflow developers to next-level projects.
Why Finsweet Acquired Wized?
The creator of Wized, Jonas Beisswenger, wanted a better way to build custom applications inside Webflow.
Jonas saw the potential of Webflow and saw the missing piece: Web applications.
Jonas was looking for investors so he could keep developing Wized. Investors showed interest, but each had one requirement: Wized must be a product for many website building tools, not Webflow only.
Jonas didn't like this approach. Finsweet doesn’t like this approach either.
Finsweet is on a mission to build a product ecosystem for Webflow. We have been creating free products, tools, and resources for the Webflow community for over 3 years. Our next step was a paid product.
After a few calls, we realized we had the same vision. We wanted the same thing: A badass web application building tool that works with Webflow only.
An acquisition and partnership will greatly benefit both parties.
Jonas gets a full team behind the growth and rebuild of Wized, as well as a payout for his years of hard work. Finsweet gets a great product developer with a proven concept and a working product.
Jonas and Finsweet entered a contract where Finsweet will purchase Wized and Jonas will join Finsweet to continue developing and improving Wized.
Finsweet will create a team around the Wized product and build Wized V2.
We bought it and rebuilt it
After acquiring Wized, we wasted no time and immediately started working on the V2 version.
We thoroughly assessed areas for improvement, including technical aspects, user flow, organization, and design, with the mindset of making changes to every aspect of the V1 version.
V1 is powerful and is used on production websites. It also has bugs and usability issues. Jonas recognized the opportunity to create a more robust V2 version.
At Finsweet, it is required that our products, especially paid products, work very well. Wized V1 would not qualify for this level of product quality. However, a Wized V2 could.
Months of planning and development went into Wized V2, resulting in a completely redefined and rebuilt version. We incorporated new UI categories, user flows, and usability features that are specifically designed to be more user-friendly for Webflow users.
Once Wized V2 was complete, it was clear that it met the criteria for a subscription product by Finsweet.
Wized V2: A new way to build web apps
The reimagined Wized features a new way of organizing functionality. The Wized Configurator UI uses these as primary categories:
My Apps
Seamlessly connect applications to Wized and integrate them into your Webflow app. Think of "My Apps" as a list of your trusted data providers. Authenticate apps in Wized and effortlessly bring "Data In" and send "Data Out" between apps and Webflow.
Data In
Send requests and data "in" to your Webflow website. Load single items and lists of items from your connected apps directly onto your Webflow website, making data integration smooth and efficient.
Actions
Create interactive web apps with ease using Actions. Render loaded data, place request triggers, build custom element visibility logic, and more to enhance the interactivity of your web application.
Data Out
Send data "out" to any connected app. Update items or create new items in your database based on page interactions, form submissions, custom analytics, and other events, allowing for seamless data flow between different apps.
Authentication
Simplify user sign-up, log-in, protected content, and Stripe-powered payments with Wized's built-in authentication solutions or by integrating custom authentication solutions from third-party providers.
Debugger
Identify and understand problems directly within the Wized configurator. Troubleshoot and resolve issues efficiently, saving time and effort in the development process.
Data Store
Insights into the data layer of your web application with the X-Ray view on top of Webflow.
Education-focused Intelligence Center
With significant improvements across each functionality, Wized V2 is now more user-oriented than ever. Designed with simplicity in mind, even non-technical users can easily understand the inner workings of web apps.
We’re committed to empowering our community through education. We believe that learning how to use Wized is equivalent to learning how to build web applications.
Through Wized education, we want to help you:
- Acquire a new technical skill
- Expand your freelance portfolio
- Expand your agency's capabilities
- Develop intricate products beyond your imagination
- Tackle projects that will enhance your career growth
To support your learning journey, we are excited to introduce the Intelligence Center.
This new platform will take your website development skills to the next level through a series of lessons and real-world projects. Unlike traditional application-specific tutorials, the lessons in the Intelligence Center are focused on teaching you valuable skills that can be applied across various web app development scenarios.
The Intelligence Center offers three learning paths tailored to different skill levels:
- Beginner
- Intermediate
- Pro
Each path features organized lessons that cover specific principles of web app development. Starting with the basics such as data types including strings, arrays, variables, and objects, the lessons gradually progress to cover more advanced topics such as making requests to applications and mutating data.
The best part? The Intelligence Center and all the education we provide for Wized are completely free of cost. We are committed to making web app development accessible to everyone and empowering our community with the knowledge and skills needed to succeed.
Pricing
Finally… Finsweet is charging for something.
At Finsweet, we have a history of offering all our products for free. From CMS Library to Attributes, Client-First, and many other tools, we have always offered our products at no cost to you.
However, in order to support the growth and sustainability of Wized, we are introducing paid plans.
Testing on webflow.io URL is always free. Once you want to go live on a custom domain name, paid plans are available here.
By introducing pricing for Wized, our goal is to make it a cash flow positive project, ensuring its continued development and improvement.
Final words and thanks
As the team behind bringing web applications to Webflow, we are thrilled to have you as part of our journey. If you share our passion for building web apps, we invite you to join our community of Wized developers.
At Wized, we are dedicated to providing powerful tools and resources to help you create web apps with ease. Whether you're a seasoned developer or just starting out, we welcome you to explore all that Wized has to offer.
Visit Wized.com to learn more about how you can be part of our community and unlock the full potential of web app development in Webflow.
Thank you for your interest and support, and we look forward to seeing you thrive in the world of web app development with Wized!
