Posted on July 23rd, 2007 by
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Before launching into this review it should be pointed out that Site Build It (or SBI) and SiteSell.com, do not conform to the conventional notion of web hosting as most of the companies represented on these pages. Their services are aimed fairly and squarely at small business and internet
marketers and indeed anyone looking to build quality static websites with the minimum of fuss and the maximum return on investment.
Site Build It and their web hosting company SiteSell.com are another Canadian company, the brainchild of CEO Ken Evoy, who have been in business since 1997 and in a nutshell, have grown their reputation by helping a great number of people turn their own ideas into very successful online businesses. The whole philosophy of Site Build It is really to enable people to get an online business set up as quickly and painlessly as possible without the need to know too much about all the technical barriers and “under the hood” workings of their sites and web hosting.
This makes them a very attractive proposition for those who want to concentrate on developing content rich sites but don’t want the distractions of having to learn too much about hosting, web design, marketing and promotion. As we pointed out in our opening paragraph, this is not your normal hosting review. So, let’s look at what this means for the end user in a little more detail.
SiteBuildIt is a controlled environment and this is a very important distinction. Unlike traditional hosting, you cannot upload anything you like to a server because you are working within a controlled FTP environment. There is no access to things like cgi-bin and php files, simply the facility to upload specific file types to certain folders designated for the purpose. Basically the SBI system handles all of the hosting aspects for you and also takes care of things like submissions to search engines and ongoing SEO. The company’s proud claim is that their methods and systems will ensure success and traffic and there are plenty of testimonials to support their claims.
Web hosting design and marketing made simple - Purists may well feel that SBI and SiteSell are therefore not for serious webmasters but this is strongly refuted in the company’s comprehensive onsite presentations and they do have a point. There is no denying that their customers have produced some top percentile websites (based on Alexa traffic rankings). The website presentation is detailed and if you have time to watch their 30 minute video it gives you a good idea of just what the systems can do, and indeed why so many people are attracted to the company. If you have no marketing or technical experience, which let’s face it, accounts for a large number of people, you would probably find SBI and SiteSell a good place to start as a fledgling website owner.
It is important to point out that despite the controlled hosting environment Site Build It is not a generic template type deal, very far from it. You choose your own domain name(s) just as you would with any other hosting service, and build your sites around them. You are the webmaster in control of the websites you build. You don’t need to know any HTML as their site building software does everything, but, if you are familiar with web authoring you can freely design/edit your own pages via any HTML editor and Photoshop. You will have the ability to blog, you will have RSS capability and E-Zine and Newsletter facilities and most of the tools you would normally expect to be using in building an online presence. You will also find things such as automated keyword research, autoresponders, mailing lists, link exchange tools and comprehensive traffic and stats reporting. The attraction is in the automation of many of the hard tasks associated with marketing and promoting a site, In short, if you have a great idea but are intimidated by technology this company could well be the answer to your problems. Even if you already have some website building experience but have had little success, you are also in the company’s target market.
In terms of cost, SBI is not really that much more expensive than a good quality shared hosting program, in fact it equates to about a dollar per day and you are getting a lot for your money. This is why we stated at the outset that this is more than just a hosting company and is probably the closest thing you will find to a “business in a box”. You bring the idea and SBI enables you to convert that idea into an online business. This approach has certainly worked for many people, as to whether it is for you why not take a look at the company’s presentations to help you decide.
As a hosting company we could find very few complaints about reliability, nor customer and technical support although to be fair, we are not reviewing your regular host as we have made clear already. Users have access to a helpful forum area as well as normal company support via telephone and email. Ultimately, if you have been trying to decide on a hosting plan and have read this review, it may well change your thinking a little. There is no doubt that SBI and SiteSell, while certainly not a guarantee of success, do offer all the tools to get your own hosted website off the ground with a minimum of fuss.
In conclusion, if you want reliable hosting but also like the idea of a lot of automation of “the geek stuff” SBI is worth investigating further. As with all things, there are some limitations which will make the company a non starter for a few webmasters but these are probably in a minority. They ARE different but if you are just starting out in the online world or are frustrated by a lack of success, SBI could be just what the doctor ordered.
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