Ken Evoy's Sitesell.com... A Consumer Alert.

I recently had a client that wanted me to design a site.   Let me say first that I really enjoy designing sites, and I always look forward to starting a new project.  During our initial discussion he mentioned that he already had hosting with Sitesell, and this includes the SiteBuildIt package.  He said that sitesell handles many functions that normally a web designer would handle:  marketing, SEO, tracking stats...  It sounded pretty good if you can get this all from one package.

First of all, let me say I have used a lot of hosting companies.  I started using Angelfire when I was 12 to make a personal webpage in 1996.  This was before Angelfire sold their soul to ads... back in the pure day of the Internet.   Today I use various hosts and have my own server leased to provide hosting to my design customers.   I have to say that with all my hosting experience, Ken Evoy's sitesell.com is the worst site host I have ever seen, bar none. 

Sitesell is an untraditional host.  They poke fun at hosts such as 1& 1, Yahoo, Verio, and AOL.  Apparently, these sites don't give you "it".  I skimmed their home page to find out what exactly "it" is, but I was left confused and emotionally exhausted.  Eventually, I found a graphic where "it" was explained... The "it" here is a bulletin board with the following words:

  "Joy of Freedom",  "Quit the day job", "The right skills",  "Passion and Priorities", "Growth and Self Reliance", "Take Command", "Net Worth", "Recognition", and "Family"    

Ohhhhh silly me.  That's what a web host should provide for me.  Perhaps I've been doing it wrong for the past 12 years. Now, I'm a motivated guy.  I do want all of these things... that's living the American Dream!  If I can let sitesell host me and gain family and the right skills, sign me up! 

Now that we're in the fast track to success, how does it work?  What does sitesell do for you that a normal host does not?  Luckily, there's a link to ask a question to a current user.  Great!  I sent them this message:

I'll be setting up a site soon for a client and he wants to use sitesell.
I'm not exactly sure what sitesell does for my client and how I need to set up the site to work with your package.
Is there a demo that I can look at or something like that?
Tom Disher

 Seemed like a pretty simple question to me.. I want to know what it does and how I need to set up a page for my client to get what he needs.

This was the response I got...

SBI goes way beyond being an online website building, hosting solution in that the SBI system actually provides and delivers a fool proof step by step guide as to how to build a successful business – period!
 
The world of technology can be overwhelming – and the true magic of the SBI operating system is that IT delivers all the technology and allows you to focus on developing the core content for your business.
 
I have found it extremely heart warming to have developed so many ‘long distance’ relationships with folks who I have had the privilege to get started with SBI. The stories, testimonials, reviews and stories of success are what make it all worthwhile and meaningful for me.

There was more info there, but it went in cirles without a clear answer like that for a while. 

After getting access for my client I tried to upload the valid HTML and CSS with their site import system.  They do not give you FTP access!  Unfortunately, if your site has 100 pages you need to browse and upload 100 files.   If you use a template for an update you need to change your pages with a template and upload all 100 files again. 

All in all I would strongly suggest staying away form Sitesell.com.  Their customer service and hosting services are extremely convoluted and confusing.  They may be ok for a person that wants to build their own site but knows nothing about web design and marketing. 

I would suggest instead of betting roped into SBI which will cost hundreds every year, hire a professional web designer.  A professional web designer will sit with you and listen to your needs.  A professional web designer will customize a web site that meets your online needs from a marketing, search engine, and design view point.