Written on November 23rd, 2008 at 12:11 am by Darren Rowse

Site Build It - a User Review

Blogging Tools and Services 102 comments

One website building program that I have been consistantly asked about by readers over the last 12 or more months is Site Build It. While not a blogging platform as such it is a way of building a website for money and as a result I guess readers feel I will have an opinion of it. Unfortunately I’ve not used it before so don’t have any personal experience to offer. When I mentioned this on Twitter recently Julie Bonner (one of b5media’s staff writers) told me that she’d used SBI successfully - I asked her if she’d be interested in writing a user review. She agreed and here it is.

I first heard of SBI (Site Build It) back in August of 2004. I had tried, unsuccessfully, to build a website on my own a few months before that. Needless to say, I was frustrated because of my sheer lack of knowledge of html, seo and all the other stuff involved. I knew I could write, I knew I loved to write and I knew there was money to be made on the Internet. What I needed was a program where I could just pump out good content and have all of the other stuff taken care of for me, while making money of course. That’s when SBI fell into my lap.

In July 2004 I purchased SBI and hit the ground running. In a span of about 3 years, I built a handful of websites and then turned around and flipped them for a profit. I wrote on everything from decorating kids’ bedrooms to on-line games for kids. While I was in the process of building the sites, I was making a fairly decent income off of Google Adsense and affiliate links. To say I am grateful to SBI and what it has taught me, would be an understatement.

Some of you may be asking what the benefits of purchasing SBI are. It’s not super expensive, but pricey enough to where you need to do your research and think about if this is something you are willing to open your wallet for. You also have to realize that every year there is a renewal fee. For me personally, my income from the site has covered that fee over and above, so it has never been an issue.

Here are some of the benefits of SBI:

Hosting is taken care of.
You are guided through the process of choosing a topic and domain name that is profitable.
There is an amazing keyword tool built in to the system.
You can choose from many different templates, or upload your own.
They submit your site to the search engines. All you have to do is place your keywords in the right places – which they tell you exactly where that is.
No knowledge of html, ftp, graphic or programming skills needed.
The training is phenomenal!
Forum support is some of the best I have ever seen. It’s a very active forum with the give first attitude.
You have the chance to learn from people who are making a full-time income off of their SBI sites.
It is great for beginners who cringe at the word Internet or website.

I won’t go into great detail about the individual benefits, because SBI has a great site where they explain everything. You can read about the program or take their video tour.

What I will tell you, is that if you think you can go out and purchase SBI, throw up a few pages and watch the money start rolling in, then you might as well not waste your time or money. I was successful at building web sites and making money at it because I worked hard. SBI gives you the tools, but you have to provide the blood, sweat and tears. I spent many late nights writing and writing and writing and it payed off. I wrote for three months before I started seeing the money come in, but once it did, it just didn’t stop and continued to grow from there.

If you dig a little into the SBI site, you will see that this program has really changed people’s lives. I can tell you that it’s true. I have personally exchanged emails with people who are making a full time living off of their SBI sites, but like I said, it’s because they worked very hard in the beginning. They understood what they needed to do and they just did it.

SBI is what convinced me that making money on-line was truly possible. The thought of working from home and doing something that I loved became a reality for me and I have never looked back. It’s funny because SBI is one of the places where I first heard about this thing called blogging. They talked about it as a way to promote your web site and build traffic and encourage you to use the two together. Little did I know back then that blogging would take over my life.

My web site building days are currently on hold because, well, blogging is my new love. Will I pick it up again some day? Maybe. And if I do, I can guarantee you that Site Build It is where I will go back to. No doubt about that!

A Note from Darren - thanks to Julie for this review. While I’ve not use Site Build It at all and can only rely upon the advice of people I respect and trust (like Julie) I find myself reacting to the idea of SBI in a couple of ways.

Firstly, if I’m honest - when I hear of these programs I get a little skeptical. Why would you need to pay for this type of thing when you can set up your own blog or website using free tools?

Secondly, I really like the sound of some of the tools and features bundled up in this product. Some of the keyword tools, SEO that is built in, the community aspect etc. While the skeptical side of my brain tells me that you can get a lot of this for free - I guess I’m reminded of my first year online trying to build my first blogs where I quite literally had no idea what I was doing. I had to ask a fellow blogger how to make text bold - I didn’t know where to begin.

While some of us who have been around for a while might look down our noses at this type of tool I think that they can have a place - particularly for those starting out, who want to learn some basics and who don’t have the skills (or know someone with them) to get going. The idea of a service that bundles a lot of this stuff into a package and then charges for it will not appeal to everyone - some of us prefer to spend time researching, pulling together information from lots of sources etc - However for some, SBI sounds like a good ‘getting started’ tool.

I’d love to hear readers experiences of SBI. Have you used it? How did you find it? What did you like? What could they improve and do better?

What next?

102 Responses to “Site Build It - a User Review”

Harish

November 23rd, 2008 12:42 am

I am hearing about SBi for the first time from this post.Hmm it seems to be a good service.But I accept that every success starts only from lose.Even I didn’t know how to on my Pc at first when I got.Ok then I gonna proceed using SBI.thanks for mentioning it
Doug Green

November 23rd, 2008 12:53 am

I use SBI - have several sites with them. I also have several sites that are not on SBI. I agree the backend software and support are excellent and as a non-tech writer I couldn’t have gone to full time Internet writing without this support. So big time kudo’s there.

Can you do it without that level of support? Surely. If you already have a experienced skill set and can leverage existing work and traffic, you can do it on your own and do it well. But the average person simply doesn’t have that level of experience and skillset. And the time to obtain those is drastically shortened within a support network such as SBI.

Can you replicate the software inside SBI? Absolutely. But you had better be prepared to shell out some serious bucks for some of it. Yes, some is available for free or open source but an integrated package that all works nicely together is another issue.

Does it work? Frankly, I have much better experience (and way more money) with my SBI sites than I do with my non-SBI sites. I have the non-SBI sites because they do certain kinds of things that aren’t built into the SBI cms system. I have the traffic logs and income statements to back this up.

Are there problems with SBI? Darn straight (it’s a computer system isn’t it) ;-) - but the tech team is really good - and performance standard are clear. There’s a direct line to the owner if support doesn’t solve the problem and I can tell you - it works. The support on the forums is amazing although the size of them makes it a tad tough for a newbie to find things.

So - non of my SBI sites have ever been hacked (wish I could say the same for my WP sites). The backend software is excellent. The support is good. If you want advanced functionality such as ajax or php control, then you have to look elsewhere - but if you want a system that generates a ton of traffic - with a minimum of fuss and muss - then this is imho the best one I’ve found.
dr.dalit

November 23rd, 2008 1:35 am

There are so many user testimonials online, that this is clearly a winning system. The people who run the co. seem so genuine, and the customer web sites successful. I don’t agree with the way SBI encourages long hyphenated domain names, but I guess they focus on organic traffic not resale value. I dont use them because i am the type of person that likes to do it the hard way and learn through experience. But i think SBI is an excellent choice for many people.
Andy Merrett

November 23rd, 2008 1:38 am

Considering testing it out, but the system refuses to sign me up. Maybe it’s an omen? I spent half an hour trying to sign up and it has rejected me every time. Not a great start, IMO. We’ll see how good technical support is on this.
Bai Zijian

November 23rd, 2008 1:44 am

It is quite a good program and well organized also. In a lot of ways, it teaches a lot about making websites from scratch and also how to structure the site in such a way that both search engines and readers would enjoy reading the site.

Thumbs up for this program by Ken Envoy, And the tools that the program provides, those that involve keyword analysis and planning for how the site would be like the next 6 months to a year is invaluable as it aims to find a market niche which you would both enjoy doing and writing about and also bring in monetization opportunities.

Great program. Had I first started out on making websites on the internet using this program, it would have cut short a lot of road that most affiliate marketers take to do keyword analysis and niche market targeting and focused on what really makes a business on the internet.
Vanessa

November 23rd, 2008 2:39 am

I was really pleased to see this blog post about Site Build It. I’ve had my site with them for around three years now and agree that the tools and support available to me is fantastic.

I have never seen a forum quite like Site Build It’s - there is such a support network in there encouraging you all the way.

I have been involved with gathering together internet marketing tips for a non - sbi site I work for and I’m amazed at the things I find “new” strategies that Ken and the rest of the team at Site Build It have been discussing for years.

I’ll be honest and say that I haven’t made any money from my site yet, but that is because I’ve not put the hard work into it. I renewed my subscription two days ago (all my pages and data were there despite me leaving my subscription expired for a couple of weeks) and this time I’ll make it work!

If you have a passion for something but not the site building skills then I can’t recommend it enough!
Jennifer

November 23rd, 2008 3:08 am

Hi Darren -
I, too, have a couple of websites with SBI. When I started, I couldn’t have done without it. Now, I probably could, but don’t want to. Why?
Like others mentioned, there’s that community support. I like to use their forums to try to pay back some of what I’ve received over the years.

Some things the responses above didn’t mention: unlimited pages per site, no bandwidth limitations, a regular ‘what is new and how much of it you actually need’ newsletter (what a great timesaver!)

For a newbie, there can’t be a better way to get started. Full, detailed instructions, no technical knowledge needed, discussions on how other owners are making money online, free advice from others who’ve ‘been there and done that’.

And yes, there’s that recurring 299 dollar nnual fee, but it’s been that price since I joined 5 years ago. And, you have to balance that against a cheapo webhost who a) won’t give detailed advice b) hasn’t got unlimited storage space c) doesn’t offer (real) unlimited bandwidth d) hasn’t got a stable of successful, one-woman-or-man, money-earning website owners, all happy to share their experience.

For the first-timer, it’s not just good, it’s incomparable.
(And, no, I don’t work for them; they work for me; - and how!)
Jeff

November 23rd, 2008 3:10 am

Darren - is that an affiliate link to SBI in this post? I noticed the words problogger in the URL but when clicking it goes straight to the SBI site home page. It’s difficult to find a review of SBI that isn’t coded with an affiliate link.

We designed a site for a customer using SBI and found it to be an extremely unintuitive, clunky system. I disliked that the documentation about SBI is only available to people who signup with SBI. Also, when I inquired for help via SBI technical support. I got back a vague reply and then a lengthy message from an affiliate user (who provided the tech support) about the great value of SBI. When I ask for tech support, I do NOT want a sales pitch!

SBI may work for some but anyone with any decent knowledge of the net will find it frustrating. The main reason to use SBI is probably to get into their affiliate program and then promote SBI
Simon Gould

November 23rd, 2008 3:25 am

From what I see Google is happy to rank SiteBuildIt sites. My sites (not SBI) are in the fitness and weight loss niches and I’m often competing with some high ranking SBI sites.

We’ve all seen their similar designs but their writing layouts are similar too with their short paragraphs and regular bolding of words. Makes them easy to read and very scannable, i’m usually quite impressed.
Jack

November 23rd, 2008 3:37 am

I have 5 websites. 2 are with SBI and the other 3 hosted elsewhere.
The 2 SBI sites make money and the the other 3 just sit there doing nothing no matter how hard I try.

I totally agree with the OP that you will make diddly squat unless you do some hard work but for a relative novice like myself SBI presses all the right buttons. They take care of all the SE submission stuff and the tools that come with are well worth it.

OK, some will say you can get free tools online but if you’re serious about your business and your future then there comes a point where you must get serious about your tools.
Tony Thomas

November 23rd, 2008 3:47 am

I’ve used Site Build It since 2006 and have 2 sites so far.

I am easily one of their biggest fanboys! ;)

The product is top-notch and they continue to improve and expand it, all at no extra expense to me. The support is some of the best around (if you ever need it) and their affiliate program is fantastic.

Ken Evoy, the president, is a terrific guy, to boot.

As a result of Site Build It, in June of this year, I started working from home, full-time.
Sarah McHarry

November 23rd, 2008 4:40 am

I used SBI for my first couple of websites. I did this at a time when I was just too busy to have the time to learn all the finer points of HTML website design and I wanted to spend what time I had on building a business.

To someone who has a serious motivation to start on online business but who doesn’t want to get bogged down in the technicalities, SBI is a great way to start.

It provides an excellent training in all aspects of Internet marketing and that is where I learned all the fundamentals of the game.

Like Julie, I discovered blogging and I found out that I could do all that I wanted with WordPress blogs. I gradually migrated by sites away from SBI to WP blogs and I’ve never looked back :-)

Although the cost of SBI may seem expensive, it isn’t really when you consider how much you get for your money. You could easily spend (waste!) much more on all the ancilliary services that they provide, all bundled in with the fee.

I can truly recommend SBI!

Sarah
Kallu Ram

November 23rd, 2008 5:08 am

SBI is good tool if you are not a webmaster. And basically if you are developing some static html sites.

Good for creating some quick affiliate landing pages site, adsense MFA’s.
doug morris

November 23rd, 2008 5:49 am

SBI is a great program and Ken Evoy offers many beginners a legitimate money making oppurtunity. The process of setting up your website has you going in the right direction from the start. It kinda takes away the learning curve. There are many SBI sites ranking well for good keywords. I’m sure there is money to be made with that system.

However, the web sites from SBI are very generic and look outdated. I have ran across many SBI website and new once I landed on them that they were SBI sites. They all have the same feel.

It is kinda pricey but just about anything you learn from SBI their premium fee you can find elsewhere for free. I have ran across a girls website 2createawebsite.com and she lays it all out for free.

I’m not by any mean promoting her site but i have learned a great deal from it… just an idea.

Between problogger and her site you can’t go wrong. I have been following this blog and her site for about a year now I’m doing well and I haven’t paid a penny for any of the information.

Thanks A TON Darren!
Andy Merrett

November 23rd, 2008 6:29 am

@Doug: that web site might lay it all out for free but it’s still an affiliate for SFI :)
Tim VB

November 23rd, 2008 7:38 am

I am really glad you posted this review of SiteBuildit. I have known of this product for years, but I always associated ’sales letter’ type sites with it. They looked spammy to me and I wondered how anyone would make money off them as I knew I personally would never shop on one.

I am glad to hear some folks are doing well with SBI. Sounds like the toolset has grown over the years, too.
Gina

November 23rd, 2008 7:41 am

My experience was similar to Jeff’s.

I am an IT professional (I’m a systems tester and have a degree in CS) and have put up my own websites. I signed up for SBI thinking maybe there was some magic to their traffic thing that I’d gain from it, but I never actually completely got a site up and running simply because the process of using their interface was driving me nuts.

I contacted support and had a less than satisfactory experience with them, so I just abandoned the whole thing. In the meantime I’ve started another blog with a traditional webhost and I’m happily tweaking wordpress to suit myself.

The onus for my SBI failure is really on myself — I didn’t give it a good try. But I just got so dang frustrated.
SriHari

November 23rd, 2008 7:41 am

I have been using SBI from past 4 years. I started using it as a total newbie.
Now I have learned the bit of the ropes and any sudden websites I need for the moment, I go the cheapo way with cheap hosting. But If I am building a website for the long term, It is only with SBI.
I have spend thousands of dollars only buying software and ebooks and all the other crazy stuff, I have so far not received the value like SBI does.
If people think $299 is too expensive, They are probably thinking very small.
For the amount of time and effort it saves, it is a very small price
Thomas

November 23rd, 2008 8:35 am

I’ve never even heard of it. :(
Kyle Dylan Conner

November 23rd, 2008 8:54 am

Nice little sponsored post you’ve got here.

Doesn’t look decent. Don’t think I’d try it.
Franck Silvestre

November 23rd, 2008 9:12 am

I don’t really remember how I discovered SBi (it may be because of their free affiliate marketing ebook), but although I was a beginner, I quickly got the seo thing.

And I found that it was better for me to do my own sites from scratch since I know html.

Bottom line… Never got Sbi, however I recommend it because I know that it’s a good program.

Franck
BeatlesLane

November 23rd, 2008 9:27 am

I have never used SBI, but to me the sites seem to all look the same, and it’s a very outdated look. Very 1990s. I’ll assume you can only host one site per $299 year. With most other standard hosts these days you can host many on one account. And it seems like every review I’ve read of SBI has the obligatory affiliate link. So it’s hard to accept the reviews as unbiased. It feels more like a sales pitch.
Jerri Ann

November 23rd, 2008 9:50 am

I probably could have done well with it since I had no coding knowledge and I’ve been forced to learn bits and pieces from my genius husband and that means I have to wait on him to learn it first….which is sometimes weeks or even months…but now that I can do some coding, I wouldn’t use it I don’t think but I do have a friend who is just getting started and wants my help and I may definitely send her that way because she will be asking me all kinds of questions about coding and then I’ll have to ask my husband and then wait and wait…she an do it herself faster this way I think.
Jim

November 23rd, 2008 9:50 am

I built my site with SBI. It goes far beyond a site builder though, as it’s taught me how to set up a web business from top to bottom in less than three months (from web dummy to having a full-fledged site). I have to agree that with the other positive comments here that the support is great, and the back end tools are fantastic.

I love that it’s the furthest thing from a GRQ program: more like a “get business at your own pace!” program. Hard work, but like anything worth doing involves hard work and satisfaction.

My only problem with it in the beginning was the ugly templates! Very outdated. So, using their resources, I learned HTML and CSS and built my own fairly quickly ~ problem solved.
Ken Evoy

November 23rd, 2008 12:34 pm

Hey Darren,

Ken Evoy here. I’ve been a fan of your writing for many years. It was a pleasant surprise to see your review here today.

I won’t comment on the merits of Site Build It! as I may be just a touch biased. ;-) But I read the comments with great interest.

The majority, of course, make me smile. :-) But I’d give my eye teeth (whichever ones those are!) to eliminate some of the the myths about SBI! that have grown up over the years (they all look the same, for newbies only, can get all the same tools for free, etc.). And, of course, we don’t do well with the techie-smarter-than-thou group who just won’t do it the SBI! way.

But all in all, the review and comments give a fair, balanced impression of Site Build It!. It won’t be for everyone, but for those who know what they want and are ready to work for it, they won’t find any better way to build a profitable business. There are, of course, 1,000 faster ways to put up a site.

The difference between the two (site vs business) is, of course, immense.

Thanks very much for the SBI! mention. If you ever want to do an interview together about SBI!, I’d love to chat with you about it (and handle questions from those who propagate the myths ;-) ).

All the best,
Ken Evoy
Founder, SiteSell.com
Fatimah

November 23rd, 2008 2:28 pm

I’ve been using SBI for almost 4 years. I have only 1 website with SBI and am in the top 10 ranking in Google and Yahoo.

I recommend it for everyone especially for those who don’t know anything about building a website from scratch and have no time to learn.

After hearing so much about blogging, I tried doing one using wordpress.

Having tried both, I think I will still use SBI for my next web site.

FM
Kath

November 23rd, 2008 2:36 pm

I’ve used SBI for years now and have built quite a few sites through it. I’ve also delved into other areas, namely free resources that IM recommend all the time. For me, this free resources require a huge learning curve and time to develop the skills, which I just don’t have. SBI gave me everything and each time I think they’re missing something I go in search of the latest and greatest strategies, I always, always, come back to SBI for my big ideas because I know it works.
Donna Meyer

November 23rd, 2008 2:57 pm

I’m another very happy SBIer. In fact, were it not for SBI I’m quite certain I would not be a webmaster today. I currently have one SBI site, have #2 blocked out and about to go, am about to build #3 for a client and have had numerous enquiries about building for others.

I literally started my site knowing nothing beyond how to surf the web and use email. I now have over 100 pages, my traffic is slowly building (currently at about 15,000 page views a month) and I’m making a bit from AdSense and a couple of other small monetization options. It’s not big yet, but it’s paid for my SBI site several times over. And that’s with me not having the freedom to work on it full time and often having to go several weeks or even months without touching it. As soon as I am free to go full-tilt on my webwork, I know this site (and others) will take off monetarily.

It is not a “sales page” type site or a landing page for a product. It is a full-blooded content site about a tourist town I know well and love.

I would not build a site without SBI because I have no idea how to do it and don’t want to waste time on the learning curve. Why should I when I can do everything I want and need to do within the SBI framework?

And to Doug: 2createawebsite.com was created by Lisa Irby, an avid SBIer. She’s not just an affiliate, she is an extremely successful SBI site builder too. Her http://www.flat-stomach-exercises.com is just one of her SBI sites.

Several here have mentioned the SBI forums. In my opinion, they are worth the price of the whole subscription. Never have I seen such a group of helpful, caring, positive people. The information available there is just astounding, as is the moral support from others going through the same learning curve. And Ken Evoy, the founder of SBI, often pops into the forum and joins the discussion.

I simply can’t imagine myself building a web presence without SBI.
Fotografo

November 23rd, 2008 4:19 pm

Useful as usally. I’ check it out.
Larry Chamberlain

November 23rd, 2008 4:55 pm

I’d say that SBI does everything that it promises to do. But even better than the ‘product’ is the company itself. They don’t just sell you the system, they really do stay with you.

SBI is no ‘get rich quick’, you need to devote yourself to it but if you do you won’t be disappointed.
Honor

November 23rd, 2008 5:10 pm

Well I’m not a sponsor but I do use SBI and personally have nothing but good things to say about them.

I first tried them in 2005 and thought I would try running before I could walk and funnily enough the site didn’t work. They do tell you to follow the Action Guide! Anyway, I came back last year and am currently working on my Tokyo site - which is going very well because I finally figured out that if I do it by the Action Guide things start to happen. As the poster said, it is not easy and is definitely not the solution if you are wanting to put up a site overnight. I have been working now for 7 months and have a long way to go yet… but then I’m in it for the long term.

Little by little is the name of the game for me… but SBI holds my hand all the way. As a beginner in the field of building websites, this is what I need.
Scribetrotter

November 23rd, 2008 5:44 pm

I’m a journalist - no web experience whatsoever until a couple of years ago. I wanted a website and spent quite a lot of money trying to ‘figure it out’ - much more than SBI’s yearly cost.

The result today? I have a site with 300+ pages (this from someone who didn’t know what domain name meant). It not only pays for itself, but earns me a growing monthly income. I could never have done this in the same amount of time otherwise.

I have two sites with SBI, and plan on adding two more next year. I wouldn’t do it any other way. Of course you can do it yourself - but why, when this is so easy??

Of course you can get a better template elsewhere… yes, they tend to look alike… and there IS a lot to master… and SBI doesn’t do it for you - you actually have to do the hard work.

Oh yes, the forums, I almost forgot. It’s one of the few places on the web where people are more anxious to help you than to have you help them…
Tomaz

November 23rd, 2008 6:18 pm

There are some comments here saying that all the knowledge and tools that you can get without Site Build It Action Guide and Tools can be found for free.

That’s true. But let’s imagine an average person (not an experienced blogger with HTML expertise) who wants to start an online business:

1. Does she know where to look on the web to find this info?

2. How does she know who to trust?

3. Can she distinguish between crap (and there 99% of that online) and real useful information?

4. Does she have the time to sift through this massive information, organize it and start taking action while having a full time job, 2 kids and husband that needs taking care of? ;)

5. Will she have full support of the community and HUNDREDS of examples of successful websites built with the same system so she can learn from examples and people who succeeded before her?

Answer these questions and you’ll see that SBI is really something that saves you time, money and shows you how at first you can work from home but later you can just watch money rolling in day after day. No need to be an expert blogger and or a HTML wizard.

I’ve freed myself from work with SBI and I am happy to help anyone escape the slavery of work and enjoy the freedom that online business can give you.
Internet Strategist

November 23rd, 2008 7:11 pm

I assisted a friend to get a site started using the SBI system and can share several points that will assist those considering buying it.

The system takes you through a keyword research process to determine whether there is any demand for what you’re considering. Because I already had a background in keyword research I recognized what the system was doing and why.

This research took hours and is a very good thing as you don’t want a site no one will visit! BUT…If you are not willing to go through a lengthy research process you will not like the system and are unlikely to get a site up and running.

If - and ONLY IF - you are willing to follow the process and do what is required, you will end up with a more commercial site than you would otherwise.

Years back when I used it there was an SBI site about juggling with enormous traffic. It was obvious why - they weren’t targeting juggling. They were targeting keyword phrases relating to reasons someone would hire a juggler.

Having a site no one can find will never make you any money. Building a site about a topic no one is searching for makes it really challenging to be found. There is a brilliant mind behind that system and it does many things it will take most Web site owners years to learn - if ever.

Times have changed. Today most people would be better off with WordPress for information sites and Volusion for shopping sites - but you still really need someone with years of experience to help you do it right.

The best thing anyone with a Web site (or planning to have one) can do is buy an inexpensive book called Don’t Make Me Think. Everyone involved in Web sites should own a copy. You can read sample chapters online.
gendut

November 23rd, 2008 8:02 pm

very great sharing…….. I am very enjoy the posting,thanks
Chris Cree

November 23rd, 2008 10:23 pm

Twitter’s giving me a “That page doesn’t exist! ” error from Julie’s link. :(
Ganesh

November 23rd, 2008 11:26 pm

I heard about Site Build It! only recently. Fortunately, by the time I started building websites and blogs, I had enough technical knowledge of how to do it. But I feel that SBI, is more than just building sites. Although I’ve never tried it out, I can judge from the user reviews and testimonials that it is a really awesome and useful tool that has helped so many people become successful. Maybe I’ll try it out in the future.
Claude

November 24th, 2008 1:36 am

Granted that it is easy to put up a Web site or a blog, these days.

But I know of no other company than SiteSell Inc. that will help one build a sound business using the Web as first business domain.

I discovered, during 2006, that Site Build It! means business.

By that I mean that SBI! is the coherent package that helped me start in business, from the ground up, on a micro budget.

With time, I discovered that SBI! is a proven business building process.

SBI! has enabled me to diversify my business. I can leverage the knowledge I have accumulated over the years. Some of it comes from work experience and some comes from my hobbies and interests.

I own two Web sites built using the SBI! business building process. I have a third one in the works that I plan to put online in early 2009, at the latest. I have also built a SBI! site to promote my wife’s (our ;-) B&B.

I have admitted publicly before that I have become a business man in spite of myself. When I first started, I only had the desire to self-publish while marketing my writings on a near zero budget.

You see, marketing is key to a writer’s success. It’s key to any business.

The SBI! marketing process worked beyond my wildest dreams.

P.S. Jeff, the complete, yes, complete documentation package for Site Build It! - called the SBI! Action Guide - is available to the public, free of charge. Look for the Action-Guide page on the SiteSell site.
Krissy Knox :)

November 24th, 2008 1:58 am

I’ve heard of it, and I guess I just wouldn’t use it. Why would you want to use that, when you could create a website or blog in which you can have it exactly the way you want it, instead of trying to find different templates they have, picking as close to what you want? It just doesn’t make sense to me. And why not research and learn? Why not learn some HTML, and format my blog the way I want it? Yes, it takes awhile, but anything worthwhile in life takes awhile. Learn and make your blog or website EXACTLY what YOU want it to be… Having said that, I am on blogspot, but I will eventually, when I get a new, use wordpress. Of course I won’t be using straight HTML. Even using wordpress widgets is cheating some, as we are getting HTML code from snagging the widgets. But I just can’t imagine using SBI. Make your blog exactly the way you want it, and stretch yourself and learn!…

Krissy :)
Krissy Knox :)

November 24th, 2008 2:03 am

Just wondering, Darren, why are my comments always “awaiting moderation”? They used to not be! Could I possibly have done something wrong? And also, why can’t I unsubscribe to comments? I checked that box once, mistakenly, and now I can’t get the comments to stop filling up my emailbox! Hundreds of comments, LOL! When I hit the unsubscribe, it gives me a message like “you cannot choose this option to unsubscribe. You do not have the correct key.” Eegads! I am putting in the key number in the browser that you all are giving me! So I don’t know what else to do! Could you not send me hundreds of comments? Thanks so much! By the way, I want to say I DO appreciate your ProBlogger, it is my all time favorite blog, I reccomment you to ALL my friends!

God bless, Krissy :)
Erwin Steneker

November 24th, 2008 2:04 am

Here’s my little unsponsored comment…

To talk about Site Build It! in comparison with any other sitebuilding tool (free or paid) is not doing it justice.

Building a site is the easy part.

To build an online business requires much more. You need to do the footwork to know that there actually is a market for you, that you know how your future customers are looking for what you provide, and if they’re willing to spend money on it. Without a market, no business.

The difference with SBI! vs. ‘the rest’, is that the process shows you how to do that research to determine there is a market, and that your web site building efforts are not in vain. Days 1 through 5 of the Action Guide (which is available to everyone, btw, just do a Google search on Action Guide) are what in the offline world is called “creating a business plan”.

When comparing SBI! to other solutions, just ask yourself whether or not they’re helping you to create a business plan.

No business plan? Well, then you’re building a hobby site. Nothing wrong with that, I guess.
Stephen

November 24th, 2008 3:49 am

You ask “Why would you need to pay for this type of thing when you can set up your own blog or website using free tools?”

Well I used SBI a few years ago and what it gives heaps of is guidance. It practically forces you to remember each step of researching your niche, finding keywords, planning and optimising your content and building links, plus it takes care of the structural SEO for you.

It gets a bit too restrictive for anything terribly original, but by that time you’ve got the basics nailed and ready to move on to stuff like Wordpress where you’re free to forget all the rules and make mistakes galore.

You won’t find instant riches off SBI but if you can’t even make your money back in Adsense over the year then you probably don’t have the application for online marketing in any case.
Kathi

November 24th, 2008 5:16 am

I wanted to weigh in here too. I am an SBI owner, having built 6 of my own sites using this platform. I also have a number of other non-SBI sites that I built using straight HTML, Wordpress and Blogger. None but the SBI sites are making any significant amount of money.

And that’s despite thinking I’m using all of my SBI knowledge to build those other sites. There’s something special about how SBI sites succeed.

I also wanted to comment on the many comments here about the SBI “look”. I agree; many SBI sites do look similar, certainly those built with the SBI blockbuilder (that requires no HTML knowledge) often look similar in layout. But, there are many ways you change that SBI look:

* You can upload your own graphics for the header, the navigation bar and the background, so that your template is like no other SBI site (By the way, there are over 200 different templates available too, and any of those can be changed in a number of different ways)

* You can use a stylesheet (with the blockbuilder) to set different fonts, font colors, headline sizes, bullets, page background color and more.

* You can upload your own HTML pages, created with any stock template or your own unique design; these can be any layout you want

* 2 different SBI owners sell a $50 template that enables you to add the much coveted right sidebar, using the upload your own HTML option. One works within the standard 725px wide SBI layout (recommended for a reason, by the way). The other offers either a fixed or fluid 3 column layout that can be as wide as you want.

So there is NO reason why any SBI site has to have the standard SBI “look”, if it is not wanted. No reason at all. You’re only limited by your imagination and your HTML skills, which is also true of any of the Wordpress or other platform built sites.

Second, as others have said, SBI is about so much more than building a website. It’s about building a business. And it’s about making friends and becoming part of a community, which is a wonderful benefit when you work from home full time on websites as I do (which SBI made possible, by the way).

And I beg to differ with whoever said people join SBI only so they can become affiliates. You don’t have to own SBI to be an affiliate for SiteSell.But you’ll certainly be more convincing (as with any affiliate product) if you can speak knowledgeably about its pros and cons.

Do I think SBI is perfect? No, not by a long shot. But I do think it’s a great package for a reasonable price for people who are serious about working hard to succeed. And Ken Evoy and his crew regularly respond to “wishes” asked for by SBI users and have regularly upgraded everything about the platform without once raising the price. Phenomenal.

It would be extremely rare to find an SBI user who has truly followed the system set forth in the SBI Action Guide and who is not happy with the results. Pure and simple, SBI works… if you do.

As for me, my SBI sites are making me over $2000/month, and steadily increasing every single month. And the one that’s making the most (though 4.5 years old), I put very little effort into at this point. So that’s almost 100% passive income! Works for me…
Heidi

November 24th, 2008 8:20 am

I have had an SBI site for about 7 months. I chose SBI because I wasn’t making any money online and I got so confused reading all the different ebooks not knowing what to do first.

I haven’t made much money yet, but I have learned a ton. They don’t spoon feed you. I have had to work at building my 50+ pages of content. I learned a lot about how to set up a page so that the search engines will find it.

I only have about an hour a day to work on my site. I’m sure if I had more time I would be further ahead.

I like what has been said here - Building pages is easy, building a business on the web is not.

SBI helps by sifting through all the internet jargon and gives you the best of the best information to work from. $25 a month cost is nothing compared to what you get in information, guidance and service.
IronBlogger - Blogging Tips and Tricks

November 24th, 2008 11:03 am

Very good review. I actually seen this program not too long ago and was wondering of perchasing the software.

I do have a question though, when it says that hosting is taken care of what does that mean? Do you actually real legit hosting or do you get a crappy hosting plan.
Kelly

November 24th, 2008 12:26 pm

1. I second the question on hosting. What if by some crazy stroke of luck we get a day with huge hits to our site - how do we know it won’t crash?

2. Is SBI for use with a BLOG or only a site with static pages?
Tomaz

November 24th, 2008 6:38 pm

To IronBlogger And Kelly: SBI offers unlimited bandwidth and the price never changes. And yes, SBI sites easily handle Digg and other massive traffic spikes.

I have personally experienced Digg traffic with no problems (got 12000 visitors in a day on a site which averaged 200 at that time) and so have others that have reported that in the SBI forums.
Mary

November 25th, 2008 12:22 am

I currently have one SBI site. Honestly, I have learned more in the six months it has been live than in all my years online. Part of this is the supportive community that is part of the SBI package.

My site is young. Yet, I rank with Google for a couple of my pages, get almost 100 unique visitors a day and am making a bit of money on adsense. In the meantime, I am learning HTML, CSS and a host of other skills that will allow me to make my current site and any others I set up successful.

We have a wide range of folks at SBI, many are experienced webmasters. I suppose they see the value of having all those tools in one streamlined package. In addition to great support both technical and community.

SBI offers a blog function, or you can set up a third party blog and make it part of your site.

I’ve never known my site or any others’ to be down. While my site is not the most advanced example, you are all welcome to check it out. Eventually, I will institute a new look and feel via CSS.
JB @ Cool Products

November 25th, 2008 2:44 am

I haven’t used SBI before, but one of my very good friends has mentioned to me that he had great success in using SBI for his first experience in site-building. I think that you’re probably correct in saying that most of the more seasoned people on here already know how to do what SBI does (except, for free), but I can’t tell you how many hours I’ve wasted stubbornly teaching myself how to do things that could have been easily solved by attaining professional help. Tip to new bloggers: don’t forget to factor in the costs of consuming time through teaching yourself, in comparison to what a site and service like this one would cost you.
internetGIRLfriday.com

November 25th, 2008 5:00 am

How is it different from http://www.webnode.com ?
Webnode is the free Wordpress Alternative I used to build4 or 5 sites pretty easily with drag n drop functionality.

Jennifer Goodwin - Founder & CEO
http://www.internetGIRLfriday.com
Jeremy

November 25th, 2008 8:35 pm

I have a friend who recommends it enthusiastically, though they’re not making money on it yet. I’ve seen the back end of it, and although it is apparently easy to use, it looks very dated and clunky. Perhaps I’m overly influenced by design, but I use Wordpress, which is so intuitive and easy I have no desire at all to switch to something that’s paid for and uglier.

Also, I can’t help noticing that many/most SBI sites look like they were build in 1995, and I wonder why.

I’ve watched the SBI videos and seen the site, and their one ’secret’ is something that every serious blogger or web builder already knows - it’s all about content.
Evan

November 26th, 2008 4:16 am

I have heard a lot of good things about SBI. There are some people I work with that thought it was really a great thing when they were first starting out with internet marketing. I haven’t used it, but I may try it soon.
Internet Strategist

November 26th, 2008 7:23 am

Even after reading all the comments above it may still not be clear enough that Site Build It is NOT simply a way to create Web pages or a Web site. It is an entire process of keyword research, SEO optimization, and usability that allows someone with limited or no knowledge of these very complex subjects to build a site as though they knew them already.

I have elaborated more about this in a post linked from my name. The bottom line is that there are many ways to build a Web site but building a business that is successful is an entirely different ballgame.
Justine

November 26th, 2008 9:38 am

I havent heard about SBI before, but I will say they look pretty good.

I built a flash website through Picaholic. They provide professional dynamic flash templates with easy-to-use editing tools. I build and maintain the site myself - all i had to do was choose a flash template, change the appearance to suit my business and add my text, images and videos. I’m a photographer, and needed to have a pretty cool Photography flash website, so they were a good option.

They offer unlimited pages, galleries, images, videos plus more.

Picaholic provides SEO friendly Flash templates where I can add meta titles, descriptions and keywords on every page. I’m already climbing up the ranks for some keywords - so I cant complain.

I recommend checking them out - their fee for a flash website includes hosting and who can beat $180 a year for a really cool flash website - and you can add unlimited pages, galleries, images etc at no extra cost :).
Ken Evoy

November 27th, 2008 1:10 am

I guess I can summarize it for everyone in one simple sentence. SBI! is all about building a long-term, profitable e-business. Not about putting up a bunch of sites.

Along the way, SBIers learn more in a relatively short period of time, and DO MORE, than any other system I know of. Yes, there are prettier back-ends (we’ll work on that, we’ve hired J-Lo ;-) ). But the tools work just fine and many of them are unique. No, WordPress does not automatically make prettier sites — nor do they tie everything together into a process that works.

And finally, in the long run, not in the Get Rich Quick short run, SBIers really do succeed in unprecedented numbers. Every one of those case studies, every “I Love SBI!” video, is the truth. Compare carefully against the “success stories” of anywhere else and you’ll see a huge difference.

Hope this isn’t considered promotional, but when folks get caught up in “trees of features,” they end up getting lost in the big picture of how SBIers, both new to the Net and veterans, build successful businesses while-and-by adding true value to the Web.

All the best,
Ken Evoy
Founder, SiteSell.com
The Lion

November 27th, 2008 3:57 am

Noops. It does not worth it. It only takes few hours to learn basics of dreamweaver. If you are familiar with dreamweaver you can make more professional and way better sites.

I am not a big fan of this kind of tools. Internet is loaded with crappy web sites because of them. People do not invest enough time to learn things properly. This is an art that you should master carefully and slowly. I do not see how sbi fit in this equation.
Erwin Steneker

November 28th, 2008 4:07 am

There’s nothing sadder than a pretty web site that hardly gets any visitors.

SBI!’s process is effective at finding out where the market is. One that’s not too overcrowded with competition (ie. Internet Marketing). One that actually has demand.

Then it shows you how to target those visitors effectively. By building page after page for specific keyword phrases. Which keyword phrases? No guessing… SBI Brainstormer tells you which. Each keyword phrase is like a little net for capturing visitors. Cast a big net by building lots of pages on specific keyword phrases that are easily winnable.

You can build an SBI! site using Dreamweaver. I do. I upload the pages one by one. Much better than FTP I say, because I check each page so I know it’s good for the search engines and then build them. FTP can’t do that for me. I don’t spend a lot of time rebuilding and re-uploading loads of already existing pages. There’s little business sense in that.

But if you want easy over effective, be my guest. Effective wins. SBI! is effective. Period.
Willy Lim - Small Business Marketing Expert

November 28th, 2008 4:17 am

Actually, SBI is more a process rather than a product :)

SBI pinned down the fundamental realities of what makes an online business tick. That’s what it is.

It’s just like learning the ABCs of the English language.
Yes, a 5- year old may only be able to use it to create really simple conversation, but an adult will be able to use the same ABCs to write a best-selling novel.

SBI is the ABCs of an online business, from brainstorming, to master keyword lists, to content blueprint, and building SEO pages….It’s all in one place.

In hands of novice, SBI can still be powerful, just like the 5-year old being able to communicate her thoughts using ABC. But in the hands of an expert, an SBI site can be serious competition to industrial heavyweights in terms of traffic!

Delivering Net Profits to Your Business,
Willy Lim
Small Business Marketing Expert
The Financially Free Advisor
Bill

November 28th, 2008 4:27 am

I’ve been building SBI sites since 2005. Never built a site before that, so this has been my first experience into working with websites. I’ll agree that some of the basic templates are, well, basic. But that doesn’t really matter as long as the content is there to back it up. All I’ve had to do has been search for good keywords, write content, and do a few other chores related to the sites-some simple and some that take a while to figure out.

If you choose a good niche, and follow the process a person has a good chance of being successful. Actually, my first site, which uses a very basic template (I did customized the header), pulled in over 13,000 unique visitors. Yesterday.

Works for me too. ;-)
Eszter

November 28th, 2008 5:31 am

I’m building my very first site with SBI without any prior knowledge of HTML, webdesign and online marketing techniques.
It’s been around 6 months since the first page went “live” and the site is far away from being complete but already Google has indexed several of my pages in the top 10. Traffic is increasing 20-30% each month.

I see SBI not only as a site builder but also as a self-study course that gives me a complex knowledge and a clear roadmap to building a successful online business.
Joe Trent

November 28th, 2008 6:28 am

It would be extremely rare to find an SBI user who has truly followed the system set forth in the SBI Action Guide and who is not happy with the results.

As far as how successful you’ll be, I think the niche you pick is 80% and what you use to build your site with is 20%. I have a SBI site that I spent 2 years of my life on that makes about $2 a day with adsense. I followed their action guide to a tee.

At the 9th month mark of my site, I was not happy and considered letting it go, but decided to follow the mantra of “build more content” I should have let it go, I could have used the additional sleep that I lost the second year working on my site. It still makes about $2 a day with adsense.

SBI is OK, just don’t drink the coolaid.
Arjen

November 28th, 2008 7:39 am

I’m a newbie to e-commerce. My SBI site http://www.kenya-advisor.com gets 30,000 unique visitors a month after 19 months online, and is a growing part of my income. Kind of says enough.
Mike Boysen

November 28th, 2008 8:50 am

The Lion: You keep believing that and SBIer’s will keep making money after the hard work it requires. BTW, I use Expression Web and my sites can look any way I want them to.

Good luck!
Sue Marchant

November 28th, 2008 7:31 pm

I’m on my 2nd site. The first one is almost 3 years old and mainly sits there looking pretty. For the 2nd one I used SBI and it’s just coming up to its first anniversary. I’ve just under 100 pages indexed by the engines and get considerably more visitors a month than my other site gets in a year.

But all of that’s not really the point. Anyone can put up a site. SBI is helping me to build a business.

So maybe some of the sites look similar … so do cars these days! You still buy/use the one that gives you what you want, even if it looks a bit like its neighbour.

Same with SBI sites. (and as has been mentioned above, if it bothers you you can easily change the look!) But more importantly, SBI sites appear similar because they use the same philosophy. They care about giving their visitors good value. That’s why they attract traffic and rank well at the engines.

And as for cost? My first site’s on a cheap hosting deal. And as I’m not an experienced webmaster, I have to pay for all sorts of additional site building and marketing tools. So overall my old ‘cheap’ non-performing site costs me more than the SBI contract.
For me, it’s a no-brainer!
Kriss W

November 28th, 2008 8:28 pm

I have a fairly new site, still in building stage, which I am building using SBI. I am an at-home mum with another home business and I have used the internet for many years for shopping, chatting, social interaction, ebay, email etc BUT I am not in any way technical, do not know HTML, or even where I’d begin learning it, so to me, answering the question that many people have asked “Why would you??” I have to say that I use SBI because it fills in the gaps in my knowledge and teaches me what I need to do every step of the way!

Without SBI I had no clue as to how to find a category that I could make profitable, how to get my site started, or even how to get the thing to show up on the internet…

So it opens doors that for non-techies would normally remain firmly locked!

It would have taken me another lifetime to have researched all that for myself - time I just don’t have to spend!
FrankH

November 28th, 2008 11:44 pm

As an SBI user I can tell you,
out off first hand, that you can
build a successful website that
makes you an extra or full income.

SBI is a system that let’s you
concentrate on what you like
the most, for example your hobby.

My online success is real,
since my traffic grows with
20% every month.
Lakshmi

November 29th, 2008 3:22 am

I’m building a website using SBI system. Along with learning to build a site, I have earned more than what I had spent within this short period of one year.

I wish I had started using it earlier, so that I could have started earning a regular income by now, like many other SBIers.

I do agree that SBI is not for the people who are seeking an easy income without much work; it is for those who are ready to work hard and build a successful e-business.
Kathi

November 29th, 2008 5:14 am

Just wanted to comment on what Joe Trent said:

Joe, I find it illuminating that you did not link your name to your SBI site, so that we could get some insight into why you haven’t achieved SBI success. But you are right that choosing the right niche is essential.And SBI helps with that, by using their state-of-the-art Brainstormer and Niche Choose It.

However, I have also learned that even if you do choose a great niche that gets a lot of traffic, you still have to have a way of monetizing it effectively. In other words, the traffic you attract has to be willing to click on ads or spend money to buy something. And not all niches provide that type of traffic, so that can make a difference too. For instance, my significant other built a site about a very hot topic, but found there aren’t really a lot of relevant advertisers for that niche at this point (too new?). So, it hasn’t been the moneymaker he hoped for, despite the fact that he’s gotten good traffic.

But please don’t perpetuate the myth that we SBI lovers are some kind of cult, just because you weren’t successful. Better to take a hard look at the site you built and how closely you really followed all aspects of the Action Guide. You might also post your site in the SBI forums and ask for a review. You’re certain to get lots of helpful advice, because that’s what SBIers do. They help each other.
Julie

November 29th, 2008 6:40 am

I have been using SBI! since 2002 and can not say enough good things about it.

It isn’t just a website - it is a business development system. Some say it looks cheap or unprofessional but it is more about getting traffic and results than being all flashy and complex. What good is a nice looking site if it doesn’t get found by SE?

It isn’t standard hosting. It is a database driven system so there is no http://ftp. It is a little hard to get used to if you are used to the ease of building sites using that but that doesn’t really say much about what gets the best results.

I make half of my living from my little websites that I work on in my spare time.

The forums are like none other ever to be found with the owner Ken Evoy posting regularly to help out even the newest newbie or the most advanced site builders. It really is about sharing what you know with others and taking what you are passionate about and turning it into a business.
David

November 29th, 2008 11:48 am

With no prior web experience, I started my SBI site 4 months ago and could not be happier about the service. I have a video-rich site about Hybrid Cars. I’ve had no hosting problems at all. I’m still using the basic ‘Block-builder’ approach, but will soon be considering Dreamweaver (yes you can upload your own html).

I have a link to the Complete 10-Day Action Guide on my ‘Test Drive’ page. See for yourself what SBI does.

One thing that hasn’t been well mentioned is that SBI keeps advancing - bringing in new technologies - without charging any more. New Social media stuff; the amazing ‘Search It’ tool, and many more. I really feel my site can grow along with them.

Success on the web means visitors. If you will take the great writing/marketing techniques you find at SBI and elsewhere (including ProBlogger which has helped me much!) and apply them to SBI I’m sure you’ll see success.
W.G.

November 30th, 2008 5:35 am

Does anyone else feel like they are watching an episode of the Daily Show where they show several different White House officials using the exact same phrases over and over again. Talking points, I believe they are called?

“SBI isn’t about building a site, it’s about building a long term profitable business.”

“I have 3 SBI sites and 2 non-SBI sites, the only ones that make money are the SBI sites.”

Really? There isn’t a single supporter of SBI who was able to make even one non-SBI site profitable? Is that proof that SBI is only for people who aren’t smart enough/good enough to do it for themselves?

How come I get the feeling that the “great community and supportive forums” (spin keyword #3) pumped out a little message telling the SBI users to go and comment on a big high ranking blog in order to help generate their own traffic (and not coincidentally load up the positive comments.)

Shill. Shill. Shill.
Julie

November 30th, 2008 7:59 am

I actually do have a successful site (www.thebodyworker.com) I have that I didn’t use SBI! for but I made it after reading their first ebook - Make your site sell and as soon as I have time I am moving all 800 pages over to SBI because in the long run it will be less work and get better results.
Tomaz

November 30th, 2008 7:20 pm

To W.G.: Here is the topic where Darren’s review has been mentioned in the SBI forums:

http://forums.sitesell.com/viewtopic.php?t=98437

You’ll need a username and password so contact me at tomaz (at) freedomideas.com and I’ll get you in.

You’ll see that your “feeling” is just a “feeling” and it’s not the truth…
Andrej

December 1st, 2008 3:51 am

I was an SBI user myself, at the time of purchase I already knew a lot of HTML and some CSS, SBI did not convince me with its over-use of acronyms nor did it convince me with its default templates (you can recognize an SBI site a mile away…), if you want to use your own template then you’ll have to go through a lot…

The price also was not very convenient, furthermore the SBI homepage glorifies SBI so much that it already gets funny.

Also I think that now, in the days of the so-called “web 2.0″, simple SBI sites just can’t compete.
Luis

December 1st, 2008 8:18 am

I’ll have to agree with Jeff and Gina. I’m a Web professional and SBI has been one of the most frustrating, clunky and unhelpful website building tool I’ve ever encountered. I have difficulty making sense of all the positive feedback.

The free site building tools most people use, such as Wordpress and others, are much more modern, powerful and user friendly than anything SBI has to offer. Their documentation is abundant and comprehensive, contrarily to SBI’s which is infested with annoying salespeak. One has to browse through much useless information before being able to get anything done.

Content management is definitively not SBI’s strength. It’s also about a decade late.

…but how good is it at helping you monetize from websites? What sitesell.com is really selling is a Get-Rich-Slow guide book that leads you through the process of finding a niche and building an advertiser friendly website. I can’t be a judge of the tools and methodology proposed, but it has raised my curiosity enough to motivate me to do some research on the topic. Hopefully, I will be able to find this information elsewhere in a format that suits me best.
Jef

December 2nd, 2008 12:45 am

Andrej, I too am a happy SBIer and have been following this review with interest. The comments from non-SBIers that perpetuate the myths of SBI! are amazing. From what I can tell, many have not even tried it, and those who have never really gave it a chance. They simply did not want to work differently.

But “over-use of acronyms”? C’mon.

And if you know HTML, you can upload or design ANY template you like, including your own totally custom-designed one. I’m not sure why “you have to go through a lot” if you already know HTML. As for Web 2.0, please see…

http://c2.sitesell.com

With Content 2.0, there are SBIers who literally get their visitors to create thousands of REAL pages (yes, some have over 1,000 pages created by their visitors), and other visitors to comment on them. On my site, I give visitors the chance to express their grief over the death of their dog. And I’ve had many comments from people, thanking me for giving them the opportunity to grieve publicly. And I do almost no work in managing that part of my site. No, SBI! definitely keeps us on the cutting edge.

And to Luis, I’m not sure how “SBI has been one of the most frustrating, clunky and unhelpful website building tool I’ve ever encountered” when you later state that you’ve never used it: “I can’t be a judge of the tools and methodology proposed, but it has raised my curiosity enough to motivate me to do some research on the topic.”

To everyone reading this:

It’s really very simple. Do you have a successful site or blog that earns you real income, such as Darren does here at Problogger? If you do, then you do NOT need Site Build It!.

Have you yet to establish a profitable business?

Then try Site Build It!. They have an iron-clad guarantee, and the price is very low for what you get. It works out to $25 a month. Compare that to your $5 or $10 a month hosting that comes with storage and bandwidth limits and no keyword research tools.

And if are you sensitive to the “sales” copy of their Web site, well, you likely need SBI! more than you may think. Their site DOES exist to sell the product. What they do NOT do is make any inflated claim. And they do back everything up.

If “selling” is hard to understand or accept, you either need to change your attitude/opinion about it, or get a 9 to 5 job, because the Web entrepreneur world may not be right for you.

I can tell you that so many new SBIers post in the forums that they almost didn’t purchase it. It seemed too good to be true. It’s not. And many post about their successes. One was on Oprah a couple of months ago. Another was the source for horror movies in the Entertainment section of USA Today on Halloween. And they were found because of their sites.

By the way, I’m a Canadian who recently moved to and is now living in Ecuador, thanks to SBI!. I’ve learned a great deal from it. Are YOU leading the life you want to live?

Sorry if I sound cultish.

So do Macintosh users (I’m one of those too, for 12+ years) and Google lovers (well, before Google was everywhere). ;-)
Ken Evoy

December 2nd, 2008 8:24 am

I really promised myself I wouldn’t post to this thread again, but it really is just too interesting. I won’t both answering the false myths because Jef said the single most important thing on this entire page, and I quote:

“It’s really very simple. Do you have a successful site or blog that earns you real income, such as Darren does here at Problogger? If you do, then you do NOT need Site Build It!. Have you yet to establish a profitable business? Then try Site Build It!. They have an iron-clad guarantee, and the price is very low for what you get.”

Jef, I really don’t think I can say it better than that! Thanks so much for your support and best of luck in Ecuador. I expect to see another profitable SBI! site, perhaps EquadorLife.com, coming soon? ;-)

All the best,
Ken
Kerry

December 2nd, 2008 11:40 am

I actually was ready to sign up when I’d read the original post, but all of the comments (with links to websites with hyphens…I’ve never seen so many websites with hyphens in one place) have creeped me out. As another commenter said, when so many people seem to be using the same phrasing to describe their experience, well, it does seem a little off. In reviewing the websites with the hyphens, they DO look and sound alike to me.
Ken Evoy

December 2nd, 2008 10:07 pm

Kerry, please read my previous post. Do you want to succeed or do you want a no-hyphen niche? Unless you are an offline business, you will be found by the Search Engines. Well, SBI! sites will be, in any event. You monetize that traffic.

THAT builds real value, equity, in your business. The hyphens are irrelevant to your income. Here is what IS relevant…

You have a business, a profitable one. Here are a whole bunch more SBI! sites, Top 1% of them, all of them. There are no tricks here. We cross-check to make sure they have the traffic to back up their high rankings.

And this is only a small selection. To say “no” to SBI! because of hyphens, or because everyone loves SBI! and says so (Mac users all say the same things about their Macs, in the same way, too), well…

It makes no sense.

Please see my previous post for the bottom line.

If you already have a successful business, great. Don’t bother. If you don’t, what do you have to lose? It boggles my mind that anyone who is serious and ambitious, ready to work to finally create a profitable e-business, would choose to forego Site Build It! for reasons like this.

All the best,
Ken Evoy
Founder, SiteSell.com
Bill

December 3rd, 2008 12:24 am

I’ve been on the sideline for quite some time now researching every SBI site I could find.
Here’s my conclusion:
1. The tools given and explained by SBI does produce amazing results.
2. From a business perspective and not a tech perspective, SBI helps with the learning curve when it comes to successful websites.
3. The cost is significantly less to build your own site especially if you have no idea about HTML, CSS, RSS, SEO and the rest.
4. I actually like their marketing. SBI is not for everyone! It’s for ordinary people not looking to get rich quick by building a profitable website with unique content over time.

I’ve done the research!

From a non-techy point of view, SBI seems to have an awful lot of happy customers even with their so-called outdated layouts (which by the way are customizable.)

I’m taking the plunge soon!
Kerry

December 3rd, 2008 3:57 am

I didn’t say I was passing because of the hyphens. That would be stupid. But I think the hyphens, combined with the fact that multiple people DO seem to be using the same talking points (with the same word choice and phrasing), contribute to a spammy feel that significantly harms the credibility of the reviewers. I don’t know any of you, so I can only go by what you’ve posted here. Few of these statements seem credible or independent to me.

I actually DO have a successful career, and I’ve worked hard to build credibility in my field. I think that if my colleagues saw my ideas presented in the format and style that I’ve seen on some of the links above, my reputation would be a bit tarnished. In fact, I actually recognized two of the sites linked above, because I’d encountered them while researching my intended niche. I’d seen them, chuckled a bit at the clearly thrown-together, hard-sell approach, and moved on to more serious sites. Maybe there was some good content on those pages, but the presentation and approach so put me off that I didn’t spend the time to find out.

I have nothing against trying to sell your product, but if such a hard-sell approach is necessary, well, that doesn’t bode well.

This may be a great solution for some–I’m just saying that, based on the websites of the devotees I’ve reviewed here, I don’t think it would be a good one for me. I think I’ll continue to look for a solution whose results speak for themselves (and don’t require so much help from the script).
Cactus

December 3rd, 2008 3:22 pm

I am an unsatisfied SBI customer.

Like many, I was drawn-in by the promise of building an online business from scratch using SBI.

What I got with my $299 was a CMS that looks like it hasn’t been touched since 1997 and a mountain of ‘resources’ that resemble homespun tales about reaching my potential.

I seriously doubt many people are making a living from ad revenue on their SBI sites. I seriously believe the people making money from SBI are Ken Evoy and the affiliates who flood the internet with comments and links to their affiliate pages (like Darren Rowse…).

But don’t make your comments public: SBI affiliates and evangelists will respond with cheap sentiments about bad attitudes and the people who haven’t succeeded are the ones who never made the effort.

Seriously, spend the $299 on marketing books written by trusted authors.
Joom

December 4th, 2008 1:51 pm

I just started my SBI website about 6 months ago and I am learning as I go. I didn’t know HTML or coding when I started, knew nothing about internet marketing or web tools… the only thing I knew how to do was use a search engine like yahoo or google to find the information I wanted. I guess you could say I was your “average every day web surfer who also knew basic computer programs like Word and Excel”.

As far as my SBI website goes…I’m excited to say that I am getting a few dozen visitors a day, my web pages are listed by 3 major SE’s and I’m on my way to a successful profitable business.

If this sounds like a script or a list of carefully prepared ‘talking points’… I’m sorry because you are totally wrong.

The fact of the matter is a majority of SBI people WILL have the same experience and the same information to share….we are all using the same hosting company, with the same tools and resources and most of us didn’t know a thing about HTML or CSS etc. when we started.

Would you expect a majority of the people who were drinking a fine bottle of wine to have the same positive and pleased reaction to it? The answer is Yes.

Would you expect a team of Olympic gymnasts to follow the same training program and produce high scores in competition? Knowing the results was due to the coach, the gymnasts training program and their individual determination? The answer is Yes.

You can either look at this as optimism or pessimism… or the glass is half empty or half full….

I understand most people might be a little leery when they hear great things over and over and OVER about any type of company. I was. But the difference between myself and many other pessimistic people …. well, the answer is, I did my due diligence and researched in more than one place, or one blog or one forum about SBI.

I suggest you do that too. You will find over and over and OVER again that more people are satisfied customers who have successful websites, renew their subscriptions and continue with a successful and profitable business…. all because of SBI…. and ya, you will find a few people who could be labeled as “bad apples” who want to share their frustrations…. the fact they are unhappy with what they got when they signed up with SBI and all the other negative things you can think of…. but you will find that anywhere with ANY company…. I’ve never heard of 100% satisfied customers…. but I have heard of 100% customer satisfaction, and SBI delivers that!

SBI provides an incredible opportunity for ANY person willing to take the time to review and utilize the tools in their website package.

Most people who are dissatisfied or unhappy customers are usually the ones who are looking for the fast track to make money. They are missing the point of what a successful business is, what it requires to set up and what you can accomplish if you are patient, systematic and detail oriented….. That is my opinion anyway….

Who ever heard of a mom and pop sandwich shop opening their doors and making 1 million in revenue their first year? I haven’t… but you might have heard about a shop opening and breaking even… the shop that worked hard and diligently with focus…. that is a more reasonable expectation.

If you don’t know that something is that good when you see it… or don’t want to open your mind that it is possible… well, quite frankly…. I’m personally okay with that…. It leaves me with more opportunity for higher traffic volumes, more sales leads, and greater income potential and the list goes on.

If you DO know something that is THAT good when you see it, then jump in!! Don’t waste your time and reap the benefits… you will have more support than you know what to do with!

So, my last point is going to be my “shared mantra” with many other SBI’ers…. “Slow and steady wins the race.”
Kevin Waldo

December 5th, 2008 9:41 pm

Considering using SBI, and very pleased to find this thread.

Perhaps oddly, my main issue is with the hyphenated URLs, and ultimately with the limitations on using anything like PHP or Ajax.

My intention is to begin with an SBI site monetized thru SEM, but as traffic builds start to include more brand-name advertisers using IAB standard formats (please don’t argue with me about SEM versus CPM - just roll with this for now).

There appear to be three potential barriers to making this jump:

- Hyphenated URLs. They may be good for hit-and-run traffic from SEO, but they scare brand advertisers because they look so crappy. Is that a necessary or important part of SBI, or just a way to get around the fact that all the good URLs are taken?
- CMS. Using an old, clunky CMS is probably not a huge deal when you’re starting, but if you’re fortunate enough to get serious traffic and want to build a large online business, you’re going to inevitably want to use a modern CMS and certainly some programming like PHP or Java. Large advertisers typically want custom sponsorships of one type or another, and most require some custom coding.
- Migration. These sites seem tied at the hip to SBI’s back-end, and I’m scared to death that if I ever want to sell the site to someone who doesn’t use SBI for whatever reason, the sites won’t survive the “heart transplant” to another environment. Does anyone ever successfully move OFF of SBI when the time is right for them?

I guess the jist of my question is whether or not one can use SBI as a starting-off point, but take off the training wheels when the time is right.
Darren H

December 6th, 2008 8:26 pm

Hi

Hyphenated URLs are not required, only suggested for longer than three word domains.

You can use PHP or any other script using a module in SBI! called Infin It!.

You host the scripts on a third party host and use a subdomain in SBI! to link them into your site.

The engines see the third party content as belonging to your SBI domain, not the third party.

So, you can in fact plug a phpbb forum, WordPress Blog or any other system into yourSBI! site.

I’m not going to evangelilze about SBI for fear of being blasted as a cult member or hyping it up to the max.

I’m from the UK so not easily swayed about overhyped claims and product. All I can say is that I used SBI to promote my offline business and within 18 months I was able to ditch all offline advertising as I was getting 99% of my new clients via the web.

That on its own saved me over 2 grand a year.

Does it have limitations? Yes of course it does.

Are there ways around it’s limitations? yes of course there are.

What you have to ask yourself if you own a pretty site is, does it make you money?

I’m another one of those who found the block builder a bit clunky, so I now upload my own pages and you can see the results at http://www.madaboutsmallville.com

Don’t expect a large site because it’s only been live a week or three.

I’m not here to try and convince anyone, I’m not going to waste my time trying to deperplex the perplexed.

Incidentally, my main 2nd tier page was indexed in Google within 2 weeks and I’m already getting traffic from keyword searches, within 3 weeks?

Take care and have a good holiday all.

Darren
Ken Evoy

December 6th, 2008 9:24 pm

Kevin, good questions. The answers…

1) hyphenated domains are optional. Another myth. Hyphenated names are recommended for various reasons, non-hypenated for others. It’s another “SBI! myth.” YOU decide.

2) Regading CMS. First, I’ll refer you to the post above by Jeff, so we work within the proper context…

–

“It’s really very simple. Do you have a successful site or blog that earns you real income, such as Darren does here at Problogger? If you do, then you do NOT need Site Build It!. Have you yet to establish a profitable business? Then try Site Build It!. They have an iron-clad guarantee, and the price is very low for what you get.”

–

So you have to decided on the above paragraph first. :-)

Next…

The CMS is not “old, clunky.” That’s a myth. You progress from training wheels to doing whatever you like with Dreamweaver, Photoshop, etc. Whatever you can do with regular FTP, you can do with SBI!. These are the myths I am talking about.

And even if your personal opinion is that the backend is not as slick as gmail (and it’s not, I agree), it doesn’t need to be.

What it needs to do is enable people to succeed.

In today’s world, people lose track of the end goal and get blinded instead by glitz and false promises. We sell steak. Yes, our sites “sell” it. But it’s steak, not sizzle.

(Even doing your own PHP, that can be handled through our Infin It! module. Of course, there are also dynamic advertising options through regular “upload your own HTML” which you can do with SBI!, too. But if you wanted your entire site to be php-delivered, no, that’s not SBI!. But then again, unless you are a larger company or VC-financed, you’ve lost sight of the end goal before even starting.)

Really…

–

You’re assuming an enormous success before you get there. How about we get there first, together? :-) There are SBIers with over 2 million visitors per month and don’t feel constrained. It’s not the PHP that’s going to make you successful. :-)

–

Now, assuming that success…

3) Yes, there have been SBIers who HAVE left because they have wanted exactly what you outline in your third question. They have grown to the point where they want a totally dynamic site, able to do more than we intend to ever supply. They find out, of course, that it will cost them considerably more for the traffic (forget those claims of unlimited traffic — regular hosts will “get” you on the CPU) and all the tools, but that’s OK with them because they are making much more than they ever dreamed of.

They literally post to the forums to say good-bye, thanking everyone for the education they’ve received. They acknowledge that they could never have done it without SBI!.

There were, of course, other ways to do what they want to achieve within the SBI! environment, but that’s OK. I’m happy that we have impacted a life so positively, and…

At the end of the day, that’s what excites me, and everyone who works here, the most about SiteSell.com. I know it sounds corny, I know many of the comments here and elsewhere sound “cultish,” but it all comes from the entire company’s focus on every SBIer’s success. That word “cultish” has bad religious overtones, but remove those and think about any other business that is associated with that term…

I don’t know of a CEO who wouldn’t love the association. :-)

All the best,
Ken

P.S. If you have any more questions, there are good folks at question.sitesell.com — they will even openly tell you if SBI! is NOT for you. Really. :-)
Maria De Alejandro

December 7th, 2008 4:25 am

I found SBI through an internet search. I particularly liked their sales pitch, which is basically “If you want to get rich quick, don’t call us”. As an experienced business owner I am always turned off by the get rich quick mentality of so many web marketers. I know how expensive and time consuming it is to develop a successful business.

My main objective was to start a website in a way that was cost effective. Hiring a professional web designer is very expensive, and I would have no control over the site. Not being a tech person, this would mean that I would have to run to the webmaster every time I wanted to make a small change to my site.

When we are thinking about doing business with an entity on the Internet our main concern is whether this outfit is a fly by night operator, or an honest business. In that respect I have to say that SBI is a very reliable business. You will definitely get your money’s worth and more.

Is SBI for everyone? No, it isn’t. Most of the people who buy SBI sites are business people, and they think like business people not web designers. I am a business person, and only an accidental “web designer.” What I want is for my site to advance the business, not to showcase my designing skills.

Recently, at another forum, a business asked people to evaluate their web site. It is one of the most beautiful sites that I have ever seen, gorgeous and sophisticated. One of the features was that the site will appear to the viewer according to the time of day in the place where the business is located. The business is located on the other side of the world from me, therefore, if I am at their site when it is morning for me, it is night for them. The problem? I could not read the darn thing. The content may have been great, but I couldn’t tell because it was unreadable. The site was also difficult to navigate. So the question is, did the site fulfill the goals of the business owner? I would say that it failed miserably because it did not advance the business at all. But it did showcase the web designer’s skills beautifully! As a business owner, that would not make me very happy. My site is there to market my business, not the web designer’s business.

I have been doing research on the Internet for many years, my profession requires it, so I have come across many many websites. Some are great, some are annoying, some are plain janes. But I find that, as a consumer of information, if a site is plain, but it gives me the information that I need, it is a winner for me. A site that is gorgeous, but I cannot get what I need; well, It just wasted my time.

My site is not even three months old, so I cannot tell you about making money yet. And the templates are indeed boring as heck. But it has allowed me to start a site (One very different from my original concept, but that is another story) that fits my needs. And once I have time to learn html, I will want to make changes so that it reflects my style a bit more.

Another point, about comments made that all people with SBI sites are addressing the same “talking points” and using the same phraseology; I think this is natural. When you are in a particular profession or line of work, you tend to use the same words to describe an experience. Most doctors sound alike, most lawyers sound alike, most web designers sound alike; it is natural that most SBI owners sound alike because they are using the same terminology all the time.

Again, is SBI for everyone? No. Is it for someone who thinks like a business owner, rather than a web designer? I would say yes. Does everyone succeed with SBI? No. Do many succeed? Apparently yes, since it has a loyal following. Will you lose your money to an unscrupulous operator if you buy from them? No, they are highly ethical. Is it easy? No, not for those of us who are tech challenged, there is a steep learning curve. Is it doable? Absolutely, you do get loads of help, especially from the forums.

It all depends on your goals. SBI fulfills the goals of a particular segment of the web population very well. But, like everything in life, it can’t fulfills everyones goals and expectations.
Kevin Waldo

December 7th, 2008 7:36 am

Great responses.

Perhaps the most impressive thing about SBI is that Ken is so darn ON it when it comes to web PR! :-)

I AM assuming “enormous success”, partly because I’ve frankly had a track record of enormous success in the past.

But getting SEO traffic is genuinely hard, and I’ve come across SBI sites with more (way more) organic search traffic than much, much larger and better financed sites. Having my cake and eating it too would be to have SBI’s organic traffic expertise coupled with more flexibility in site technology.

In any case, I AM going to try a few sites in SBI - although as of this morning I decided I’d better hold off a few days for the 2-for-1 Xmas sale. :-)
Zoe

December 7th, 2008 8:28 am

I really like Maria’s comments. As someone who was raised in a somewhat culty religious environment, I do personally take exception to the fact that the word “cult” and “culty” get thrown around with no true understanding of what you’re talking about.

It did come off a little MLM “rah rah” to me before I joined. But I figured I could just ignore that if I didn’t like it. There was no requirement to participate on the forums or interact with any other user of the product. But I’ve found the people on the forums to be pleasant, helpful people, who have brains in their head and whose critical reasoning seems to be functioning just fine.

I’m also a Buffy fan. Things like Buffy have a “cult following.” We are rabidly insanely fannish about our characters and storyline and all the products available to Buffy fans as well as cons. Lots of web geeks are culty about “something.”

Star Trek anyone? Firefly?

How many of you understand what this means: “Did you get the new cover sheet for the TPS reports?”

Office Space is another cult classic.

I don’t particularly like the templates, and do hope they improve “that” particular aspect of SBI. But I’m happy with everything else about the company.

I realize that the fact that many SBI users also promote SBI to others for a commission, disturbs some people and makes them “suspect.” But letting your fans and satisfied customers help spread the word about your product and then rewarding them for it, is just smart marketing.

I personally am NOT an SBI affiliate. I don’t make a single dime any time anyone signs up for it. But I still think it’s a great value and provides something other web hosts can’t provide, the tools and training you need to make your online business work.

Sure, it’s not ‘perfect’, nothing is. But in every area except templates, it over-delivers. And a lot of the rah rah is just excitement over finding something people like so much. And it’s nice to be a part of a helpful and supportive business community.

Z
Hamilton

December 9th, 2008 11:40 am

I have two relatively new SBI sites and I have no complaints. Actually my only regret is that I should have gone with SBI a long time ago.

Now I am not a graphic designer but I think I am efficient enough with HTML and FTP to use standard hosting… but I am still willing to say that there is nothing better than Site Build on the market.

I have operated in both worlds and frankly I don’t miss the FTP, besides why is this myth still prevailing that the Internet is about graphic design… look at the evidence some of the prettiest sites are doing absolutely nothing.

Maybe I am sounding a bit cultish… So I better go and browse in the SBI forums or better yet build some content and kick my Non-SBI competition BUTT.

SBI the perfect way to build an online business…
Nat

December 29th, 2008 6:13 pm

I came across this post while poking around on the Problogger site, and while I may be a little late to the party, I figured I’d add my experience with SBI.

For a complete newbie to setting up a website with the intention of making some money from it, SBI can be a good introduction. They provide a lot of good information about how to create good content and how to make a site that gives a good visitor experience.

But for anyone with some experience, you’ll probably find their system a bit restrictive. There are lots of things that you can do with any standard web host that SBI doesn’t allow, such as standard FTP access and php scripting (so you can’t run things like Wordpress or phpBB directly on your site).

SBI will tell you their system is set up the way it is for many reasons, and it works so how can you criticize? The system works for many people, but from what I’ve seen both in their forums and others, it doesn’t work any better than any other host would for many people as well. So this point is debatable.

They also have a long list of features that are included, and how it would cost $5000 to buy them all separately. I disagree with their analysis here - I don’t believe it would cost that much - but something to consider is if you buy these services elsewhere you can generally use them on multiple sites (an autoresponder service, for example). With SBI you only get one site so if you want to set up more, you have to pay the annual cost for each one ($299 I think right now).

If you are planning to set up multiple websites, the cost of these tools is considerably less when you factor in how many sites they can be used on.

The thing that I really didn’t like about SBI was the “MLM / rah-rah” feeling of the community. There is a palpable feeling of “ignore the man behind the curtain” in many of the discussions on the forum, and most people who criticize the system for any significant reason get lambasted by many other users, often by just spouting the same stuff that the SBI sales page tells them.

It goes so far as to have an “SBI Response Group” that finds negative forum threads around the net and points them out to other forum members so they can jump in and “correct” the information in those threads. Granted, some of it is in fact wrong but in other cases the information is accurate, it just doesn’t tow the SBI line.

I wouldn’t be surprised if this post was brought to the SBI forum’s attention to get some of their evangelists to pop in and add their glowing reviews in the comments :-)

As one of the earlier comments pointed out, most of the reviews you’ll find of SBI are written as thinly-veiled affiliate promotions, not true reviews. Most of them do little more than regurgitate what the SBI sales pages tell you.

I’m not an affiliate, so I just wanted to add my hopefully balanced opinion. If you’re someone who doesn’t want to know how the technical end of things works, and you don’t have a lot of prior marketing experience, SBI would be a good choice.

If you like digging into the technical stuff or you already have a good foundation in marketing, you can do better with a “standard” host and other services such as an autoresponder service that will run on as many sites as you want to build.
Joe Trent

December 30th, 2008 5:26 am

Nat, as a current SBI user I couldn’t agree with you more.

I wouldn’t be surprised if this post was brought to the SBI forum’s attention to get some of their evangelists to pop in and add their glowing reviews in the comments :-)

I’m surprised they haven’t come over here to kick the crap out of you yet. LOL. They’re probably still rounding up the posse.

Great post, totally spot on.
Lance

January 10th, 2009 2:50 pm

I actually promote SBI on one of my sites and feel quite comfortable doing it. I think the comments here are pretty spot on regarding the product and the “mindset” within the SBI community.

There are a number of reasons why I recommend it but I would only recommend it for a rank beginner.

I think the number one reason is that any person looking to start a site with a commercial intent needs to be guided through the correct sequence of steps to avoid the pitfall of finding out that important piece of data AFTER you have already implemented something.
E.g Getting yourself some ungodly/unwieldy domain name that later you find out is not what you should have. Or naming all your site pages after your favorite pets!

There is a sea of info out there on the net about all aspects of internet marketing, SEO etc and for the newbie it not only becomes overwhelming but leads to paralysis or failure.

Whilst the SBI program does have its limitations the newbie, by following the dots, actually learns the important info and the correct sequence of implementation. Add to that the fact that SBI MUST make you successful to at least some degree to get their next year’s subscription and you do have a pretty good base from which to start.

Once a person had done a complete site with SBI, and if they had paid attention to the details along the way, I wouldn’t really see the need for getting another through them. He or she should be armed with some pretty solid basics to see them running by themselves independently.
Kathi

January 11th, 2009 3:08 am

See, Lance, your opinion that SBI is only for newbies is one of the most persistent myths out there about Site Build It, and it is just not true. I can say that because I am unequivocally NOT a newbie (having been on the Web with my own sites for the past 8 years) and yet I still prefer to use SBI as my webhost/site builder, etc.

It’s true that SBI teaches newbies many foundational concepts that cut through the overwhelm and put them on the right track to success. But even after you’ve learned those basics, SBI has much to offer.

Probably one of the biggest things they have to offer is their suite of cutting edge tools. And new ones are added regularly, most at no additional cost. In fact, SBI has not raised their costs in years, and frequently offer specials.

They also offer ongoing education, which is valuable even to experienced online business people. Not to mention a tremendous mastermind group in the form of their member forums.

It’s really a great value, no matter how much experience you have. So, since you’re selling SBI as an affiliate, don’t mislead your more experienced visitors. They can benefit from building an SBI site as well.
MoneyStance Reviews

February 3rd, 2009 4:22 am

Thank you for your review of Site Build It. SBI Seems like the best place to start for novice web developers like yourself. We appreciate you sharing your opinion and doing the research needed to fairly evaluate the service. We have seen fit to link to this article in our independent Site Build It Reviews section. Anyhow, keep up the good work spreading truth.
Zoltan - Self-esteem wizard

March 25th, 2009 6:49 am

I’ve been using SBI for about a year now. I had absolutely zero knowledge about HTML, meta descriptions etc. It is definitely an incredible useful source of information for anyone who decides to build a website. But, SBI is not just for beginners. Even professional webmasters can get a wild variety of ideas to attract more traffic, different ways to monetize their products or services.
I think the most valuable part of “sitesell” is the FORUM.

There are hundreds of folks giving you information about basically anything. Those guys have been doing this business for years, already built many many websites and are able to guide you through the challenges you face during the website building process.

And it’s works. I can see my traffic growing on a daily basis with more and more subscribers. That’s the reward for my hard work.

Another important part of it is that gives you the freedom to do whatever you want to do and whenever you want to do it.

I have many friends already asked me to give them advice to get found by the search engines and to get more visitors to their sites.

I am very happy with their service and response time. Very professional, very helpful company. I can only tell you the best about them. I would highly recommend SBI to anybody
ODC

March 30th, 2009 9:22 pm

Site Build It has definitely stood the test of time and seems to still be providing good value. They need a little more variety in the basic design of the pages but I guess you could get them customized if desired. Normally, they are easy to notice but that’s not necessarily a bad thing but more of an observation.
Stephanie

March 31st, 2009 11:14 am

I plan on purchasing SBI this week. It has been interesting reading all of the comments, especially from those knocking it before they try it. I have designed web sites for nearly 8 years and it has become increasingly difficult over the past several years to get your site to consistently rank high and increase traffic. What worked 8 years ago does not work as well today because of the competition and the continued

You can build the most attractive site(s) with all the bells and whistles and offer the best products on earth, but if you are not getting traffic, how is that beneficial? Manually submitting a site to all of the relevant search engines can be costly. Just to submitt your site to Yahoo will cost you $299 per year (nonrefundable - I may add). It appears that SBI automatically submits sites to the appropriate engines and forums, plus soooo much more for only $299.00 /yr. Not only do you save money but you save time also.

I think that some of the negative comments come from people who have not really tried it out and may not be willing to put in the time and effort to find a topic of interest that will enable them to create rich content that visitors will want to seek out and find.

I’m looking forward to trying it out!
Aly A.

April 1st, 2009 2:37 pm

Hi Stephanie,

I hope you’re not confusing Yahoo with the Yahoo Directory - which costs $299. What SBI does is submit to Yahoo for you, not to the Yahoo directory…

That said, I’m an SBI user and wouldn’t have it any other way. The amount of work they do for us can’t be quantified and as a webmaster you’ll be able to do even more!

I just wanted to clear up that one detail… As for the rest, you’ll probably get more for free than you ever dreamed…
Kevin Waldo

April 1st, 2009 8:35 pm

If you’re serious about buying SBI, let me know and I’ll sell you my second copy from the Xmas 2-for-1 deal.

KevinWaldo (at Gmail)
Website building programs

June 14th, 2009 1:09 am

SBI is an excellent tool to build a website and attract visitors. SBI worth every penny of the money you spend on it.
mortgage loan modification

June 16th, 2009 6:07 pm

SBI is a simple, but effective tool I use for my loan modification website.

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Written on November 23rd, 2008 at 12:11 am by Darren Rowse

Site Build It - a User Review

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Written on November 23rd, 2008 at 12:11 am by Darren Rowse

Site Build It - a User Review

What next?

Related Posts

102 Responses to “Site Build It - a User Review”

Subscribe to Problogger Blog Tips

Problogger Sponsors

Recent Posts

Search This Blog And Its Channel

ProBlogger Blog Tips Poll

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Recommended Money Makers

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Connect with Darren