The Easysite website builder was last reviewed by me three years ago. Oh, how time flies. I wonder if things have changed. Let’s dig in, shall we?
Oh, I should mention that my reviews are not paid for in any way by the website builders I review. I haven’t asked for a kickback if someone signs up because of my review. I started doing these reviews back in 2013 because I wanted to know the options that were available for my clients; that’s it. I’ve been building websites for small business owners since 1999 and I know there are people that just can’t afford help but want to use a website builder that’s right for their specific needs, so that’s how I started down the path of writing website builder reviews.
My initial impression of Easysite website builder:
Easysite website builder has done a great job on their website by spelling out all the features they have and showing videos that give an under-the-hood look at actually using the tool. This means you can get a really good idea if you like how the website builder works before you sign up. And the tool looks pretty easy to use, honestly.
The biggest thing to know going into using Easysite is the templates shown and the demo of the website builder give me the impression that you won’t be able to drag and drop to move things around in your layout as much as some would like. Is this a deal-breaker? It depends on you. If you’re looking for robust support and a straightforward setup process, you’ll probably enjoy Easysite as long as you can go with the flow of the template. Some of my clients really want to customize templates to the limit; if that’s you, you might want to move on to another website builder.
My suggestion is to always check out two or three different options with their free trial to find out which makes the most sense to you. What is the most intuitive for your price point? Which builder has the designs you like the best? Try using tech support to find out how helpful they are; ask to do the same thing with each of the website builders you are checking out to compare apples to apples.
Would you like some free help preparing for your site? Cool. Here’s a free download I created just for you.
Is this an industry-specific website builder?
Nope. This is good for anyone, which is a plus unless you are looking for a very specific feature for your industry. For instance, photographers and artists usually want a really robust portfolio experience. I didn’t really see that here; no big. It’s just something to be aware of.
Easysite website builder pricing made simple.
Easysite really has a simple pricing structure, but they sure hide it on their site, which is silly because it is one of the first things everyone wants to know and they actually have a really good price point.
Easysite has a free account for 30 days.
Yes, you can experience the product for free and they do the nice thing by not requiring a credit card to start your free trial. I like that!
You can sign up for a free Easysite account here. http://www.easysite.com/sign-up/
Easysite has one pricing level, no matter what you do.
Is Easysite crazy? I’m not sure, but they have decided it is okay to offer one monthly pricing level no matter how big your site is or how many products you sell. That’s right. Easysite can also get you set up with an online store. Anyway, Easysite’s pricing is $19.95 a month, forever, no matter what you do with your site. Now that really is easy.
They don’t really have a dedicated pricing page. So here’s their Features page. You can find pricing down low on the Features page. Or you can go to their home page, where it is also way down low.
Is Easysite website builder mobile friendly?
Yes. They say all of their templates are now mobile-friendly, which means they change their layout depending on the size of the screen.
Does Easysite offer search engine optimization features?
Umm, yeah. They actually have a full tutorial on search engine optimization here: http://www.easysite.com/seo/ and here: http://www.easysite.com/google-ranking-factors/
So here’s the thing. They don’t actually say that their website builder allows you to put in your own custom meta information. They don’t actually say that you can put in Google Analytics tracking. (If they do, it wasn’t easy to find upon initial review.) BUT because they make such a big deal about SEO, I’m pretty darn confident those features are included. If I’m wrong, please let me know. The fact that they make such a big deal about search engine optimization and trying to teach about it makes me really, really happy.
What blog features does Easysite offer?
They say they have a blog feature. I didn’t see a demo of it, but they specifically state they do support blogging.
Is Easysite website builder actually easy?
You know what? Based on their video tutorial, I think it is actually easy. And they profess to be available for help if you need it. Because they have so much documentation online and videos readily available, I think building a website with Easysite will be a fairly simple process.
Can you use your own domain name (URL) with Easysite?
Yes. You actually get a free domain with Easysite when you sign up for a paid account. A domain name purchased elsewhere can run between $10 a year (unless there’s a special offer) to $35 a year. And if you are just getting started, it might be nice to only deal with provider.
A word of caution here: I don’t see them mentioning anything about offering email. So if you want an email address based off your domain name, I’m not sure what they recommend you do. A plus to going with a different provider for your domain name is that many providers offer email accounts either for free or for a small fee. Once such provider is GoDaddy. (Yes, I’m a GoDaddy fan and I know lots of people aren’t, but I have had a great experience with them for over 10 years, so I remain a fan.)
Does Easysite have ecommerce features?
Yes! They totally do. This is included in their flat-fee pricing. And they say they will guide you through how to start your ecommerce site via a phone call. And look, here’s a tutorial on how to use their shopping cart: http://www.easysite.com/sites2/help/?sell-items
Final thoughts about Easysite website builder:
People at Easysite, please listen: Show us some samples of your templates and show us some real, live websites made with your website builder on your home page. I know you have pictures on your Home page showing screenshots of websites built with your tool; I can’t click on those pictures to go to the live site and the link to see more examples is something I missed upon initial scanning of the home page. Most people just do an initial scan, so most will miss your page dedicated to real-life examples. Also, templates are a huge deal. I want to know what some of my options are before I even begin the journey of creating an account.
And seriously, your pricing is great. That should be loud and proud and the first thing we see along with templates and real-world examples on your home page.
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