Does anyone have a Jimdo website?

[Albhomewatch]

I'm trying to decide on a website builder and web hosting. I would prefer an "all in one" service. I have been seeing Jimdo listed as one of the less expensive options. Does anyone have any experience with this company? Are there any other "all-in-one" services that you would recommend?

[Wozcreative]

what does all in one mean? From what I can see, they have a limited amount of templates and its not responsive.

[Freelancier]

If you don't have the money to put into your online presence, why bother putting any money into it? You could get a designer to create a 1-5 page site for you with minimal money and then host if for < $10 month, so why go with an all-in-one service that won't grow with you? So... the real question is: what are you looking for and why?

[Albhomewatch]

what does all in one mean? From what I can see, they have a limited amount of templates and its not responsive.

When I said "all in one", I meant a site where I can create my website and use their web hosting as well.

[Albhomewatch]

If you don't have the money to put into your online presence, why bother putting any money into it? You could get a designer to create a 1-5 page site for you with minimal money and then host if for < $10 month, so why go with an all-in-one service that won't grow with you? So... the real question is: what are you looking for and why?

What is considered minimal money for a 5 page website? And if someone builds me a website, would I be able to go in and make changes going forward?

[Wozcreative]

When I said "all in one", I meant a site where I can create my website and use their web hosting as well.

Using these types of website builders are a waste of time if you want to be found through search engines. You're limited to having to physically give people the address to actually find you. You're better off hiring a graphic and web designer to help you keep it on brand, show you how to convert viewers to customers and build on-site SEO for search engines. Those "All in ones" usually charge a monthly fee... a designer will charge you once and actually get you something that brings in leads.

To your above question.. yes you will be able to make changes to your site.

[Albhomewatch]

What I'm looking for is a site where I can pay one price for hosting and the web site- not have to deal with 2 different businesses. If I just pay for the website upfront then I don't have to pay a monthly fee, is that correct?

[Wozcreative]

What I'm looking for is a site where I can pay one price for hosting and the web site- not have to deal with 2 different businesses. If I just pay for the website upfront then I don't have to pay a monthly fee, is that correct?

Well the way I have it setup is that you pay for hostly every 3 years.. or every year.. whichever you choose. You'd pay directly to the hosting company which means you own the hosting. Most designers will want you to pay a monthly fee to gauge you for no reason and keep you hostage. Cost of hosting can be about $80/year or $180 for 3 years roughly.. for basic hosting. All these "all in one" hosting companies charge $20 - $50+ dollars per month for sites and have you locked in.

I build the website for a single agreed upon cost (unless your scope changes and you decide you want more things), then we discuss an agreed upon quote. But once I've completed it, I hand everything over to you and show you how simple it is to make changes to your current pages and make additional changes. I teach you about on-site SEO and everything else you'll need to make your business successful online.

[billbenson]

Using these types of website builders are a waste of time if you want to be found through search engines. You're limited to having to physically give people the address to actually find you. You're better off hiring a graphic and web designer to help you keep it on brand, show you how to convert viewers to customers and build on-site SEO for search engines. Those "All in ones" usually charge a monthly fee... a designer will charge you once and actually get you something that brings in leads.

To your above question.. yes you will be able to make changes to your site.

Woz out of curiosity, are there no situations, products etc where someone can get a website builder to place in natural SERPS? If there is, how would one go about getting one placed? It's kind of a leading question, but appropriate for this thread.

[Freelancier]

If I just pay for the website upfront then I don't have to pay a monthly fee, is that correct?

Anyone charging you one set price that includes hosting FOREVER is either lying to you or planning to go out of business. Telecom charges to the hosting provider by THEIR telecom provider is charged monthly (like your internet access fees for your home or office). So if they're charging you one price forever and they're having to pay monthly for the cost of that service... how would they make money on you after 3, 5, 10 years? The only way is to drop you before you became a negative cash flow customer. Or give you terrible service so that you leave before that. Either way, it doesn't sound like a good business model for the customer.

[Brian Altenhofel]

Woz out of curiosity, are there no situations, products etc where someone can get a website builder to place in natural SERPS? If there is, how would one go about getting one placed? It's kind of a leading question, but appropriate for this thread.

I'm not Woz (obviously), but there are times where those do end up ranking. But generally, they tend to only rank for brand-specific terms if they do rank. The only times I've seen those ranking are when they've been around forever (at least in Internet time) and have a ton of good backlinks coming in from good neighborhoods.

If one is expecting their website to be the first impression that potential customers get, those all-in-ones (like GoDaddy's website offering) won't leave that good of an impression if it even gets seen at all.

Is there a market for that kind of service? Sure. Are some offerings better than others in that market? Probably. Would I recommend any of them? No, but I'm biased, and my particular target markets are limited to businesses whose website is a primary part of their sales or marketing strategy.

[Harold Mansfield]

Never heard of Jimdo, so I can't comment on the service.

I'm generally against "All In One" solutions for many reasons. If having things with different companies is your main concern, you don't have to do it that way anymore. You can register a domain, get hosting at the same place. Also most hosting companies offer a WordPress One Click install, which is a good way to build, control and manage your own site with a small learning curve.

However, as long as you have complete control of your content and admin access to the website so that if you want to move in the future you can take it with you, I can see how it can be easier for some people.

Not a big fan of site builders like Wix, Go Daddy, 1and1, and most others offered by hosting companies, but there are a few that offer a better product:

Build a Website - Squarespace (http://www.squarespace.com/)
And one of our forum members has a service called "Just Add Content" that is WordPress based.
Just Add Content - Finally, a website builder for businesses. (http://justaddcontent.com/)

[ryantc]

In case you want to take a look at some other website builder sites. Here is a handy listing: Website Builders (http://website-builders.thetop10sites.com/)