BaseKit Review

Full review

BaseKit is an online website builder that includes full hosting and the option to buy or transfer domains. BaseKit helps you handle the creation of a website from first inspiration to publishing. Can BaseKit take on the might of Wix? We checked out the BaseKit offering to see how easy it is to create a high quality website.

Sign up

BaseKit offers a choice of three plans. The Basic Plan includes all the core features of the website creation service, plus hosting, 10 pages, 1TB bandwidth and 1GB storage. The Business Plan has the core features plus unlimited pages, unlimited bandwidth, 5GB storage, instant themes (where you enter a few key pieces of info to create a website super-quick), one free domain, and e-commerce capabilities. Enterprise has all of the above, plus five domains. The prices at time of writing were $10, $20 and $40 dollars per month. There are discounts if you pay for a year.

Sign up is quick and easy. Once you have decided on your plan and paid through credit card, you’re taken to the welcome screen where you first choose whether to import PSD files or create your website with one of the free templates.

Design options

BaseKit offers two paths to design success; Photoshop files and pre-made templates.

There are over 100 templates available on BaseKit. The templates are very high quality. Search the templates based on what type of business or organization you are – templates are arranged in sections like Artist, Cafe, Real Estate, Medical, Freelance etc. We like the fresh and contemporary feel to all the templates on offer. Once you have your chosen template the drag-and-drop function kicks in and you can customize your site by editing the text, adding logos, pictures and widgets.

If you choose to, you can import your website in BaseKit-ready Photoshop files and BaseKit converts the files to a design template. There’s a tutorial video to explain how and the process has only a few steps.

If you have the Basic Plan you are limited to 10 published pages but the other two plans allow you to add as many pages as you like.

More experienced web designers can directly access the HTML and make use of HTML5 and CSS3 features.

Widgets

BaseKit offers many widgets for you to incorporate into your website. These features can help you share your content and establish a presence on the social networking sites, as well as sell products and give customers your location. You can create forms for customer data fill and export. Widget options currently available include Google Maps, Google Checkout, Facebook ‘like’ buttons and Twitter sharing links, RSS feeds and multimedia additions. You can also add 3rd party widgets to your site.

Features

Ecommerce – With the Business Plan you can integrate an ecommerce platform into your site, meaning people can pay for goods and services from your site. BaseKit offers Google Checkout and you can also use PayPal and a variety of other payment services.

SEO – BaseKit sites are constructed with SEO in mind – websites are built in HTML and CSS, not Flash, which is a naturally search engine-friendly way to construct a page. If you are interested in SEO you can edit your page titles, add meta descriptions, tailor your keywords and add contextual links.

Reporting – BaseKit websites are integrated with Google Analytics, which can be operated with a few clicks.

Hosting & domains

BaseKit makes it easy to host your website with your own domain, one of the points in its favor. BaseKit hosts on Amazon S3 and subscriptions come with 1TB or unlimited bandwidth, depending on the plan you pay for. You can bring your own domain to your newly constructed site, and with the higher-priced packages BaseKit will configure it for you. You can also buy domains through BaseKit or use the free sub-domain BaseKit provides with the subscription. Enterprise Plans come with the opportunity for five domains.

Ease of use

Drag-and-drop technology makes BaseKit very easy to use when you are creating a website. You don’t need to code, there’s no FTP to use when you upload content, and you don’t need any additional software. But there are more advanced options available for experienced designers and those that want extra input into the process.

One of the good things about BaseKit is you can update your site anytime you like from any compatible web browser (the major browsers are compatible with BaseKit.)

Help & support

We found the support offering from BaseKit to be experienced and knowledgeable. The support team is made up of experts who have access to the BaseKit development team. The Live Chat service is great – support utilizes email, Skype and screen sharing depending on what is easiest for you. There are also video tutorials, guides and FAQs. There is no telephone support.

Overall

Free templates, advanced design options and unlimited pages – with BaseKit you can create a website that is as basic or as spectacular as you like. At present there is a trial account available for you to test the product before you buy.