Intuit Websites - Positives and Negatives
Posted: Wednesday, November 25, 2009
by Kyle Bardot
Engine Media Group
There are upsides and downsides to Intuit websites. If you have a small business that wants a very bare bones website than Intuit may be a good option for you. Rememer that you get what you pay for. Your Intuit website will have a top banner, an area for content, and a menu with your internal links. They aren't the prettiest, but for $4.99/month what do you expect?
My recommendation would be that if you need a website immediately, Intuit sites are a good temporary solution until you get your real site finished.
Also, Intuit will show you on their site that Google and other search engines will find and list your site in search results. This is somewhat true. It is easy to get your site listed when a search is performed for your business name. What is more difficult is getting your site listed for related search terms such as 'bakery in St. Louis'. Intuit makes it sound like a site purchased from them will show up easily for related search terms. This is NOT TRUE. Intuit websites have to be search engine optimized just like every other website and according to the same rules.
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More commentsKyle, I'm joining in here a little late but appreciate your article. Is there a website design company out there you might recommend? I'm just starting a web business selling a certain type of clothing and want to make sure I can get some traction prior to breaking the bank on a site and professional seo assistance. Thanks in advance for your input.
Yes. I just got started with Intuit and found that their help knows less than I do when I have a problem. Also if you have a problem they can't fix it (My words kept splitting apart for no reason)I will continue with them until my month is over then I will find a better way to do this. Any suggestions?
Hey Sam,Thanks for the heads-up. I'll continue you on my end looking for that low cost soluton. I'll keep you in the loop!
Not being all that computer savvy, I went with a web designer. After 6 1/2 weeks for a 20 hour job and $750 out of pocket and a bill for another $665, I still didn't get a website. So I'm giving Intuit a shot, sure ain't as easy as they make it look on T.V. I think they make the choices limited so you'll pay $500 or more and have them design it for you. I soon found out $19.99 a month will get you a DIY website template, hosting, domain name and email address, but it's an additional $15.00 a month for web listings. They really push the $500+ design plan with an additional $150 a month for the optimization package. I own a bakery and I need picture galleries because people want to see what you can do before they waste time with an appointment. Don't know what to do....giving myself a migraine here. Any advice?So you can even add a picture gallery on the basic? I was hoping this offer was actually usable, but it sounds like not so much...
I figured intuit would be good because my needs are simple. I can write some html but I thought I would give my brain a rest and use their downloadable Sitebuilder. Slow and cumbersome and extremely limited on options. I can't even change names to tabs. I don't know, guess I will figure out how to do it myself
I've been using Quick Books 2004 since I bought it new. I only use the REGISTER for 3 rental houses I own. The OS system has been Windows 98 & XP. I also use Quicken 2003 for my household accounts. Just bought a new PC with Windows 7(64 bit). I was able to save the Quicken data and download it into the Quicken software on the new computor but the Quick Book data won't download. Will the saved data from QB 2004 download into the 2010 version of Quick Books?
This is very helpful...it causes me to continue to shop options before making a commitment.
Totally agree. Do they give the customer the option to edit elements that make search engine optimization possible? even if they do, will a business owner know how to optomized his/her website?
Lot's of critisizm with no solutions? I want a website with bells and whistles and original but, don't have the time or the desire to be html savy. So what is the solution? I hear lot's of talk but, no one is telling me what is the best option, intuit is limited doesn't really help. Any one?ThanksThe best option depends on what you are looking to have done. What bells and whistles are you looking for? This will greatly affect your options and how much it will cost.
It gives very little information about their system, but what was given is dead on.
It is not possible using the online system to do any optimization for SEO.
It is very easy to mess things up.
I have been doing websites for 15 years and still have not seen an online system that was worth a hoot to be effective for getting good results in the search engines.
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