Through the course of researching website builders, I came across Volusion.  I was very shocked to see that this website builder was not like other website builders I had seen in the past.  Rather, this site was more for building an online store.  If you were interested in selling things online, and you had many different products that you wanted to show you would be very happy with this site.

While I was learning that there were some differences with this website builder, I was still very intrigued to see what it was all about.  I really wanted to know how it worked, and how you could go about setting up an online store with this site.  I also noticed that it stated that you could try it for free, and that made me even more eager to give it a shot.  After all, I was not going to lose anything if I decided to try it out.

I also noticed that the home page appeared to be very informative.  I liked the fact that you were able to review all of the features, pricing, and even the services, by simply clicking onto the home page.  I have found some websites that did not offer that option, and it makes it very difficult to find the answers to questions that you have before you start working on a website.

Volusion homepage. Create an online store..

There are a number of questions that I generally have before I start working with any website builder.  These are generally related to the price that I am going to be expected to pay at one time or another.  Therefore, even if I have a free trial, I like to know what I will be paying to continue services when that free trial period has ended.  I found that the package that I was going to need would be directly related to the number of products I wanted to be able to sell.  The smallest package would cost $19.00 a month, and this was similar to other sites that I have used in the past.  Actually, this is roughly the same price you would pay if you were going to be paying for a basic website or blog.  The fact that you can make money with this site is amazing, and if you know that you are going to be able to make money from selling your products, $19.00 a month is not that bad.

Here you can see the prices that you are going to be expected to pay. You will also see many of the different features and services you are going to have when you purchase a certain plan.

I decided that I was ready to begin the process of setting up my own online store.  I must admit that I was a little bit nervous as I felt that this was going to be very different from simply creating a website like I have done in the past.  I clicked on the ‘free trial’ link and was ready to get started.  At that time I was asked to enter my personal information.  This was not uncommon but on other sites I also needed to add my credit card information at this point.  I was not required to do that at this time.  That was stated on the side of the page as I was entering my information.  I also noticed that I would be given free 24 hour support seven days a week.  This was nice to know, since I was already a little bit nervous.  Just like other site builders I have used, I needed to enter my email address and create a password.

One thing that I noticed while I was doing a little bit of research on this site builder, was that I was not going to be given a domain name.  I would need to purchase this elsewhere, and provide Volusion with the domain name.  Yes, this was going to cost me more money, but it was also going to allow me to appear more professional to my customers I would not be dealing with a subdomain.  It was also going to make it easier to be found on search engines.

Once I was into the site, I had three different options for what I was going to be able to do.  I really liked the fact that the website had created a test store for me so that I could see what some of my possibilities could be.  I would be able to look at that if I wanted to.  However, if I was ready to start designing my own store, I could do that as well, as this was going to be the second option that I had.  Finally, I could begin adding my own products if I was ready to do so.

I decided that I wanted to customize my site, so that is where I began.  I was able to view the different templates that would be available to me.  While doing so, I noticed that not all of these templates were going to be free.  In fact, some of them were very expensive.  I was, however, able to sort through the templates based on color, price, and even categories. I found this very helpful, and it saved me a lot of time.  I wanted to make sure that I was not going to be paying for any templates.

You can see the different ways that you can filter the templates by looking at this screen shot. You will see that it can make the entire process much easier for you.

Adding text to your site is not the same as with other site builders.  Keep in mind that you are creating a store so you will be able to add products and descriptions rather than text.  You can put in a photograph of the product that you want to sell, and then a description and the price.  This is a lot different from other site builders I have used in the past.

This screen shot is going to show you how you can enter the products that you would like to see. You can also see that you are able to add an image to the page if you would like to do so.

Frequently Asked Questions about Website Builders

1.)  Is this site free and what are the package prices for this site?

This site does have a free 14 day trial period.  Once that has ended, if you would like to continue with services, you will need to select a package that is going to fit your needs.  The cheapest package is going to cost you $19.00 a month, and it will allow you to sell up to 100 products. You will have free support, as well.  The most expensive package will be $149.00 a month, and you will be able to sell an unlimited number of products with this option.  You will have all of the same features as the smaller packages, but you will also have an account manager and onboard coaching, if you would like.

2.)  How good is the free package compared to the packages that you can purchase?

The free package is great because you can explore a trial store, and this is nice.  You will be able to set up your store and begin selling as well but, if you want to continue selling, you will need to purchase a package and pay for that when the trial is over.  It is nice to know that you will have access to the free support no matter what plan you decide to purchase.

3.)  Does it come with a hosting plan?

Individuals using this site wil have free hosting.  However, you will not be given a subdomain.  In fact, you are going to have 30 days to purchase a domain name, and then provide it to Volusion.

4.)  Do you get free support?

You will have free 24 hour, 7 day a week, support.  You will be able to carry out online chats as well.  These are really nice features to have for free when you are working with a website builder for the first time.

5.)  What are the benefits of this website builder?

When it comes to benefits you get from using this website builder, I found a few.  I really liked the free support options, and I liked the fact that I would be able to view a trial site.  This was interesting, and it got me really excited about building my online store.

6.)  What are the negatives of this website builder?

I did not like the fact that many of the templates would cost me extra.  Some of them were very expensive, and I was shocked by this.

7.)  Is the site builder flash compatible?

You will be happy to know that you will be able to add flash animation and videos to your online store if you want to.  If you carry out a search under the ‘support’ section on this website, you wilkl see how to go about doing this.

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