It's time to leave SBI! and Join Wordpress

[ericabiz]

I agree wholeheartedly that WordPress is a better solution than SBI. WordPress is an entire platform where you can get up and running quickly. And the best part about WordPress is that there are so many people who know it--you're not reliant on a single forum/service/company.

You'd be hard-pressed to pay $30/month for WordPress hosting unless your site has a lot of traffic, too. Most hosts will let you host as many WP sites as you want for under $10.

Ken, your decision to stop paying recurring affiliate commissions to affiliates who didn't refer new SBI members alienated a whole lot of people who were previously referring SBI. Steve, of course, has an incentive to keep promoting it due to this decision of yours, even though he's never used SBI for a money site...and of course uses WordPress.

My advice to people who feel WordPress is overwhelming:

1) Grab the book "Using WordPress" from Amazon.com and follow it. (It has a lot of great videos, too.)
2) Invest in a product that will help you learn how to make money with WordPress. There are plenty out there...I'm coming out with one myself next month called "Step by Step Business". You can get more info by grabbing my *free* Blog Success Manifesto from the link in my signature--it's a 62-page ebook that will also help you out with WordPress.
3) Work on your site every day. Get in the habit of Googling what you don't know. There are a ton of free resources out there on WordPress, driving traffic to your site, etc.

I picked WordPress because it's a flexible platform and it's easy to hire people to help you with it. I've built a thriving community of 50,000+ visitors per month and 16,000+ subscribers with it. And no serious blogger/website owner I know uses SBI.

[Eryn]

SBI is a great idea, but Wordpress is still a strong contender as you don't have to make the same commitment as with SBI.

[KenEvoy]

I can see we're not going to change each other's minds. The pro-Wordpress folks carefully avoid this fact...

**********
SBI! is the best chance for most people to succeed online. And we prove it beyond all doubt. No one else does.
**********

Most of the posts here are from folks with virtually zero traffic... Alexa rankings in the 8-12 MILLION range, and which are totally unknown to compete.com, Google Trends, ranking.com, Doubleclick Ad Planner.

James continues to insult instead of replying (this time using a "turd" metaphor to describe SBI!, a product that changes lives in significant ways).

Kaie, you really can put out some amazing designs with SBI!. I've shown that already in one of my posts above.

Economica, yes, you can use DreamWeaver within SBI!. SBI! works with ANY HTML editor. And yes, we refund absolutely (just ask Kaie ;-)).

Agota, I don't find James' insults what you call "constructive."

Erica, you have some decent traffic, far more than anyone else in this thread. 2,000 visitors per day, though, is common amongst SBIers. Also, I've addressed why Steve uses WP in an earlier post. And regarding your suggestion for folks to start with WP and buy your product...

We get loads of ex-WPers who started and failed with WP. Reading a book, then buying a product here and there, and then "working every day" just is not enough of a structured-program-with-all-the-tools that most folks.

--

To all...

It simply boils down to business success. No one else shows proof of the rate and level of success that SBI! does, in totally verifiable ways.

It seems to me that if anyone could...

They would.

I'll leave it to the careful readers from here on in, there's nothing more to be said, let alone repeated.

Bottom line?

No one's addressing the core issue of "likelihood of success with WP."

For obvious reasons.

All the best,
Ken

[James81]

"There's a turf on my plate."

"What are you talking about? That's the finest cut and finest cooked steak in the world."

"Yes, I understand that, but there's a turd with it."

"That steak is unmatched! Don't insult the steak."

"Yeah, but there is a turd next to it."

"You won't find a steak like that anywhere else!"

"*sigh* mama told me thered be days like this."

[KenEvoy]

I'm not sure what is with your turd metaphors, but your avoidance of the real issue is clear. So I'll address this at your level, translating the metaphor...

"Ken, SBI! has a clunky sitebuilder (AKA 'turd')."

"OK James, but the clunky sitebuilder, together with all the other tools ( SBI! - All the Tools ), tied together with a proven and constantly updated process, Action Guide (written, video, mobile) and help from forums and Support, delivers e-business success (AKA 'steak') at a rate and level that no other company or product approaches or proves."

"OK, I grant you the success (AKA 'the finest cooked steak in the world') that no ones else delivers. But I just can't get past the turd, Ken."

"James, I guess that's your problem."

I get it now, James. Meanwhile, thousands of SBIers PREFER the difference that success ("steak") makes in their lives.

[justhopingandsearching]

Hey Dr. Evoy,

Have y'all at SiteSell ever considered making the Action Guide more bite size?

I can't speak for others, but I've had a heck of a time working my way through the Action Guide (even the condensed version) because there's so much in each DAY. I get overwhelmed (which even the Action Guide acknowledges) with all of the information.

Maybe y'all could make each step in a DAY its own page instead of it being all on one long page. Or perhaps, break it down into time chunks that last no longer than 30 minutes to 1 hour.

[neilward2]

Apologies to everyone,

I thought this thread had died...

Firstly thank you to Ken for his reply, and thank you for the kind words about my site.

A couple of things that I want to clear up: A year back I was very arguementative and egotistical, so when people challenged my ideas, I felt as though I was being personally attacked (wrong internal belief) which I have now corrected after a year of personal coaching and Landmark training. As well as now getting coaching from Bob Proctor, a real guru.

When I say cult, it is not to be taken in the wrong way - if everyone look's up the dictionary definition it does not mean the cool aid drinking type that some people think. I merely mean that some people act weird and overly defensive. Rebecca, as much as I love you and consider you a friend - your post was this exact response, it didn't address any of the issues I spoke of - only how great SBI is... like my tongue in cheek example...

ken, the un-answered questions I refer to are many in number, and I only refer to questions that you were already privy to but didn't answer - no big deal to me, I'm just saying that you didn't answer them... james last thread is a perfect example of this as are a couple of my points above.

Regarding the templates, I've almost finished my WP design now and it look's absolutley amazing - I couldn't be happier. I paid a professional programmer and designer to get it all up and running and design me custom plug-ins, now, most noobies can't afford this, I couldn't either when I got started with SBI. So hence why I recommend SBI to noobies. BUT, I could have still done this for under $100 and had an amazing looking WP design.

From the research of my client database, the majority said that a professional design was very important to them. i.e. that they couldn't spend a lot of time on a poorly designed site (2 column cheap designs, etc) - no offence but the SBI templates are 1/10 - I'm glad to hear that they are now being upgraded

Apology accepted regarding my site removal, these things happen and I don't think it was done intentionally. No hard feelings there at all.

OK, now the BIG 1...

Ken, the moderators on your forums are just plain ego driven and power crazy. They lie and manipulate. No matter how nice a person appears to be on the face of it, you cannot have integrity on the back of manipulation, even if it is to keep the greater good and order. You only have to look back over my posts and do some digging to see this evidence. And as far as your other comment on this, I had some pretty serious verbal abuse come to me from your forum members via off SBI means, I reported this abuse and even forwarded an email from whoever that 'Mad guy' chap and the guy that run's the backpacking site, yet, nothing was done about it - it was completely ignored by your mods again.

The last thread I created that got closed down was a cold faced lie. The mod said I had edited my orginal post to make it look better but this was a lie. I edited my original post to make it read easier and more accurately! Your mod saw this opportunity and jumped all over it stating that I had edited my post to make it appear better for me, I couldn't disprove it as the *edited* note appeared in the text block - I had no defence.

A similar thing happened with Erwin? I think his name is. He was extremely arrogant and rude towards me; rather than get even - I just laughed it off and thought, what a shame that he acts like this... When you have completed Landmark training and other Personal Development courses for years, you start to see the error of your ways and how *crazy* and ego driven other people are. This is the stage that I'm at now, I'm no longer that person that I once was. I've finally broken out of the rat race and I think as an individual now.

Also, Ken, James has a very valid point about the meal analogy, he is not saying that SBI is dog turd. He is merely saying that your services are great! But the designs are terrible. I agree with him, the service is great, but the design templates are worse than terrible. Everytime I land on an SBI site with that old template, I leave! Eben Pagen says that design is everything - if your design is poor, people will assume that the content is poor too - I 100% agree with him on this.

All the best to you Ken, contrary to what you may think - I do have a lot of respect for you, in the same way I do for all successful people in the World who have achieved success in an integral way, and I believe you have

Good luck for the future, I hope you do well with your Company and I will continue to recommend it to noobies.

Originally Posted by KenEvoy

Much of your post is presented as fact, Neil, when it's actually opinion, and often inaccurate and self-contradicting (why would you recommend newbies to a cult?).

And then there are the statements that are not true. One example...

"We've asked [Ken] all sorts of questions which he never answers, why?"

I've made almost 8000 posts to the forums, questions ranging from the big-picture "where's the Web going" to "why doesn't this _______ work."

If you asked 10,000 SBIers whether they were content with my presence in the forums, I can't believe that one would say "he never answers questions."

Do I answer EVERY question? Nope, I can't see them all. And if I did, I'd be dead. It's not possible. I don't think any CEO participates as much as I do, not with little-nothings but often with big, meaty posts, analysis of a site, or new topics such as Google Recipes, etc.

--

Based on the rest of your post about SiteSell (bad Support, "cult," etc., etc.), this statement of your strikes me as odd....

"If SBI would use WP templates, I would almost certainly stay with them."

Stay with us for 100 other reasons, Neil, but not that one. ;-)

Stay with us because your traffic is steadily growing after two years. You show a solid pattern and should have an excellent next 12 months despite the very competitive niche (dating). But don't stay with us for templates.


--

Regarding Support...

I remember this one. You wrote me at my special address where folks can reach me if they are not happy with support. I checked into this at the time.

Support let you down, no doubt about it, a misunderstanding if I remember correctly, about you wanting to move your site. It was fixed, we extended you a free month, and we took measures to make sure the error never happens again. I see these, Neil, because you e-mailed me. I really do see those and I push hot buttons to get things DONE right when we err. I get 1-2 per week out of 40,000+ clients.

Support is normally terrific. It's not typical. I'm sorry about that.

(We do get many more kudos than complaints and our QA rates are near-zero -- one person screens 10% of all outgoing e-mail and delivers a QA report for quality and grammar/formatting.)

--

Regarding the forums...

I see multiple removals of posts of yours deleted for self-promotions. That is a strict no-no in many serious forums, ours included. Overall, let's just say that folks got tired of your "kvetching." You're right, you're probably not a fit.

It does not make a group bad or nasty, nor you. Just not a fit.

--

Regarding "cult" -- Mac fans form a cult, too. Try attacking a Mac and see what Mac fans say when they disagree. That does not make them creepy or dangerous. It's magical, in my book.

When you make a product that genuinely changes lives for the better, one that is different than anything else out there, you develop raving fans, rather than merely satisfied customers. We're not for everyone, though, and apparently not for you.

As long as you're not using the word "cult" in some sort of creepy religious/derogatory way, I agree with you...

Folks love SBI!. There's nothing else remotely cultish about SBIers.

--

There is no reason to pay money for e-mail. Like most hosts nowadays, we suggest you use gmail Apps and get YOUR DOMAIN-based e-mail through Google. They have the best interface, bar none. The module we created to do that makes it a snap to transfer your domain over to gMail for web-based e-mail (with YOUR domain).

--

I'm sorry that your traffic is not higher after 2 years, Neil. You chose a tough niche, dating. With only 150 pages in a very competitive niche, you've got a long way to go no matter what site you are using.

But you ARE on your way. And I wish you well with the site, elsewhere.

Obviously, you and SBI! are not right for each other.

--

Your posy focus on the wrong things, though, Neil (aside from our gaff in Support). No other product delivers all that SBI! does, at the price that it does. More importantly, none delivers success at the pace that SBI! does. If they do, they'd be promoting it. And no one else is.

Just one small example of what a great product engenders... our SiteSell Facebook page is up to 30,000 fans (I was hoping for 20,000 by the end of December). More importantly, you simply can't have such a genuinely positive environment if you have a bad product. Companies with bad products die the death of a thousand cuts on FB.

--

To "JustHoping"... I'm not sure I see the matter with taking what's been proven to work and integrating it into a system that works. We also, though, have numerous firsts. There are times to lead and times to follow. The only thing that does NOT change is our goal.. SBIer success.


All the best,
Ken

[newmark]

I'm a beginner when it comes to building websites, and I like using SBI, but I can't say I'll be sorry when the old designs disappear, and I can use new, more modern looking designs.

[Aminka Ozmun]

FWIW, I'd like to share some personal observations as a consumer currently weighing hosting choices.

My boyfriend was a former SBI!er, and he was actually the one who recommended that I check out SBI! last week! He recalled the forums as being impressive places for information but which will always have personality conflicts because of the many "Type A" folks that abound.

He also said that he was always impressed with Ken Evoy's responses, and I have to say that I am, too. Actually, the weak n00b-looking templates (referred to as of 1990s vintage) have me concerned, but only a little bit, as I can do basic HTML and CSS and even a little JavaScript. I'm really looking forward to this BlockBuilder 2 thinggy that's been referred to, though!

Anyway, I guess it's just a matter of the glass being half empty or half full. I don't think anyone's really right or wrong here; it's just a matter of what's more important.

Mr. Evoy's been saying that looks are secondary to success, and he's got the stats to prove it.

Others are saying that first impressions are lasting impressions to visitors, and that they've got the stats (market research) to prove it.

My personal feeling is that for some businesses visuals are much more important. I'm an author and I know that folks do judge books by their covers! However, people shopping for daily commodities probably don't care about old-fashioned site designs.

In any case, I have to say that even with my boyfriend's reassurance, I look askance at the late-night-infomercial feel to the SBI! website. Everything looks like a 1990s late-night-TV infomercial, complete with endless sales pitches!

BTW, I'm debating between 3dcart and SBI!...I'm looking to sell downloadable fiction with payment processing for major credit cards as well as PayPal, Amazon Payment, Google Checkout...anyone with an opinion as to the correct choice for a writer, please let me know!

[Tarzansjane]

Hi Aminka

BTW, I'm debating between 3dcart and SBI!...I'm looking to sell downloadable fiction with payment processing for major credit cards as well as PayPal, Amazon Payment, Google Checkout...anyone with an opinion as to the correct choice for a writer, please let me know!

Personally, I would say you are better off with SBI. But I don't know all your particulars, including how well-known you are as a writer or how many works you plan to sell, etc.

Obviously, if you have readers beating down your door to buy your books, any site would do - as long as it can handle the traffic. In that case, you would be correct in determining which shopping cart to use. That would be a primary consideration.

But if you aren't a well-known writer, you have a job ahead of you in getting exposure and developing a following. Even if these aren't your books and you're promoting others' works, you still have a job ahead of you to get people to your site and even considering buying your wares.

For that, you are going to need to learn how to work with the search engines to get people to your site and win them over. Unless you have the funds to use Adwords to drive traffic to your site, which can be expensive.

The point is, beautiful or ugly (and what is being overlooked is that many SBI sites are drop-dead gorgeous), SBI is designed to help you drive lots of free, ever-growing traffic to your site. Over time for those who persist and push it through, your site takes on its own life because you don't have to keep working to drive traffic to it.

For me, that's most important. But maybe that's me.

I like having non-stop traffic that I can't beat off with a stick. I've made my sites look good, and I don't have design skills. My designs do the job. But it's the tools and process of SBI that keeps people coming back over and over and makes my sites continue to grow on their own.

So when someone has seen what SBI can do (aside from what Ken says it does ) and experiences that never-ending traffic phenomenon, they try to get their point across because they want to help people.

Ken says what he says because it's true. In the beginning people don't really know that and have to take it on faith. But it's also why SBIers tend to buy more than one site - after they get going, they see that it's not just a sales pitch.

Because SBI is WAY MORE than a site builder. Way, way, WAY more.

And incidentally, let's say you did create an SBI site, Aminka. You could still use Infin It! to plug in any shopping cart you wish.

But what good is a shopping cart if nobody is there to see your site or they bounce and don't buy anything? I'd say you're better off creating a following and then reinvest your earnings to upgrade your shopping cart.

Otherwise, you have the cart before the . . . um . . . traffic.

My two cents, from my own experience, not just from Ken. ;-)

[Aminka Ozmun]

Thanks for your thoughts, Tarzansjane!

I'm definitely interested in SBI! so I'm waiting for the next sale they'll have (my boyfriend, the former SBI!er, tells me that they used to do twofer deals on Mother's Day, Christmas, et cetera) in order to see whether I'm pushed off the fence and what side I'll land on!

I wish I had access to the SBI! forums. I understand that they're very interesting, like this one here. Wasn't there a way to just lurk there? My boyfriend recalls that they used to be open to the public somehow.

I may even do two sites and see how they work out against one another! We'll see....

[Brutha]

"OK James, but the clunky sitebuilder, together with all the other tools ( SBI! - All the Tools ), tied together with a proven and constantly updated process, Action Guide (written, video, mobile) and help from forums and Support, delivers e-business success (AKA 'steak') at a rate and level that no other company or product approaches or proves."

Alexa ratings don't equal business success. Where are the numbers about actual revenue that a specific percentage of SBI customers reaches?

Regarding the templates, I've almost finished my WP design now and it look's absolutley amazing - I couldn't be happier. I paid a professional programmer and designer to get it all up and running and design me custom plug-ins, now, most noobies can't afford this, I couldn't either when I got started with SBI.

Great.

Obviously, if you have readers beating down your door to buy your books, any site would do

No, that completely false.
Different buying pages can sometimes double or triple the amount of people that buy.

[neilward2]

Originally Posted by Brutha

No, that completely false.
Different buying pages can sometimes double or triple the amount of people that buy.

Agreed. A correctly written sales page copy highlighting all the benefits will sell a lot better than a poorly written sales page. And besides I am a perfectionist when it comes to quality and good design. If I land on an SBI 1990's template, regardless of how good the info is - I LEAVE. I can't stand poor design, it's annoying to look at. I'd actually prefer a plain white background than a weird creation!

[Aminka Ozmun]

Originally Posted by neilward2

Agreed. A correctly written sales page copy highlighting all the benefits will sell a lot better than a poorly written sales page. And besides I am a perfectionist when it comes to quality and good design. If I land on an SBI 1990's template, regardless of how good the info is - I LEAVE. I can't stand poor design, it's annoying to look at. I'd actually prefer a plain white background than a weird creation!

Neil, I'm honestly curious about something: your site looks like a traditional 3-column design, same as any SBI! template. So now I'm really not understanding what all the fuss is over! I get you on the clunkiness of the SBI! interface (I've just seen it myself at a friend's place, who gave it a try after I mentioned SBI! while talking over my hosting needs), but with full HTML and CSS access you could grab any one of the free templates out there on the web and upload it to SBI! and customize to your heart's content (HTML and CSS is not hard to learn, after all) if you wanted to.

Just so you know, I probably won't go with SBI! (unless maybe there's a two-fer sale like I hear they used to do on occasion, just 'cause their private forums look that interesting) so I'm not here trying to defend them somehow. Me, I'm starting to think at this point that I should just set up a regular $5/month site somewhere -- Yahoo!, Hostgator, Dreamhost, etc. -- and customize an existing HTML template to my taste. For eBook downloads, I'd use the Fetch App or Payloadz.com or something. Or I could do Wordpress, too, just like you want to do.

[Brutha]

Neil, I'm honestly curious about something: your site looks like a traditional 3-column design, same as any SBI! template. So now I'm really not understanding what all the fuss is over!

That's because it's at the moment an SBI website.
His new design isn't yet online.

[Aminka Ozmun]

Originally Posted by Brutha

That's because it's at the moment an SBI website.
His new design isn't yet online.

LOL

I love it when the world makes sense!

(Thanks!)

[mainstreetcm]

As someone who uses Wordpress religiously in my online business, I will say this.

If SBI is a better fit for you and your business needs, then use it. If Wordpress is a better option for you then use that.

Everyone is different, has different skill-sets and quite frankly some just need something to get them moving in the right direction. If that's SBI or Wordpress, does it really matter in the end?

Is one easier than the other? That's entirely subjective based on your experience level and how quickly you pick up on web concepts. Arguing the point is trying to convince another business owner they need to use UPS instead of Fed-Ex, even when it makes no sense logistically for them to change.

So if SBI is what you need to get your business off the ground, then use that. I personally prefer the flexibility of the Wordpress platforms, especially when it comes to fully functioning child themes, shopping cart integration, great SEO plug-ins--the list goes on.

But if its not for you, its not for you. I would rather see someone get their business idea into an online space using whatever platform than waste their time doubting themselves that they chose the right option or not.

In my opinion, running a successful business has NOTHING to do with your platform, its how you use that platform to the best of its abilities to get your idea off the ground and into a growing stage--where inevitably you'll be moving to yet another platform anyway.

[Lil Chris]

Originally Posted by mainstreetcm

As someone who uses Wordpress religiously in my online business, I will say this.

If SBI is a better fit for you and your business needs, then use it. If Wordpress is a better option for you then use that.

Everyone is different, has different skill-sets and quite frankly some just need something to get them moving in the right direction. If that's SBI or Wordpress, does it really matter in the end?

Is one easier than the other? That's entirely subjective based on your experience level and how quickly you pick up on web concepts. Arguing the point is trying to convince another business owner they need to use UPS instead of Fed-Ex, even when it makes no sense logistically for them to change.

So if SBI is what you need to get your business off the ground, then use that. I personally prefer the flexibility of the Wordpress platforms, especially when it comes to fully functioning child themes, shopping cart integration, great SEO plug-ins--the list goes on.

But if its not for you, its not for you. I would rather see someone get their business idea into an online space using whatever platform than waste their time doubting themselves that they chose the right option or not.

In my opinion, running a successful business has NOTHING to do with your platform, its how you use that platform to the best of its abilities to get your idea off the ground and into a growing stage--where inevitably you'll be moving to yet another platform anyway.

Most intelligent response in this thread... Well said

[srikant]

If yours is a solo venture , you may need SBI to lay out the foundations for you. But if you are educated, intelligent and with quick grasping power, you can grasp the fundamentals of wordpress in hours and easily create a wordpress site. And the tons of options that wordpress has, sbi can never ever have. For example, if you want to make a subscription based website, u have auto plugins which register other as members ,take their paypal info, process it and send an email. This is just one of the examples. Millions use other plugins for other traffic building work. And yes, the old designs are useless, one can have so neat wordpress designs why would anyone bother having sbi. And Steve recommends SBI because he has never heard of keyword academy , a far superior method to SBI .

[srikant]

One other thing i dont understand is ,if ken is so succesful why would he come here and defend himself so vociferously when the total steve pavlina members using sbi wouldnt be even 0.1% of the no of total sbi users. What does he feel threatened by? Beats my mind. If i had a business idea and it were super succesful i wudnt bother visiting a forum to check what other people are writing abt me

[mainstreetcm]

Originally Posted by srikant

If yours is a solo venture , you may need SBI to lay out the foundations for you. But if you are educated, intelligent and with quick grasping power, you can grasp the fundamentals of wordpress in hours and easily create a wordpress site. And the tons of options that wordpress has, sbi can never ever have. For example, if you want to make a subscription based website, u have auto plugins which register other as members ,take their paypal info, process it and send an email. This is just one of the examples. Millions use other plugins for other traffic building work. And yes, the old designs are useless, one can have so neat wordpress designs why would anyone bother having sbi. And Steve recommends SBI because he has never heard of keyword academy , a far superior method to SBI .

I'm not sure what being well educated and having quick grasping power has anything to do with two technological platforms that essentially do the same thing--just in different ways.

As mentioned before. If SBI is what you need, then please use it. Don't let your idea sit idly by while you wonder if you've made the right decision. If you feel you've made a mistake transition to another platform.

If Wordpress is your thing, then use that. This whole argument is like saying my Playstation is better than your Xbox. They are both designed to do the exact same thing, just differently. Nothing is wrong with that.

It depends on your own comfort level with the technology and what you are prepared to endure. I personally find SBI to by quite expensive. It's not for me. But do you know how many times I've had to turn to Google when I royally screwed up my Wordpress directory, or when I ran too many plug-ins and pissed off my web host?

Just pick what is good for you. These are just websites. I don't care if their ugly or spectacular. If they accomplish the goal you set out for yourself why does it really matter what platform you used?

[Thunderkeg]

I too support your opinion James

[wanzulfikri]

Well, I prefer WP. I haven't seen an SBI site though although I've heard of it(Popular, maybe?)

[Aminka Ozmun]

What I'm really curious about is how SBI! is being used by schools such as Penn State, Baruch College/City University of New York (yay!!), the University of Arizona, and the Citadel!

Details, anyone?? Or is this just that name-dropping thing used in marketing, such as "as seen on TV" or "so-and-so has appeared in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal," etc., which could mean anything (like they were just mentioned in passing or had simply bought an ad!)....

[Kaie]

The sites have a similar layout. I have googled assorted things and SBI sites are usually high up there in ranking. For me, SBI is helping, but I am a total noob. Through it, I am learning coding, and site organization, and many other things. I feel it is worth it for me. I also have a WP site for my local service business and I will probably use some of the things I am learning at SBI on that site.

I am viewing the site I am currently building as a learning ground. I plan to go on to numerous sites on different topics if I am able to figure this out.

[galapiat]

I find the argument that SBI sites are restricted to ugly designs incorrect. If you really follow SBI's action guide, it is recommended that you switch from the Block Builder to Upload Your Own Html after having built 10 pages. And once you've done that, you can design the best-looking site that the Internet has ever seen using Dreamweaver or your own preferred html editor. Good-looking designs for UYOH are also available.

Now it is a fact that a lot of SBIers never did that and that's why there are still a lot of SBI sites with dated designs visible on the net. On the other hand, that those sites are visible tells a lot.

That being said, the new BlockBuilder 2 to be released this month should give you the best of both worlds. Good-looking site templates, customizability of those templates without messing with CSS or html and online editing.