With so many web design solutions available, it can be hard to know what to pick. Many are making outlandish claims and others are promising more realistic benefits, this can sometimes result in you being tricked to settle for inferior quality at higher prices.
One particular web design service that is often mentioned is Yell.com websites (also known under their new name, Hibu), which promises users great results in SEO, web design and other areas. Do they deliver and what should you be looking out for?
Below, we'll explain why you may want to take a second look at the websites and what they promise to deliver.
This is perhaps more important than any other element, how well do Yell/Hibu websites rank in search engines? A comprehensive analysis for several hundred instances of these websites produces a rather resounding verdict: Yell/Hibu websites do not rank well in search. A more in-depth analysis suggests that generic keywords and duplicate content are the main factors in causing this dynamic.
While the company claims to provide custom content and research, there appears to be striking similarities across completely unrelated websites. At the end of the day, search engines like Google and Bing can penalise websites that engage in these practices. As such, proper SEO results should not be expected with a Yell/Hibu built website. This may be why the company pushes the use of paid affiliate campaigns like AdWords; avenues such as these will likely be the only source of traffic for the sites in question.
What about the aesthetics of a Yell/Hibu website? The same research that was conducted to analyse SEO attributes also produced findings about this particular element. With regards to specific design elements, it appears that the company uses a selection of different templates in order to provide websites to all of its customers.
The only striking differences between most of these websites are the images and phrases that are used. Most elements can be found in identical places across multiple websites. Likewise, the coding – HTML, CSS and so forth – used to construct these websites is very basic and follows similar parameters as the commonality of themes.
Yell/Hibu websites are essentially cookie-cutter solutions that do not reflect the customised needs of a business. Between “Yell” and “Hell”, In our opinion, we definitely have to say “Hell”. When considering the high costs associated with website deployment through the company and the little benefits that are associated with deployment, it makes absolute sense to carefully consider this company's “solutions”.
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