Fasthosts ecommerce website builder review

Launched in June 2021, Fasthosts brings to the website builder market a new drag-and-drop platform for businesses to create professional online stores without the need of coding experience.

The ecommerce website builder allows businesses to reach customers across social media and marketplaces by automatically syncing a main shop with platforms including Google Shopping, Facebook Messenger, Ebay, Amazon, Instagram and Facebook. 

As ecommerce continues to grow in importance, having secure visibility across these platforms is essential for any online retailer. With Fasthosts’ easy-to-use ecommerce platform builder, all users need to do is sign up for one of the four plans on offer and pick out the template that works best. 

The style is slick, the dashboard is uncluttered and easy to use, and perhaps best of all,  there are no hidden fees.

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Pricing

Fasthosts’ Ecommerce Start Up plan, which covers everything you need to start selling products online, is free for two months then £15 per month. The next step up, the Ecommerce Grow plan, is ideal for those looking to expand their business, and is also free for two months, before charging £20 per month. The grow plan is for those with bigger shops and higher product volumes, Fasthosts’ Ecommerce Pro plan is free for the first three months, before charging £35 per month. 

The final offering is Ecommerce Expert - also free for three months, then £50 per month after, but providing unlimited products, Amazon and eBay integration, and an E-Goods file size of up to 10GB.

There is the option to cancel all plans within 30 days if you are not satisfied, without incurring any charges, giving you enough time to explore the entire platform, with the free trial period giving access to all features and services. Users are also given the option to upgrade their plan to a more advanced ecommerce website builder package with a simple click of a button.

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Ease of use

In general, Fasthosts Ecommerce Website Builder is easy to use, and beginners should be able to navigate through the platform comfortably.

If your needs are simple, you've never used an e-commerce website builder before, or you're just in a hurry to start selling your products online, Fasthosts’ platform could be the provider for you.

Fasthosts also offers built-in search engine optimization for your products, categories and page content to make sure your shop is ranking highly on Google search results. The dashboard is also easy to navigate and lists all the products available to the user as a sidebar.

It's a simple process to add new products to your e-commerce website - just add a description and price, upload a picture and publish - and you can always choose to add more advanced features if you wish.

Features

Fasthosts Ecommerce Website Builder has a huge range of add-on features, including access to partner apps, to bolster the functionality of a site and customise its performance to best suit your business needs. Additionally, the platform comes with a free domain name and SSL security, plus a business-class email, providing everything a retailer needs to establish a professional online store.

Fasthosts gives you the option to set up a domain if you don’t have one already created for your online store. Your website IP address is visible on the dashboard and there is also the option to add VPS.

The platform is a great way for people with no technical knowledge to create an online store - and there is also the option to preview your website and see what it will look like on a computer, tablet and smartphone format before making it live, and with every step completed on your website, the bar on your Fasthosts dashboard shifts so you can track your progress. 

With a wide range of ready-made themes to choose from, you still have the freedom to alter certain features on the template to your liking, and Fasthosts gives you the option to change the size of the images you want to display for your online shopping page, for example slightly darkening the background of your images to make them stand out against the store's background.

The “manage shop” option lets you track your sales including all orders and abandoned carts. Fasthosts has made it easy to choose which product details you would like to display on the Product List and how they are positioned in the Product Card. What’s more, Fasthosts Ecommerce Website Builder offers 24/7 access to the company’s expert help agents, providing support and guidance to customers whenever it is needed.

The competition 

There are many other e-commerce website builders on the market, including big names such as Shopify, as well as the likes of Squarespace, Wix, GoDaddy, and IONOS, all of which offer similar services. Unlike some of its competitors, Fasthosts Ecommerce Website Builder does not limit you when it comes to customization, and also accepts payment through all major payment vendors, including PayPal and Worldpay. 

Final thoughts

Fasthosts ecommerce website builder is a high-quality platform that puts ease-of-use at its core. Its support website is filled with articles and how-to guides that will help you create a beautiful website full of all the features you need. 

All of the customizable ecommerce website templates automatically adapt when viewed on any device, so your online store will look its best whether accessed via a mobile, tablet or desktop. You can also make changes to your online store from your smartphone or tablet, making life easier for beginners who are looking to set up an online store immediately.

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