Basecamp.com Review: Online Project Collaboration Tool

Introduction to Basecamp.com

Basecamp.com is one of a growing number of online collaboration sites that allow groups to work on various types of projects over the Internet. While there are many available products on the Web — many offered for free — this particular site may well be worth paying for, given the number of features and the cohesive, intuitive nature of its design. One could piece together file sharing using Google Docs, which allows sharing of word files and spreadsheets, and combine that with email and chat from various free services. However, managing all those disparate components and tracking performance and outcomes would require manually assessing and constantly monitoring the project. Basecamp.com brings all of these features together under a single project heading, or across multiple projects, providing not only a centralized web location but also varying levels of security and a range of progress reports.

First Impressions and the Guided Tour

When first reviewing the site by taking the tour, one is presented with screenshots and videos of the tool's various aspects. This initial experience, however, was somewhat underwhelming. On first pass, there appeared to be a great deal of duplication between to-do lists, message boards, project overviews, and similar features — all of which seemed to carry redundant information. The file-sharing services, other than being graphically more polished, did not appear to differ much from freely available alternatives, including simply emailing files to group members. Other features, such as to-do lists and milestones, seemed largely similar to using Outlook or any calendar application one would already have.

Hands-On Trial: Signing Up and Getting Started

However, signing up for the thirty-day free trial is necessary to truly assess the value of these seemingly redundant systems. After signing up, it took fewer than three minutes to start a project, create group members, and invite them to join; emails were sent immediately indicating milestone and message updates. It became clear that anyone who needs to coordinate a project with individuals working primarily from their computers would appreciate the ease of use and fully functioning features of Basecamp.com. That said, this reviewer would recommend that the creators either reconstruct their guided tour or eliminate it entirely in favor of the free trial, as a more effective way to introduce the product to new clients.

Core Features: Communication, Tracking, and Customization

Basecamp.com enables fluid communication among group members, assigns projects to individuals, and tracks progress through a time-tracking feature that generates reports showing who is — or is not — completing assigned tasks. The platform is also fully customizable, allowing the project creator to upload a logo effortlessly and choose colors to match their company's branding. At first this seemed like a pleasing aesthetic feature rather than a functional one, until one realizes that clients can be given access to view project status as the work progresses. Rather than arriving at a site with only a file tree and a calendar, the client is greeted with a professional-looking interface that appears to be part of the company rather than a separate program. This gives clients full transparency into where their project stands, which can go a long way toward preventing miscommunications.