We have some very simple advice for you. When you are about to sign up for hosting make sure that the provider picks up the phone! I would say that on average we rescue 4 to 6 clients per year…… Most people do not understand hosting technology, the procedures and best practice. So when things go wrong there are issues with emails, websites and who owns what. These issues can be very difficult to resolve due to data-protection and security…. So if you are dealing with a hosting company that does not pick up the phone and you have lost email…. what do you do?
Yet, we get those calls and most of the time after much agro we are able to help clients. So avoid cheap as chips hosting, make sure the provider picks up the phone AND above all make sure that the domain is in your name. That last point seems obvious – but at a recent networking meeting I stood up and asked how many people had actually made sure that their domain registration details were correct. Most people said yes – I went back to the office and checked a couple at random and guess what, the details were not correct. Would you buy a house in someone elses name? No? So why do it differently for a domain?
Let me give you an incentive. A friend of mine recenly had a domain valued at Sedo.com. To his amazement the report came back with a figure of £5000 and the initial investement was £9.99 + VAT. So who should be in control of that domain?
Back to the title of this post. Will hosting companies get a bad rep? Yes and no. The stack em high and sell em cheap ones will. You need to understand the where the costs are. If you buy a domain for £1 and the hosting for £10 then you need to think about how many staff can be hired to service your problems. The answer is obvious – the hosting provider needs lots of YOUs all paying £1 and £10 just to employ one person. They rely on most people not having any problems. But when things do go wrong and everyone starts to phone in, and then imagine what happens next. Not a lot.
Take it from us, it may cost extra to have crumple zones in your car, but when it does crash you are certaily happy to have them. Same with hosting, you pays your money and you takes your chances.
Good hosting companies have good people.