A typical query:
I am planning on starting a social networking site of sorts(no more info is needed) I need to find a way to buy an unused domain name, and I need web hosting provider that will work with me on the high traffic of the site…I would love to keep the price low for starters.
Answer: It is not your fault you are confused. Finding a web host should not be so complicated. Web hosting is the heart of your web presence and can mean the start or the end of your business.
Before we give you an absolute answer, these are seven qualities to look for in a good web hosting. An excellent hosting:
- has friendly Live Chat to help you with your query,
- gives unlimited webspace,
- offers unlimited bandwidth,
- gives unlimited add-on domains,
- has easy-to-use Site Builder with thousands of unique templates,
- has QuickInstall to quickly install apps like WordPress, Joomla, Drupal, OSCommerce, ZenCart and more
- can be easily upgraded to VPS or one of the best dedicated server plans if and when your business require.
To answer your question, many experienced web developers suggest to try Hostgator. If you are building your first website and needs a hosting plan, experts usually highly recommend going with Hostgator because they are the best best domain hosting around.
With more than 4 million websites hosted, a “Hostgator sucks” comment cannot be avoided. See the drawbacks of Hostgator in the section below. Objectively, HG has an amazingly long, 45 days money back guarantee so you have ample time to test them out. They are rated A+ by Better Business Bureau which shows their commitment to customer satisfaction. You also do not have to pay for the first month. You can just try their fully functional hosting service – you pay only $0.01 (you need to use the special coupon code). Do you know any other hosting company that can give you that kind of assurance? Anybody can grab an account from Hostgator for almost FREE.
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Hostgator Complaints
No web hosting service is perfect. Some complaints about Hostgator plans include:
- No free domain name included – but you can easily get a domain name from the best domain registrar such as Godaddy or Namecheap for $10 or less. Would you agree that a website is not complete without a domain name?
- You need to pay full price after your first invoice – well, they need to make money too and all the support and great service do come with a cost. It is like they say, you get what you pay for.
If you are still not sure if HG is right for you, or you have specific query about anything at all, try the Live Chat at HG. They are fast and knowledgeable. Just ask and you shall receive.
Kyle says
Did you know some of the best web hosting companies give you a free domain when you buy their affordable web hosting package? Since you need a lot of transfer space / bandwidth why not go with unlimited bandwidth?
On today’s market there are literally thousands of web hosting providers. Choosing a web host is not so easy task. Once committed to one, it will become very difficult to move your business elsewhere – not to mention the damage that can be done to your business if you make the wrong choice. This makes it very important to “get it right the first time”. Find out as much as you can about your prospective web host before making any decisions.
The perfect web hosting directory (I use it myself) to get an idea of what web hosting companies are the most popular, the most successful, or even the most affordable is http://www.web-host-rankings.com – All the top 10 give you a free domain and offer unlimited bandwidth.
This web hosting directory incorporates in-depth research, first-hand experience, and analysis of comprehensive consumer reviews to rank your top web hosting options.
Also, make sure you get the best deals (extremely important if you are on a budget). You can find web hosting coupons and promo codes that will save you a lot of money when you purchase your web hosting package, the website is http://www.mywebhostingcoupons.com
And finally, while doing your research, make sure that you are using credible websites, be on the look out for scams.
Good luck,
Kyle
Dan says
I got a domain name at Go Daddy and then used ebay to search for the best deals on web hosting. I went with THE KERB. I think it was like 20 bucks for 3 years or something crazy inexpensive. It’s been a while since I did it so my prices are guesses.
stevekhart.com says
Godaddy is a great place to start for hosting and domain registration. For ease of use, I suggest using the same vendor for both you needs. Godaddy has a competitive low volume starting price and you can upgrade as you grow.
Joe G says
If you want to start your website I recommend purchase your domain and hosting together. In this way it is possible to get your domain for free. Some hosting services offer this gift today.
As an experienced webmaster I recommend BlueHost service which I’m sure it would work for you and fulfill all your requirements. They have a really great offer for hosting & I have used them for over 3 yrs now, and have never had a single problem with them.
They are a Multi-awarded Web Hosting which offer a Full-featured service only $6.95. You can see their Plan Details accompanied with reliable reviews regarding their service at:
http://www.threehosts.com/reviews/1st
Here I have copied and pasted its features from their website to view:
– Free Domain Forever
– Unlimited Space
– Unlimited Transfer
– Blog (wordpress)
– Forum (phpbb,bulletin)
– Host UNLIMITED Domains (Support All Domain Names)
– 2,500 POP/Imap Email Accounts
– SSH (Secure Shell), SSL, FTP, Stats
– CGI, Ruby (RoR), Perl, PHP, MySQL
– Front Page Extensions
– Free Site Builder
– 24/7 Superb/Responsive Sales/Support
– Free Search Engine Submission
******IMPORTANT********
* This service was awarded “The Best Web Host OF The Year”.
* If you sign up for this service you will have $75 credits to advertise your website with the google & yahoo search engines for free!
* You Can Register A Free Domain or Use Your Existing Domains. They Support All Domain Names.
**************************
Good Luck!
Vinod says
hello,
i want to advise you before selecting a webhosting.it would be good to check all together and compare each based on price,quality,features,technical supports and reliability.They are some top industry leading webhost companies that provide awarding services with world class quality hosting services at affordable prices. Let me tell you a little about my experience with web hosting companies over the years. At times you will come across deals that are almost too good to be true – cheap web hosting with amazing features! There are hosts that while offering cheap prices do back that up with excellent performance and technical service, but there are things to be noted:
There are a lot of potential questions you must ask yourself, whilst bearing in mind about their reputation, and ultimately price – to see what web host is getting the best reputation that which can helps you to decide .Your experience might be different but I have many complaints from PowWeb and puma. Those companies just took the money and provide people with bad customer support and my websites would always be down when I was there. Few days back I used webhostingpad Host for my web hosting and I’m very satisfied their service. As long as you do a little research before buying your web hosting and you will be fine!
————————
http://www.topwebhostingslist.com
————————
host plan $1.99/m (popular budget host)
• Free Domain Name for Life
• Host Unlimited Domains!
• Free site builder
• Unlimited data Storage!
• Unlimited data Transfer!
• High Marketing bonus $100 yahoo+adwords+Miva credits
• 24/7 Award Winning Support! etc
..
Asif K says
I host my sites with http://www.yoursdomain.com as they offering :-
* Get FREE $50 Yahoo Credit
* Unlimited Disk Space
* Unlimited Data Transfer
* Unlimited Email Accounts
* 30 day Money-Back Guarantee (No Questions Asked)
so this is good for your site.
Wisely L says
Hi icegreen3,
Here are some important info you ought to know when buying domain name and web hosting for your social networking site.
You want to get an unused domain name, 2 ways to go about it.
1. Indeed, some web hosts do provide you with a free domain name up front for the first year when you buy their web hosting service, but the subsequent renewal fee of domain name can cost anywhere from $15 to $25 per year.
2. Register your domain name separately with a registrar at http://tinyurl.com/low-cost-domain costs you only less than $10 a year.
Get a calculator and you’ll find that in the long run, you save more on domain name with the second option. But if you’re more comfortable registering domain name together with the same web hosting company, by all means.
Next, you need a web hosting provider that allows you to receive high traffic volume for your social networking site.
Yes, there are quite a few reliable web hosts that offer you unlimited traffic bandwidth on a shared hosting server (SHS), meaning they do not keep track of how much bandwidth you use for the month, the only thing they ask for is make sure you do not violate their shared hosting policy or you’ll get suspended.
That you’ll have to read their terms of service / policy carefully before you purchase.
My suggestion for you to save cost is, since your social networking site is new, you will need probably a year to build up its traffic volume to a considerable amount. During your first year, you can consider buying the cheap shared hosting plan with unlimited bandwidth from a top reliable web host at http://tinyurl.com/affordable-shared-hosting
And once your traffic volume has ballooned, switch to a dedicated server which will cost much higher, but for sure will be able to accommodate huge stampede of traffic like Twitter or Facebook. If you keep to a shared server, there’s a chance that your sudden upsurge of traffic volume might trigger the violation of policy.
But I reckon by then you would have no problem buying a dedicated server.
You might like to refer to the source below for some good guide and tips on web hosting and domain name.
Hope that helps.
Wisely
texeyes says
Ok the best place and most trusted place you can get a domain is GoDaddy.com. Here is a coupon for $7.59 I think: DNF2 .Their tech support is open 24/7 and they are like the Walmart of buying domain names.
For hosting, I would recommend HostGator.com. They are also the Walmart of webhosting. They are reliable and have tech support 24/7 on the phone or through live chat on their website.
If you have specific questions on finding the right domain name or direction in your website venture please feel free to shoot me an email as I have been in the business for a few years now.