Website Hosting 101

What is Webhosting?

If your website was a person, it would need a place to live. Hosting is essentially giving your website a home on a server. And just like paying rent, paying a monthly or annual hosting fee ensures that your website has a consistent, safe place to reside.

Using this analogy, your domain name (which looks something like www.mydomainname.com) is your website’s address. This is where visitors can go to see your website.

Can I move my website to a new host?

There are several reasons you may want to move to a new web host. Perhaps you’re not happy with the speed of your website, or your site is continually crashing. Regardless of the reason, you can choose to move your website to a new home with a new “landlord” at any time. Your new web host can provide you with a list of information you’ll need to make the move.

What should I look for in a Web Host?

There are many factors to consider when searching for a web host. In general, you’ll want to look for:

  • Reliability.  If your website isn’t live, it isn’t bringing you customers. You need a reliable web host that ensure your website is always up & running smoothly. Ask about the web host’s uptime checks, and if possible, check out some of the host’s current sites.

“If your website isn’t live, it isn’t bringing you customers.”

  • Speed. A slow website is more than an annoyance, it can drive potential customers away from using your services. Look for phrases like “optimization” and “page load speed” to determine if your web host is striving for the fastest speed possible.
  • Backups. Should the unthinkable happen and the data from your website is lost, it’s ideal for your web host to have a backup of the information for quick recovery. Consider the frequency of backups you need: whether monthly, weekly, or real-time. If the service isn’t offered, you may want to find a new host or back up the data yourself.
  • Hidden costs. Some web hosts will advertise a very low monthly rate, but will then bump up the rate after 6 months or a year. You’ll want to inquire about any changes to the charge you’ll encounter over time.
  • Compatibility. Inquire in advance about special needs you have for your website. For example, is your website on a WordPress platform? Is it e-commerce? Does your website have a lot of traffic? All of these factors will make a difference in finding the web host you that’s best suited for you.
  • Tech Support. If you need a question answered about your site, you need a prompt, educated reply. Communicating with the web host prior to signing up for hosting should give you some idea of the average response time. In addition, inquire about written support documentation. The more support you have, the better!

What kind of hosting does Growth Labs offer?

Growth Labs offers a deluxe hosting plan that will accommodate a variety of businesses with reliable, speedy hosting services.  Our deluxe hosting plan offers the following features:

  • Free Domain Name
  • Unlimited Visitors & Page Views
  • 4GB Storage
  • 20 GB/Month Data Transfer (1 USD per gb over)
  • Free SSL Certificate
  • 1440 Daily Uptime Checks (Once per minute)
  • Weekly Backups
  • CDN Ready
  • HTTP/2 Support
  • Staging Environment
  • PHP 7 or HHVM
  • WordPress Core Updates
  • Choice between US/EUROPE/ASIA Website location
  • Fully Scalable servers able to handle any load
  • Bullet Proof WordPress Security

What is the difference between the Growth Labs Deluxe Hosting & Growth Labs Maintenance Packages? Do I need both?

Consider this: Would you buy a brand new vehicle and forego purchasing insurance? Of course not! You need to protect your investment.

Our maintenance packages are designed as insurance plans for your WordPress website. These packages are optional, but highly recommended. All Wordpress sites require regular updating, and without conducting updates, websites can break or become very slow. However, some updates can cause malfunctions that need to be addressed. When you purchase one of our maintenance plans, you can rest assured that your website will always be running at full capacity & we are ready to address any problems before they happen.

“Would you buy a brand new vehicle and forego purchasing insurance? Of course not! You need to protect your investment.”

I can get hosting through GoDaddy for $8/month. Why do Growth Labs hosting packages cost more?

Businesses like GoDaddy charge less for their hosting plans because they overload their servers to accommodate more customers. This can cause many potential issues for your website:

  • If your website becomes successful very quickly and begins to attract more visitors, the server may not be able to handle the capacity and could slow down or even crash your website. Likewise, the web traffic on a website sharing your server could slow down your website’s ability to respond, turning away potential customers.
  • The security of your website could be compromised if you share a server with a website that takes part in illicit behavior, putting you & your business more apt to receive spam and unwanted correspondence.

Growth Labs does not oversell server space, and our servers are designed to give your website the room it needs to maintain a consistent, speedy presence so you never lose leads. By choosing Growth Labs, you are not only paying for a reliable, managed hosting service (no matter the number of visitors!), but also a company that truly cares about your business and success. As a small business, Growth Labs values close customer relations and quality customer service.