Bad Web Hosts – How to avoid them

There are a lot of web host solutions that you can explore online today. You may see that there are a lot of different solutions trying to get you to use their services over others on all levels. Look online for things like, web host, and you will see that there are hundreds of thousands of sites listed. Amidst the many sites that you will find, there are some that are absolutely terrible. There are many bad web hosts right now, and they are using their deep pockets to get out in front of a lot of competitors. If you’re running a business, you have to consider whom you’re going to work with in terms of web hosting.

Web hosts are a dime a dozen today. If your goal is to build a website, you will need to look into web host providers that are reputable. Reputation means everything. Without a strong reputation, you are going to be risking getting involved with a web host that may not be very good at all. If you’re not sure where to turn, or perhaps you’re on the brink of signing up for a web hosting plan, take a few notes in regards to protecting your company from bad web hosts. The following list will help you protect your brand, and money from getting taken advantage of for years to come.

10. Take Advantage of Free Trials

The number one thing that you need to do is simple, make sure that you take advantage of any free trials. Not only that, go with a web host that is going to help you take full advantage of a maximum number of days. You could find a provider that will give you upwards of 90 days of trial. This is not a joke. You could get a 90-day trial with some companies, giving you a fighting chance to test, and see whether or not they have a good service. There are very few companies that will not give you a free trial, so make sure that you take that into consideration. If you’re going to take advantage of any trial, make absolutely sure that you maximize your options, by going no less than 30 days.

9. Do Not Register You Domain Name With A Web Host

Here is something that you may not know about domain name registration, you don’t have to stick to “one” company. In fact, you can move forward with a variety of different companies for just your domain name alone. If you’re narrowing down web host options today, you’re going to want to look into registering a domain name separately, as this will save you money overall. Believe it or not, this is going to help protect your name in case the hosting provider tries to hold your domain name registration hostage. This is not a new kind of story.

There are some companies that will put in the fine print, that you have to use their services if you register the name with them. In other instances, web hosts could very well charge you double or triple the cost of what another company will charge you for the domain name. It’s not a good thing. Beware of this issue.

8. Payment Methods Matter (Don’t Be Careless)

When you are looking at buying any services from a trusted web host, make sure that you do not dismiss how you’re paying. There are several things that you can do. You could utilize credit card, bank transfers, PayPal, and much more. Payment methods that you use can be good overall. But there are some warning signs that you need to be aware of. It is easy to get locked into an auto-renewal price solution. Many hosting companies will force you to have an automatic renewal protocol.

Do not go this route if you want to have control of how you pay the web hosting company. If you’re going to use a debit card, make sure that you delete your account on their servers or they could charge you extra fees. Credit cards are ok, as you can stop the charges from the company themselves, even if a nefarious web host will not help you with cancelling your account.

7. Be Wary of Web Hosts That Have Blacklisted IPs

Your IP address matters. Some companies have a lot of IP addresses that have been blacklisted within the search engines and many other areas. If you go with a web host that isn’t very good, they will have several addresses that have been blacklisted by many other security companies. You can use tools like Spam Haus, to consider if any IP address that the web host provides has been blacklisted. You do not want to put a website on an IP address that is in this category. This is going to be a serious problem for your business. Your business cannot recover if people see a warning in their browser. It’s not a good thing. Be careful with whom you trust with your domain name, and hosting IP address overall.

You can ask your potential web host for the servers IP and then search the IP on MXToolBox to see if it is blacklisted on any mail servers.  It’s a free blacklist checker that scan thousands of mail servers to see if an IP address is blocked from sending mail or not.

6. Shop Around (Seriously)

When you read a lot of top 10 lists in regards to finding web host providers, you will see the authors sway you in one distinct direction. To remain objective, this is not one of those top 10 lists. The concern that we have is in regards to your company’s safety. With that in mind, you should absolutely shop around. Look at the features and the prices that many companies have, and make sure that you consider what you want.

Ask yourself some questions:

What price point do you want to pay? What tools do you need to build with? What are your goals with your website? Do you want to work with ecommerce? Do you need an SSL certificate? You have to ask these questions so that you do not miss out on the opportunity to have a solid web host provider. There is such a thing as too cheap, and there is such a thing as too expensive, so try to find middle ground that will work for you. If you remember nothing else from this list, make sure that you remember to take your time, shop around, and weigh your real options concerning web hosting.

So who are the Best Web Hosting Companies in 2016?

1 – HostUpon

HostUpon is a Canadian hosting company that offers 3 shared hosting plans and even have plans designed for WordPress Hosting.  They are known for their fast servers and amazing support.  Voted number 1 by our readers 3 years in a row!

2 – JustHost

JustHost is the affordable option when it comes to Cheap Web Hosting.  They have one main plan that would suit a beginner and comes with tons of tools to get you started.  Their plans includes unlimited email accounts and disk space.

5. Never Trust Your Website Backups To Your Web Host Alone

One of the most important things about web hosting in general is whether or not your files are safe. If you have an issue, and your site goes down, you will need a backup. However, you need to make sure that your web host offers support. But even though they can give you support, do not trust them with your backup. Yes, you will want a host that does this, but don’t trust them to do it for you. If you want to protect your files, you will need to make sure that you have them backed up, simple as that. It is very important that you focus on that overall.

Back up your site as often as you can. If you aren’t sure how to do this, make sure that you install WordPress and use a plugin to help. If you’re not using a content management system, then brush up on the how to do this manually. Of course, if you do find a good web host, with a great reputation, they will do this for you. Just have a secondary back up to theirs, to ensure your files are not lost forever.

One of our favorite backup services is CodeGuard.  They provide website backup services that allow you to backup your website nightly and are highly recommended.

4. Test The Up Time and Call Your Web Host Out On It

Every web host is going to promise you that they are up 99 percent of the time. There is no company that can be up every single time, as upgrades, and other issues could stop things. If you’re going to spend any money on web hosting, you should be getting what you’re paying for. With that in mind, make sure that you look into tracking your host’s uptime. You can do so with a variety of tools.

One of the main tools that you are going to find is called Uptime Robot, and that will give you a few ideas as to whether or not your server is doing well. You need to track your web host’s uptime and if they are not delivering in the 99 percentile, tell them, and ask them why. If your host cannot answer to their own statements of reliability, then there’s something very wrong.

3. Change Passwords Every 2 Weeks

Hackers are targeting passwords for web hosting, WordPress and so much more. Don’t think that you’re going to get targeted? Just look online for, hackers steal passwords, and you’ll be absolutely astonished. There’s new sites getting hacked daily, and in the millions of sites. This is not just big time websites either, this is small time sites, and even small web stores. Hackers look for passwords that are simple, haven’t been changed in a long time, and are familiar in any way.

To offset this, make sure that you change the password to your web hosting account, every 2 weeks. This may seem paranoid, but honestly, you cannot leave this to chance. Change your passwords, make them strong, and write them down offline. You will thank your lucky stars in case hackers take on your web host and try to steal passwords.

Having trouble thinking of a new password?  Try using a Free Password Generator

2. Keep Up To Date With Web Hosting Reviews

This may seem like a lot of work, but it’s important. You should look into web hosting news and reviews. When you read up on web host providers, you will be able to see whether or not your company is dropping the ball on customer service or other areas. You may find that another company is doing very well, and providing great customer service and more. If that’s the case, then make sure that you look at moving your files and going to another provider. This may seem like a headache, but you need to remember that this is all about protecting your interests. Keep your options open overall.

1. Consider Your Scaling Options Over Time

Your website today may not be huge. Your company may not have hundreds of thousands of hits right now. But will it ever become a large entity? Isn’t the goal of setting up a company website to grow? If that’s the case, then by all means make sure that you look into web host scaling. That means that you should sign up for a host that has more than just shared hosting. Shared hosting could get you started with a good company website. Over time, however, your company will grow and you will need a good partner in hosting. To ensure that it grows with safety, and scaling in mind, make sure that company you use has dedicated hosting, VPS hosting, Cloud hosting, and other solutions that will help your business benefits.

Why Do Web Host Solutions Require So Much Attention?

Your business is your baby. It’s your investment that should be able to compete in today’s frenetic internet world. If you stand to compete with larger sites, and even those that are within your niche, you need to make sure that you look into a seriously good web hosting account. If you do not have a good web host provider, your files could be in danger. Your customer’s information could be in peril, and your reputation could be on the line. It’s best not to risk it. Web hosting today may seem like a dime a dozen.

Remember that there are certainly good and bad hosts out there. To ensure that your company’s reputation is not in danger, make sure to take note into the 10 tips mentioned above. The above tips will help you gain the upper hand in regards to your hosting provider. There’s a lot of solutions to consider, so make sure that you take your time, shop around, and see what is going to help you today as well as tomorrow. If you take your time, you will not have to deal with the many issues that others may befall. If nothing else, take your time in selecting your web host and follow the tips in this post to avoid bad web hosts.