AboutLola Brooks Expertise I can answer questions regarding: web hosting, FTP instructions, site trouble shooting, basic
web design questions, search engine optimization etc.
I cannot answer questions regarding: PC repair or networking issues.
Experience I have over ten years of web design experience.
Education/Credentials Years of Experience
Past/Present Clients Visit my online portfolio to view some previous work if you are interested in reviewing some of my past clients http://www.blueringdesign.com/webdesign.php
Question We are a small but growing company - the owner has had an employee at one of our vendors build a web site for us (haven't seen it but likely one that will feature their product hence the free help) but we need to supply the ftp. The owner has asked me to put together some information on the best choices but there is a LOT out there. I am not a real computer guru - I can fix basic problems and troubleshoot but that's it. Any tips on what to look for/ watch out for or could you point me to some feedback sites that could narrow the search by indicating who NOT to go with.
Answer There are two things that you need to do in order to be able to provide the FTP information to the vendor.
The first will be your domain name. There are lots of sites that will allow you to register your domain, I find the easiest to use for clients tends to be http://www.godaddy.com (do not use them for hosting though). Honestly, it really doesn't matter who you use to register the domain with, as long as their customer support is available by telephone if needed.
Once you have selected a suitable domain name, you will need to provide hosting. There are several different companies to choose from and your choice should depend on affordability, as well as the experience, friendliness, and availability of their technical support.
I tried to find a site with some straight-forward reviews to help you out but there didn't seem to be a site that seemed to just give reviews from clients about the dependability of the actual hosting and the accessibility and experience of the technical support. So I will tell you some of the experiences I have had with a few different companies on behalf of some of my web design clients:
- Don't go with a web hosting company just because they offer you a cheap deal or free hosting for an introduction period! This might cost you more in the long run. Troubleshooting a problem with your site can cost you significantly more if you have to hire someone to do it for you because you cannot resolve it with an inexperienced technical support representative (I actually had a client pay $225 to troubleshoot a problem that was caused by his $3 monthly hosting)
- Avoid free web hosting. This usually means you are agreeing to put advertisements within your website that you will not have any control over.
- With this being said, price is not the only factor to consider. Being the priciest doesn't guarantee your host will be problem free. What you need to verify is that when you contact someone, they are reachable during business hours and you have a single contact person if possible. This will allow you to develop a personal relationship and guarantee that when you need assistance you have someone who can be held accountable.
- Being reachable is only half of the solution, the other half is making sure the person you reach will do what it takes to resolve your problem. For instance, our company resells hosting. This means we provide web hosting for clients but do not actually maintain the servers ourselves. If a problem does arise, we are responsible for contacting technical support, uploading client files, or whatever it takes to get their site up and running. With most other hosting companies, this would be your responsibility.
- While no hosting company is perfect and trouble-free, what really matters is how they resolve problems when they arise.
