Tag: Hosting

Tasty, tender writer lambs gambol out to play on the internet. Looking for a friendly, reliable web hosting company (WHC), they nibble here and there until they find a scrumptious meal. They linger, eat, and then—SNAP! They are mangled in the jaws of a WHC big, bad, wolf. Their naiveté will cost them dearly.

Is this you? Have you purchased services from a WHC without knowing for certain you need them? Are there hidden charges souring your tummy? Have you been sickened by a lost domain or costly tech support?

Never fear. Your under-shepherd is here. The Good Shepherd doesn’t want his lambs fleeced, and I will shake my rod and staff at any company that tries to take advantage of you. Look out for these scams:

1. Paying for your domain registration. Domain registration is free at most WHCs. Multiple domains (I own at least three) will cost extra, but at least one domain is usually provided free. If you are asked to pay for domain registration, graze somewhere else.
2. Paying for an enhanced security certificate. If you do not have a shopping cart on your site that receives credit card payments, you don’t need an enhanced security certificate. Most WHCs offer a free standard security certificate that is very capable of handling security issues without extra charges. One client of mine paid $400 for several years of a managed security certificate, and she didn’t need it. Her site links to Amazon for purchases. When she called the WHC wolf (I won’t name them per se, but if you’re like me, you find their Super Bowl commercials overtly sexual and offensive), she fought until she got her money back. And we are switching WHCs.
3. Extra charges (usually exorbitant) for tech support. Most reputable WHCs offer free tech support. If you are asked to pay extra for services (except migrating a site or recovering a site that has crashed), it’s a sign you may be prey of a wolf.
4. Paying extra for enhanced e-mail services. You should be able to configure your email boxes without additional charges for third-party programs like Microsoft Outlook. Many people buy email add-ons, but they are just a fancy way to shear you bald.
5. Paying for private domain registration. If your website or blog contains sensitive information that you do not want traced to you, you may need private registration. But most writers want people to find them on internet searches, and private domain registration is not necessary. If bad actors perform a WhoIs lookup, they will likely find you anyway despite your efforts to remain anonymous. Don’t waste your money. And be careful…some WHC wolves include private registration as an automatic add-on and you must manually deselect it. The same is sometimes true for other services.
6. Limited access to WordPress plugins. Here I will name names, because I still bear bite marks. When I recommend WordPress to build websites, I do NOT recommend hosting from WordPress.COM. WordPress.ORG provides FREE software that can be installed on any reliable WHC platform. WordPress.COM is simply another for-profit hosting company. When I built my website, I was dunned for a higher monthly fee to use certain “premium” plugins that were free elsewhere. Disclaimer: this was several years ago, and their policy may have changed, but I’m still mad.

Do you have WHC bite marks? If so, leave a comment below, voice a warning, and allow other writer lambs to frolic the fertile fields of the internet in safety.

“Come here, little fly,” said the spider. “Doesn’t this look like a convenient place to land?” Many a fly has not lived to regret the decision to accept the crafty invitation.

Writers face a similar choice when making their first website. They search the internet for recommendations, and most advisors say, “WordPress is the way to go.” I faced this choice a year ago. A web design software I used and loved will not be supported after this year, primarily because WordPress software is free. A tantalizing prospect, isn’t it? Free…

I’ve spoken with dozens of writers who followed me right into the WordPress spider web—the WordPress.com web, that is. I did not understand it is possible to install and use free WordPress software on almost any web host platform. I did what any reasonable person would do—I went to WordPress.com, signed up, and started building my website. I didn’t even know I’d been caught in a trap.

WordPress.com (dot com) is a for-profit business. Their goal is to earn money, and they offer web hosting in competition with many other web hosting companies (Bluehost, Hostgator, etc.) When I enrolled, I ponied up money for hosting at a higher rate than other reliable providers. I also paid to register a domain, which many other hosting companies offer free with their basic packages.

WordPress.org (dot org) is a non-profit organization, which promotes their free software and offers tips and suggestions for good design. They even have a page recommending reliable host companies, and explaining to poor, ignorant flies like me the difference between free WordPress software and WordPress.com offerings. Funny… WordPress.com is NOT one of their recommended host companies. Click here to see: https://wordpress.org/hosting/.

When I called to yowl about getting trapped in their web, WordPress.com did let me out of the web hosting package I bought. But they would not refund or release the domains I registered, and I paid an exorbitant price to keep them until I could successfully transfer them to my new host. Altogether, I flushed $100. I calmly told them they had offended the wrong person, and that I would tell everyone I know about their tricky web. This blog is the fulfillment of that promise.

Disclaimer: this happened to me almost a year ago, and a recent visit to their site shows they have reduced their hosting prices, likely in order to be more competitive as people have caught on to their tactics. They also offer free domains with their hosting packages. If you want to sign up with WordPress.com, be my guest. Just fly into their web with the knowledge you need not to get trapped into spending more money than required.

And know this: their “free” website option mandates a domain with “wordpress.com” in the URL, and they are free to place ads on your site which you cannot control. Before I switched Writers LifeHacks to a new host, my “free” site on WordPress.com had ads for an internet dating company! I won’t even mention even more offensive ads that appeared. I was mortified, and I could not remove them.

My best advice? Research web host companies before you enter a contract. Read not only the marketing on their website, but compare reviews from a neutral source. Here’s a link to help with your research: https://www.cnet.com/web-hosting/. I’ve learned to trust CNET reviews and recommendations, and two hosting companies I use are on their list. By the way—snark, snark—WordPress.com didn’t make their list. Read the CNET article all the way to the bottom, because there is excellent advice and information about website building after their top ten list.

If you appreciate this post, please forward the link to all of your friends, and leave a comment below. I’ll giggle while you do.

Flies of the world—unite!