How to Choose the Right Hosting Provider – Go Daddy vs WP Engine
Your website could be the source of your income, and you might not want to rely on one thing to generate revenue. Having a successful website takes a lot of work, and it’s important to have a partner you can rely on who can help you keep up with the growing demands of your business.
When it comes to hosting, you have two main options: Go Daddy and WP Engine. Both offer incredible values for hosting, but if you’re weighing those values, consider this article. We’ll introduce you to the various pluses and minuses of each company and help you determine which is the right choice for your business.
Features That Matter
When choosing a web host, you’ll come across many features that seem important but aren’t. These features don’t necessarily make or break your decision, but they are important to know about so you don’t get excited about a feature that doesn’t matter.
Bandwidth
This is the amount of space you’re allotted for uploading and downloading files to and from your site. Most hosting providers offer shared hosting, which means you get what you need, but you’re also sharing it with other sites. If you’re operating a small business, you might want to consider dedicated hosting, which gives you an amount of bandwidth that isn’t shared with others. When it comes to bandwidth, don’t get lulled into thinking that the more you have, the better your experience will be. Instead, be sure to check out how many GBPs (Gigabytes Per Second) your provider allows you to upload and download. Most web hosts will give you a free domain if you have less than 2GBs of bandwidth per month. If you have a dedicated IP (Internet Protocol) or a VPN (Virtual Private Network) you can often get additional bandwidth for free.
Security
You might be worrying about security right now, and that’s a perfectly reasonable concern. After all, hackers are looking for ways to breach websites these days, and since your site’s security is based on the security of the host you choose, it’s important to invest in security measures.
You have two basic options when it comes to security. You can use firewall protection, which means your provider will set up a firewall to protect your site from hackers and malware. You can also use SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) security, which encrypts information that travels to and from your site. Your browser will display a little padlock icon in the box where it shows information about the site. When a site uses SSL, you can rest assured that it’s being accessed by someone you know and trust, which makes hacking attempts a lot more difficult. You can choose to access your site via HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure), which is a secure version of HTTP (the standard version). If you use SSL, your provider will encrypt the information you send to and from your site for added security.
Backups
You must have some sort of backup plan in case something happens to your website and you lose all of its content. It’s essential that your provider makes regular backups of your data so you don’t lose a single piece of information when disaster strikes. Your provider should be able to restore your site with all of its content intact, even if it suffers some minor damage.
You can ask the provider for help with setting up automated daily backups, which take care of the routine maintenance for you. You can also ask them to store your data in the cloud, which provides additional protection against cyberattacks and data loss. They may even offer backup and restore services for free.
Scalability
This one’s a bit of a tough one, and it depends on what you mean by scalability. If you mean the ability to grow your site’s audience, then shared hosting from a small provider might be the way to go. However, if you have a specific idea of what you want your site to achieve and you’re looking for a provider with more than 25,000 servers, then dedicated hosting is probably the right choice for you.
To put it simply, shared hosting is perfect for smaller sites, while dedicated hosting is better for large sites. If you have a standard set of features, you might want to go with shared hosting since it’s easier to manage and doesn’t cost as much as dedicated hosting. However, if your goals are specific and you need a dedicated server to run your site, then that’s what you should choose.
Price
This is the category that matters the most to you because it’s the one you have the most control over. You’ll find that some hosts are incredibly inexpensive and offer incredible values for the price, while others are extremely expensive yet offer very little for the price. You can get a free domain from most web hosts, and many of them offer a free plans that gives you some rudimentary functionality (blogs, forums, etc.). You should look for a provider who offers a free trial or some form of open-source software so you can test it out before committing to a purchase. Most web hosts will give you a discount if you pay in full before the end of the month.
You need to find a balance between what you want and need. Do you want something that’s easy to use and accessible to everyone? If so, shared hosting might be the way to go. Do you want a professional-looking site that will attract attention? Then consider looking for a dedicated hosting provider who offers a variety of services and is a good fit for your needs.
No matter what you want your site to achieve, you’ll find a web host who can help you get there. It’s important to research and choose a hosting provider who you can trust and who suits your needs. Make sure to read reviews from previous customers as well so you can see how others rated their services. This way, you’ll get an idea of whether or not this particular host is right for your business.