Switching From Economy Web Hosting to Managed WordPress Hosting
So, you’ve decided it’s time to move from the simple free hosting you’ve been using to launch your website to a more advanced solution. Congrats! You’ve decided to take the leap and grow your business using the incredible WordPress platform. You may be familiar with WordPress, an extremely popular content management system (CMS). WordPress is a flexible and powerful tool used to build almost any type of website or blog. It’s a great platform for building a business because of its ease of use and scalability.
WordPress is incredibly popular and has a significant following. That said, choosing to host your site using this platform comes with its own set of challenges. To help you prepare for the move to a managed WordPress hosting provider, we’ve put together a detailed guide explaining everything you need to know.
Why Managed WordPress Hosting
Let’s be honest, when it comes to hosting your website, you’re in control of pretty much everything. You have total freedom to configure and run the website however you see fit. This includes choosing the platform (like WordPress), the domain name, the web server, and even the storage configuration. You are in full control of the entire experience. The only thing the hosting provider can do is offer a pretty nice space for you to put up your website.
While this is all well and good when you’re just starting out, as you grow your business you’ll want a more polished and professional experience. This is where the advantages of a managed WordPress hosting plan come in. Rather than having to think about the many configurations and settings yourself, you can hand the reins over to a team of specialists who know how to run a WordPress site (like Ujevice).
A managed WordPress hosting plan provides a number of advantages to those who choose to use this type of hosting. To start, you no longer have to worry about keeping your website alive and secure. This is because the hosting provider handles all of these tasks for you. In addition, you can rest assured that your site’s performance will remain consistent across all devices (like desktops, tablets, and mobile phones).
A managed WordPress hosting plan also handles all the routine maintenance and security updates for your website. This means you don’t have to worry about spending hours every week tending to files and database records. In case you’re curious, these tasks include updating the website’s code (called “coding”), spam filtering, virus and malware protection, and keeping track of security breaches. If you hand over these tasks to the experts at a managed WordPress host, you can put your mind at ease and focus on doing what you do best: growing and marketing your business.
To learn more about how managed WordPress hosting can help grow your business, read our in-depth guide Switching From Economy Web Hosting to Managed WordPress Hosting.
What Features to Look Forward To
Managed WordPress hosting comes with a variety of perks that you might find useful. To start, the platform offers cutting edge security and performance with the option to hand over complete control to an expert team of specialists. In addition, you’ll enjoy 24/7 support via email (for free) as well as live chat functionality. Finally, the service also offers a free daily backup guarantee as well as spam and data mining prevention measures. You can find all these perks and more at reputable managed WordPress hosting providers like Ujevice and WPEngine.
Forbes recently published an in-depth guide on the best and worst decisions you need to make when selecting web host. While we always recommend using a managed WordPress hosting plan when possible to avoid the many pitfalls that comes with free hosting, it’s important to understand the risks before signing up for anything. In the guide, Forbes highlights several key points to consider when choosing a web host. One of the things it stresses is the importance of choosing a reputable hosting provider. This means investing in a plan that offers a good combination of features, performance, and value for the money.
Getting Started
To get started with a managed WordPress hosting plan, all you need is a good web host and a WordPress installation. We’ll discuss how to install WordPress in a little bit, but for now, let’s just focus on getting your web host set up and functioning correctly. In order to do this, visit the host’s website and click the “get started” button. This will bring you to a landing page where you can find more information about the service (or purchase it if you’re planning on signing up for a longer term plan).
Once you have a basic understanding of this platform and its many advantages, it’s time to move on to the next step and install WordPress on your site.
Installing WordPress
WordPress is one of the most popular open-source software platforms for creating and maintaining a website or blog. The fact that it’s open-source means you can download and install it on pretty much any type of server you want. This makes it extremely easy to get started with. In fact, nearly every web host offers a one-click WordPress installation option.
When installing WordPress, you will have the option to select the type of web host you want to use. This is completely up to you. Bear in mind that if you’ve been using free hosting, the default option may not be the best fit for your needs. For example, Bluehost is an excellent choice if you’re looking for a basic no-frills hosting plan. However, if you’re wanting a custom-built solution with all the perks of a managed WordPress hosting plan, then you may want to consider one of the reputable hosts mentioned earlier.
Once you’ve made this selection and logged in, it’s time to move on to the next step and configure the WordPress installation. To do this, click the “Settings” button at the top of the dashboard. From here, you can select the type of content you’d like to display (like blogs or news articles) and even change the theme (for the visual appeal of your site). In addition, you can configure the WordPress installation to automatically publish new content to your site whenever there’s new material available. This is called “auto-draft” functionality and is a great way to keep your audience coming back for more.
One of the primary advantages of using a managed WordPress host is that you no longer have to worry about the performance of your site. This is because the host handles all of the heavy lifting for you. In order to test the speed of your site, simply visit another site (like Google) that you know is faster than your own. You’ll see a comparison of the two sites side by side. This is called a “load time”. When comparing the load times of different websites, take into consideration the size of the file (like images, scripts, and CSS).
Managing Your Website
Once you’ve got a basic understanding of how to use WordPress, it’s time to move on to the fun part: customizing and creating your website. To do this, click the “Appearance” button at the top of the dashboard. From here, you can select the look and feel of your site. This includes changing the colors, adding or removing images, and even tweaking the header and footer.
In addition to the Appearance panel, you can also visit the “Reading” menu and turn on the “Full Content” feature. This feature will display the entire post in a readable format. This may come in handy if you’re new to WordPress and don’t know how to use the platform to its full potential. In case you’ve been inactive for a while and want to bring your blog back to life, you can use this feature to check out what’s new.
Security
One of the most important things to think about when selecting a host is security. This is especially important if you’re using a personal blog or website for yourself and your family. In case you’re curious, here’s a short list of some of the best security features that a reputable managed WordPress host offers: