You’ve probably heard the saying a website is useless without visitors before, but isn’t it also true that owning a website is pointless if you don’t even know how many visitors you’re getting? I don’t know about you, but I always like to know exactly how many visitors I’m getting each day, where they came from, and any other information I can get. Nowadays there are several programs to do this – some built in to cheap web hosting plans, some from 3rd-party developers.
Most cheap web hosting plans have some sort of traffic tracker, but it’s usually very primative. Most of them just give you the number of visitors, but no other information. If you want more information, I recommend using a 3rd-party tracker such as Google Analytics. If you just want the basic figures so you can understand how many hits you’re getting daily, then the tracker built in to your cheap web hosting will do just fine.
There are many 3rd-party traffic analytics tools, but Google Analytics is the most popular, and the best in most people’s opinions. Plus, it’s free, so it’s a very useful tool for webmasters of all levels. Google Analytics is easy to set up – all you have to do is put a small piece of code (generated on the Analytics website) into the footer of your website. Then, all you have to do is make sure everything is working, and then watch your stats. Note that Google Analytics only updates once every 24 hours, as apposed to the cheap web hosting trackers, which usually update instantly. However, Google Analytics more than makes up for it in features. With Analytics, you can see not only how many visitors you got, but how they got to your site, what search terms they used, how long they stayed, and much more!
Written by Web Hosting Expert on Dec 30, 2009.
Whether you’re aware of this or not, it is possible to host multiple sites on most cheap web hosting plans. Not all plans have this capability, but most of the better-quality hosts offer this feature. Some cheap web hosting plans offer “unlimited” sites, but of course nothing is really unlimited, especially when you have low bandwidth and storage limits. Other hosts have a limited number of sites allowed per plan, and others don’t allow more than 1.
To find out the amount of sites you can host on a cheap web hosting plan, you just need to look for the number of “add-on domains” allowed. See, most of the time when you purchase cheap web hosting you will be prompted to enter the domain that will be your “main” domain. For smaller plans, this domain might be the only one allowed, but for the most part there are more allowed. Then, once that domain is set up and the site is hosted, you can start adding on domains, and later, sites. You just have to make sure everything is organized right, and that you’re putting each file under the correct domain.
If you already have a plan and notice that you are not allowed to host more than one site, you have a few options. One, you can upgrade your cheap web hosting plan to a VPS or something similar. However, that is costly and probably not too practical unless you want to build very large sites. The other option is to purchase another cheap web hosting plan (from a different host, obviously). Just make sure the new plan you’re buying is equipped and allows add-on domains.
Written by Web Hosting Expert on Dec 29, 2009.
If you are a webmaster and have started to notice that you’re spending a lot each month, you may be wondering how you can reduce your expenses. There are many ways to do this, but some work better than others. Of course some of these methods don’t work for everyone, but I’m sure this article will help you out in some way. Here are some common ways to reduce your expenses as a webmaster:
1. Switch to cheap web hosting
If you don’t already have it, I recommend switching to cheap web hosting. Cheap web hosting costs about $5 per month, while dedicated servers cost $100’s per month. If you have a dedicated server or VPS, chances are your websites won’t be able to be supported on cheap web hosting, but it’s definitely worth a try if you’re trying to save money.
2. Reduce outsourcing
If you’re a big outsourcer, reducing the amount of work you hire out can easily lower your monthly expenses. Some webmasters spend $100’s or even $1000’s of dollars each month just form hiring out work. Now in some cases outsourcing can be financially beneficial, but often webmasters get lazy and just want to outsource everything. If you outsource work regularly, try to do some of it on your own. You will gain some experience, as well as save a few bucks.
3. Get rid of unused domains/sites
If you have several sites and domains, chances are you have a few that you don’t really use much. I recommend going through your domain portfolio and selecting any domains that are not currently in use. Then, sell the unused domains on a webmaster forum, or another domain marketplace. This can get some extra money for you to use, as well as reduce future expenses, as you will not have to renew the domains.
Written by Web Hosting Expert on Dec 28, 2009.
Despite what many people seem to think, owning and running websites is not free. In fact, it can be very expensive. If you’re just getting started you shouldn’t have to spend too much, but it’s still a significant investment. There are many things that webmasters need that cost money (cheap web hosting, domains, etc.), and then there are even more things that are not really necessary, but help you out. The cost of these things can add up quickly, so if you’re on a budget, be sure to watch your spending.
One of the main expenses for modern webmasters is cheap web hosting. Though it is “cheap”, it’s still a major expense for most people. Cheap web hosting will run you about $5 per month – not exactly “break the bank” money, but in this economy, it’s still a hefty expense. Cheap web hosting is one of those things that is absolutely essential. Yes, there is free hosting available, but if you want to have any sort of professionalism, you need real hosting. I highly recommend steering clear of free hosting, as it’s usually more of a hassle than anything else.
Another expense is domains. .com domains cost $10/year, and most top-level domains (.net, .org, etc) cost about the same, if not more. This may not seem like a big deal, but keep in mind that most webmasters have at least 5-10 domains. Even if you only think you want 1 site, you will probably change your mind in the future. And, with every new site comes a new domain, so the yearly bills can start adding up fast. If you think your finances are a little tight, I recommend staggering your domain purchases. That way, you can just pay $10 every few months, instead of $50 or so at once.
Written by Web Hosting Expert on Dec 27, 2009.
Many people ask the question, why should I pay for hosting? Well, there are many reasons, but mainly because free hosts are low-quality in general. Yes, there are free hosts out there, but they are for the most part not even worth your time. If you are truly on a tight budget and simply cannot afford $5/month for cheap web hosting, then I guess you have no choice but to use a free host. However, if you can afford cheap web hosting, then by all means go for it – you will have much less problems and headaches that way.
If you don’t already know, free web hosts use very low-quality servers. Generally the servers used are at least a few years old, and therefore are prone to crashes, slow load times, and other issues. Plus, since the companies who own the servers don’t really care what happens to their customers, they tend to load the servers with literally hundreds of sites, making everything extremely slow and unreliable.
Plus, free hosting, unlike cheap web hosting, is ad-supported. This means that the company who owns the servers will place ads on your site. They don’t really care if the ads are intrusive or block some of your site’s content – all they care about is making money from the ads. Often they will literally load your site with ads, making it look extremely unprofesional. If you’ve ever been to a site that is full of ads before, you probably know how annoying it is. So don’t own a site like that – spend the extra $5/month and get some cheap web hosting!
Written by Web Hosting Expert on Dec 26, 2009.
If you’re looking for a fun way to pass the time, all while sharing your opinions and gaining respect, a blog is a perfect solution. Blogs are extremely popular these days, and for good reason. Almost everyone who is in a position of public authority has a blog, and many everyday people do too. Whether you want a blog for yourself or for your business, this article will help you decide how best to go about the building process.
First of all, you will need cheap web hosting that is compatible with a blog. Most hosts offer some kind of cheap web hosting (also known as shared hosting), so it shouldn’t be too hard to find a good plan. However, just because you can find cheap web hosting at almost any host, doesn’t mean you should buy the first plan you see. If you plan on building a large blog, you may want to get a VPS or something similar. If you just want a basic blog and don’t think you’ll be rapidly expanding, cheap web hosting will do just fine.
Whether your blog is for business or personal purposes, I recommend making it look as professional as possible. To do this, I recommend using WordPress. WordPress is a content management system that makes blogs look amazing, but doesn’t require too much work to set up or maintain. In fact, you don’t even have to know HTML or any other web language to build a site using WordPress. And with thousands of pre-made templates and designs, you can have your blog up and running and looking great within just a few hours. Plus, editing and publishing articles is a breeze with WordPress due to it’s user-friendly backend.
Written by Web Hosting Expert on Dec 25, 2009.
Building a website is easy, but building a website that is usefull and actually gets traffic is a completely different story. It’s easy to buy a domain and cheap web hosting and get everything set up, but building a steady stream of traffic is an ongoing process. In fact, most sites get barely any traffic for the first few months of their existence, and after that it often takes months or even years to get to the traffic levels you actually want. If you have a website and want to drive some traffic to it, read below for some tips.
1. Work on SEO
SEO, or search engine optimization, is a very slow way to draw in traffic, but if done correctly, it can be extremely beneficial. This is mainly because SEO is long-term. Once you get a rank in a search engine, it probably won’t change much, meaning whatever traffic you’re getting now, you’ll continue to get long into the future. Of course things change, but short of your cheap web hosting crashing on you, you won’t lose ranks quickly.
2. Publish content on 3rd-party sites
Publishing articles and/or videos on other sites is a great way to generate traffic. Basically, you just want to publish the content and make sure there is a link back to your site. If you’re doing videos, you can either put an actual link near the video, or put a watermark on the video itself with your URL. Either way, this can help draw some serious traffic almost instantly. It’s not really a long term strategy, but it can help in the mean time. Plus, even if people don’t click on your link or visit your site, you are still getting exposure because people are seeing your link and subconsciously taking note of it.
Written by Web Hosting Expert on Dec 24, 2009.
Over my time as a webmaster, I’ve often heard the question “is cheap web hosting good enough for my site?” It’s asked a lot, and since it’s and individual question, there is no one answer. I can safely say that 90% of the time, the answer will be yes. However, that’s no way to judge things and make a decision. If you are wondering if your current site is too big or has too much traffic to be hosted on cheap web hosting, here are some tips to help you decide.
First of all, you should look at your total storage usage. Most hosts have this information displayed pretty prominantly when you log into your account, but with other hosts you may have to do some digging. Once you do find it, write down what it is. Then, while you’re browsing for hosting, take a look at the storage limits on cheap web hosting plans. If you notice that these limits are even CLOSE to your current storage usage, you should probably consider something more than cheap web hosting. However, if your current storage usage is only about 75% or less of what the limits are, then you’ll probably be fine with a shared hosting account.
The other thing to consider is bandwidth. Bandwidth is harder to measure than storage, but if your host displays your bandwidth usage it will be easy. If they don’t, just use your traffic stats. Generally speaking, if you’ve got less than 500 page views/day you will definitelly be fine with cheap web hosting. I’ve personally ran sites getting 1,000+ PVs/day on shared hosting, but anything more than that would be a bad idea. If you’re unsure, just purchase a cheap web hosting plan and upload your site. If after a few days everthing’s going smoothly, then you’re good to go.
Written by Web Hosting Expert on Dec 23, 2009.
If you own a small business and are ready to build a presence on the web, there are a couple things you need. Despite what a lot of people think, running a website, even a simple one, is definitelly not free. Of course there are ways to do it for free, but you will be extremely limited as far as design and functionality. I recommend giving your website a feel of professionalism and building a legitimate site.
To do that, you will first need cheap web hosting. I say cheap web hosting and not just hosting because I really doubt you will need anything more. You may need an upgrade eventually, but there’s no reason to spend more money than you should. Cheap web hosting is only about $5/month, so it shouldn’t be too big of an expense. If you find that you are quickly nearing your storage and/or bandwidth limits, start looking into an upgrade early so you can buy it soon and get everything transfered smoothly.
Other than cheap web hosting, you will need a domain. Domain names are fairly cheap at around $10/year for a .com. However, it can be very hard to find a good one. If the one you wanted is already registered, you’ll have to either choose a different domain that’s not already taken, or find a private seller and buy a premium domain from them. Of course if you buy the domain from someone else, you’ll probably have to shell out a fair amount of money, so be prepared.
Once you have the domain and cheap web hosting, you have several choices. You can go the cheap route and build your own site, or you can hire it out. Getting a website custom-built is never really cheap, but you can consider it an investment in your business.
Written by Web Hosting Expert on Dec 22, 2009.
While most people know that running websites is not free, many do not really understand how much everything will cost them. I think it’s always a good idea to know what you’re going to be spending, so if you’re a new webmaster or just looking to get started with a website of your own, read on to learn about some typical expenses for webmasters.
First of all, there is the obvious expense of hosting. Now for most new webmasters, cheap web hosting will work just find. And, just as the name suggests, cheap web hosting is generally very affordable. For about $5/month you can get a good plan that will suit all your needs, and not break the bank. If you end up needing something more than cheap web hosting, you will of course have to shell out more money, but it shouldn’t be too much of a financial burden.
Another main expense is domains. Domains cost anywhere from $0.99-$10.00 to register new, and can cost hundreds or even thousands if you’re buying them from private sellers. Normal .com domains cost $10.00 to register, and they must be renewed every year. While that might not seem like much of an expense, keep in mind that most people own several domains and not just one. Of course the amount you’ll have to shell out every year will depend on how many domains you register, but if you plan on having multiple domains be sure to budget some extra money for registrations and renewals.
The rest of the normal expenses are broken down into many categories, but it seems like most experienced webmasters spend quite a bit on outsourcing. Outsourcing is kind of a general term, but in this case it means outsourcing design work, writing, and any other task or job to other people. Outsourcing can cost quite a bit, but if you’re making enough money, it’s definitely worth it.
Written by Web Hosting Expert on Dec 21, 2009.
