Hopefully you have read my first blog and are now excited to hear my next step in the process of building a blog for money.
For those of you new to my blog, my intention is to test out as many side hustles as I can, show you how I did it AND most importantly, I am going to show you the financials on each side hustle I will be evaluating. I want to know which side hustle works so I can stop wasting my time and yours.
As mentioned in my first blog, I decided on a name for my website, itestsidehustles.com. Next, I needed to find a web host provider. But first I want to take a minute and explain what a web host provider is and does.
What is a web host provider?
Here is what Website.com says about web hosting. Just so you are aware, I am an affiliate for this company and have picked out some themes you may like if you decide to go with them to create your website just follow the link.
Web hosting is a service that helps individuals and businesses to publish a website or web page on the Internet. A web host, also known as a web hosting service provider, is an organization that offers the technologies and services needed to access a website or webpage on the Internet. Websites are stored on servers, which are special machines that host websites. When people visit your website, they use a search engine to find it, like google.
All Internet users need to do is type your website address or domain into their browser to visit your site. Most hosting companies require that you own your domain in order to host with them. If you do not have a domain, the hosting companies will help you purchase one.
Before I go any further, I want to emphasize that I know there are so many places and websites that evaluate the plethora of web host providers that are out there. I am not going to reinvent the wheel but, the ones below are some of the bigger ones who cater to newbs like me. So naturally, that’s where I was influenced. I can guarantee you can argue for whatever provider you want. It’s really about your personal preference.
What webhost providers did I evaluate?
Lets jump into my evaluation. The table below consists of 3 web host providers that I evaluated based on my own criteria. This is the lowest or beginner level costs for each website and hosting and each of these have great reviews.
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| Cost | 3.95 / Mo. * | 2.98 / Mo. * | 3.95 / Mo. * |
| Shared Hosting | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| # of Websites | 1 | Unlimited | 1 |
| Storage Capacity | 50 GB | Unlimited* | <30 GB |
| SSL Certificates | Free | Free | Free |
| Domain | Free for first year | Free for up to 3 years | Free for up to 3 years |
| WordPress Support | Yes | Yes | Yes |
What was my criteria?
Cost is always important to me. If it costs to much then I am not very interested.
Share Hosting is where multiple websites share a single server. You usually have no idea who or what websites you’re sharing a server’s resources with. The total amount of server resources that each customer may use is typically limited, but this is determined by your hosting package. Shared hosting is by far the most cost-effective solution for your needs. Thus its important to me.
Advantages:
- It’s by far the most cost-effective hosting service you’ll find. The usual price range for this form of hosting is $2.99-$9.99.
- Most hosting companies provide various levels of hosting, allowing you to upgrade your plan over time. As a result, shared hosting is an excellent place to start.
- You won’t have to do any server maintenance on your end because it’s normally included in your hosting kit.
Disadvantages:
- The server may become overburdened by other sites sharing the server, making load times much slower than dedicated servers.
- As your site receives more traffic, you’ll find that it’s starting to perform even worse.
- You never quite know who your neighbors are. Although rare, it is possible for other sites on the server to pose a risk to your own site.
- There aren’t enough customization choices to get the best results out of your website.
Number of Websites – This ones is obvious, the more you pay the more websites you get. I only need this one for now. You do want to make sure you can upgrade if you decide you need more websites at a later date.
Storage Capacity – Same as number of websites, the more you pay the more storage you get. Here is a little nugget of information I found on website.com. For an average page size of 50KB, 20,000 visitors per month, and 5 pages per visitor, your website will need about 5000MB, or 5GB, of bandwidth per month. So, based on that I should have more than enough room (for now) with 50 GB. Again, you will need to make sure you can upgrade at a later date it you get popular.
SSL Certificates – SSL certificates enable websites to switch from HTTP to HTTPS, which is a more secure protocol. An SSL certificate is a data file stored on the origin server of a website. In normal human words, you can sell your own product using the secured website (accepts credit cards, etc.). This is very important to me and something I require with my website for one of my side hustles.
Domain – For my purposes, I want a free domain (website name) for the first year and reasonable annual costs thereafter.
WordPress Support – I am going to be using wordpress for this blog. Its important to me that a web host provider offers assistance with that. Especially since I don’t know how to use it effectively just yet. See my blog on why wordpress.
Lets talk about the different web host providers.
Per Bluehost’s Website – Bluehost is one of the most commonly used and reliable web hosting services.
This because they provide outstanding shared web hosting services at very low rates. They’re also tailored to people like me who are new to website growth.
They provide phone or live chat assistance 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. There are no hoops to jump through. They have a phone number for customer support and live chat options right on their
website, so you can contact them in two clicks. They also offer fantastic analytics and SEO tools to help you optimize your site’s performance—while attracting more visitors. (See my SEO blog on what this means).
They have a simple 1-click installation. Then, if your site grows and you want to move to controlled
WordPress hosting to increase speed and security, they give that as well. In other words they meet my wordpress criteria above.
This one seems to be a great one for beginners.
HostGator – HostGator is a great website for simple websites.
A reoccurring themes is, it’s a great site if you don’t have a lot of bells and whistles you need from a web hosting provider. For technical support, HostGator has a comprehensive collection of how-to guides. If you can’t find the answers you’re looking for, you can contact customer service via phone, live chat, or email.
HostGator does offer managed WordPress hosting, and a dedicated server if you require one. Plus, HostGator tends to rank highly on tech publications like PCMag. If you like that kind of thing.
DreamHost offers a shared web hosting plan that has affordable month-to-month prices.
The beginner plan includes 1 website with unlimited traffic, along with a free SSL Certificate.
DreamHost is also notable for the way it manages its web hosting. Developers who want more power over their websites would love them. However, this comes at a cost, particularly if you want to move away from them. They compensate for this by providing free migration plugins. Here’s an interesting tidbit: for 501(c)(3) organizations, they have one free Unlimited shared hosting service.
DreamHost is one of WordPress’ three recommended hosts, and its simple shared plans provide controlled WordPress hosting.
Customer service is a little different: email is open 24 hours a day, but live chat is only available during business hours. You must pay an extra $9.95 for technical support over the internet. Thought that one was weird.
Who did I go with?
BlueHost. I have heard a lot of arguments for and against them but its seems to be the best one for what I want to accomplish. With that said, I would recommend any of these three. Keep an eye out on my blog on ‘what did I learn using bluehost?’
Next up: Why WordPress?
Blog for money (2 of 10)
Check out my first blog ‘Does a Blog Really Make Money?’ in the series.