Selecting a Web Host for Your ADR Blog

Finding a reputable, service-oriented and feature-rich web hosting service for your blogsite similar to finding a good domain registrar: Ask around, find out what services have good track records and what ones to avoid.

I am presently using DreamHost and have been quite satisfied with their service, though I know others who haven’t been. As you decide what’s right for you, consider the following:

One-click WordPress installation. If you want a blog on your site but don’t want to have to go through the software installation yourself (it’s more complicated than installing software on your computer), choose a host that will install the platform for you. DreamHost, for example, installs WordPress without charge as part of my hosting package. Unlike some smaller hosts, who may offer to install but have no real experience doing so, DreamHost installs WordPress regularly and is intimately familiar with it.

Telephone support. If you’re not tech savvy, then you may on occasion need some assistance from your host’s technical support and may find it easier to discuss a problem by phone than email. Some hosts provide 24/7 phone support, some only during business hours, some not at all. DreamHost provides phone support as a “call back” – I have to fill out a form on their site to request a call. This gave me pause when I was first considering switching to their hosting package, but I’ve found them very prompt in returning calls in the few times I really did need to speak to a human directly. If you want the option to call and reach a human at any time you want, DreamHost would not be your best option.

Responsiveness and reputation. Go on the web and find out what others are saying about the host you’re considering. Do they get high marks for informed responsiveness or low marks for sluggish customer support? Do they have 24/7 customer support at least by email?

Cost. It’s not necessary to pay a bundle for a rock-solid hosting package these days. Anticipate spending about $100-$125/year for a reputable service, including WordPress installation.

Email accounts. Even if there’s only you in your mediation practice, you may find it helpful to have access to more than one email account with your domain name. For instance, you may want a specific email address to which certain types of inquiries go and which is different than your daily business email. Most hosts now offer multiple email addresses as part of the package and some offer more than most of us will ever use in two lifetimes.

Uptime. A beautiful website won’t be of much service to you if you’re host has a lot of outages. While every hosting company has its bad days, the better ones have redundancy strategies that kick in if one server dies, keep customers well informed of outages, and outline what they’re doing to prevent them from happening again.

Copyright © 2006 by Tammy Lenski. All rights reserved.