In the past few weeks, our blog posts have shared important Inn Owner topics such as: Copyright Infringement and DNS Renewals, and this week’s post is covering yet another serious topic: Web Site Hosting.
To start off with one of those most famous MOM sayings of all times, with a bit of alteration…
“It’s always fun and games until a guest calls to say they can’t load your site…”
Web hosting is simply the process of loading your Web Site code on the World-Wide-Web for all to see. There are 2 parts to Web Site Hosting that you need to be aware of and care about.
1) Will the Hosting company who loads your website code on the World-Wide-Web, including their equipment and software, provide continuous up-time, quality load time and back-ups in case something goes wrong. After all, a hosting system is simply software running on top of hardware, and both software and hardware can have issues. Does your hosting company have a plan to get you back online ASAP?
2) Do the hosting services you pay for include maintenance of your CMS (Content Management System) software, typically WordPress, and keep you site up to date with any mandatory security releases when they are made available?
I encourage you to take a few minutes and watch the video below on why you must choose a quality Web Site Hosting company.
The good news is...
We handle these very important details for our Acorn Internet Services clients who have chosen to Host with us!
But for Innkeepers that do not host with us, you need to reach out to your hosting companies and get answers to these very important questions. Innkeepers that choose to host elsewhere can find that being off-line is a dangerous predicament to be in. You NEED to get back online ASAP, and what you DO NOT want to find out at that crucial moment, after your Web Site has gone off-line or has been hacked, is that the restoration and repair of your Web Site is your responsibility.
Would you even know where to start to get yourself back online?
Here is one story from a new Acorn Internet Services Hosting Client who had serious issues with their previous hosting provider.
"I cannot afford to take chances with lost reservations due to guests being afraid to put their personal data into our reservation system.
Any guest who sees the comment that “This site may be hacked” as acknowledged by Google thinks twice about wanting to do business with the company.
This is actually the second time in the history of running my inn that we have had trouble with the website due to amateurish hosting. The other problem was the slow loading of content.
It is always hard to know exactly how the hacking of the site affected us, but the bed & breakfast is my primary income.
I cannot take a chance with losing our Google ranking due to hacking. We rely upon our reputation to service our existing clientele and attract new guests.
We have worked too hard for our professional reputation to have it tarnished by amateur security or lack thereof."
Choose Wisely!
Hosting is an investment that should not be shopped around to the lowest bidder.
It’s the lifeline of your business.
