FAQ: FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Yes. However, hosting is a specialised service and so - in common with other freelance web designers - I use a dedicated hosting provider.

Having tried a number of hosts over the years, I now use Hostinger - a company that I’ve found to be cost-effective, reliable and responsive.

Hostinger is a major player in the hosting business, with over 29 million customers across 178 countries.

I use their cloud-based hosting (with a 99.9% uptime guarantee and daily backups) and my sites are based at a datacentre in the UK, which helps improve speed for UK-based visitors.

Yes - but with the proviso that it can be difficult if you don’t have a good relationship with your current website manager.

Some website professionals, including me, will help you transfer your domain to another host and/or provider (I don’t charge for doing so).

Others, however, can make it very difficult for clients to move elsewhere. For instance, they might not give you - or someone acting for you - access to the website host’s control panel, or they might hold your domain name and not be willing to release it until your contract ends and/or in return for payment.

If you want to move and your existing provider is being difficult, I’m happy to talk through the options, but it’s unlikely to be an easy switch.

However, providing there are no obstacles to moving, there are a number of options including:

1 - point your existing domain name to Hostinger and I will then then manage your site from there (the domain name stays where it is); and

2 - transfer your domain ownership to Hostinger and I will set up a new account there (the domain is registered with Hostinger; a one-year domain registration fee applies).

I’ve done both of these, so know what’s involved.

In some cases, I can access your existing setup and manage your site from there (e.g. where you’ve set up the site yourself but no longer want to manage it; I’ve also done this).

It’s generally accepted that sites accessed on desktops should load in under three seconds, with mobile devices usually taking longer.

Loading time depends on many factors, such as: the speed of the user’s connection, where the website is hosted, the type of hosting, and the size of the pages being viewed (e.g. lots of images can slow a page, as can videos and fancy fonts).

Although a simple site will load more quickly than a complex one, it’s usually necessary to strike a balance between loading time and visual appeal. Where that balance rests is something that you should consider.

I use UK-based cloud hosting for my sites and tweak images and code to reduce loading times. Performance is assessed using GTmetrix and I aim to get under the three second target for desktops.

Yes. The cloud-based hosting package I use comes with daily website backups.

For sites hosted with me, I will also install a WordPress backup and restore plugin, free of charge. Daily or weekly backups are likely to be most appropriate, but they can be scheduled as frequently as every four hours.

Your website will be created and hosted in the cloud, not on my desktop computer, so any issues with my own hardware should not impact your site. That said, my work files are backed up at least once a day both locally and to the cloud.

Yes, free of charge.

A Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) improves website security by encrypting traffic between the site’s server and the user’s browser.

Installing an SSL certificate changes your URL from the basic ‘hyper text transfer protocol’ (http) to ‘hyper text transfer protocol secure’ (https).

With online users constantly being urged to take security seriously, any site flagged as insecure (e.g. by having a red padlock or written warning displayed) could well be avoided by potential visitors. It’s therefore generally advisable to get an SSL certificate – and absolutely essential if you’re running an online shop.

Some hosting companies charge for buying and installing an SSL certificate and in some cases also require them to be renewed annually.

However, if you host your site through me, I’ll install a lifetime SSL certificate free of charge, so you get added security at no cost!

(Note that ‘lifetime’ means for the length of time your site is hosted with me on Hostinger; it’s not guaranteed to be around as long as you!

Also note that the free installation applies only to your main site. If you want a certificate installed on a subsite, then I’ll invoice you for the cost of it – currently about £15.)

The cloud-based hosting package I use comes with daily website backups and, for sites hosted with me, I will also install the WordPress backup and restore plugin UpdraftPlus, free of charge. Daily or weekly backups are likely to be most appropriate, but they can be scheduled as frequently as every four hours.

In addition, I’ll also install the WordFence security plugin which, even in its free version, provides additional protection against malicious attacks.

You might also be interested in my blog post on security issues: There's more to website security than SSL.

Domain names have to be obtained from registrars: companies accredited by ICANN, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers.

Many registrars, such as 123-Reg, GoDaddy and BlueHost, also provide hosting and other web-related services.

You can register the domain yourself or get someone else (e.g. a web designer) to do it for you.

When thinking about a name, consider issues such as length (shorter is better), ease of spelling and pronunciation, and how memorable it’s likely to be.

Bear in mind that your domain name isn’t just your website address, but is also likely to be used as an email address and on promotional materials such as business cards, flyers and even on vehicles.

If you want to use the same domain name on social media, check that it’s not already being used as a Twitter handle etc. If it is, think about the implications and whether there are other options for you. If it’s not yet being used on social media, then set up your own social media profiles as soon as you’ve registered the domain name.

I generally use Hostinger to register names. You can check availability and ideas using their domain checker: https://www.hostinger.co.uk/domain-checker.

If your ideal name has already been taken, I’m happy to help explore other options.

Note that prices vary between different top level domains (TLDs; such as .com, .co.uk, .online) and that special offers are usually for the first year only (make sure you check the renewal price before committing yourself).

Although ‘URL’ is often used to mean domain name, the two are not the same.

A URL (Uniform Resource Locator) is the address of a specific resource on the web.

It might be a website, but can also be something else, such as an image, a video or a PDF file.

A domain name is certainly part of a URL, but it sits alongside two other elements: the http/https protocol and the address of the specific resource being referenced, as in this example:
https://doodlydog.wales/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/A-Z-1.1.pdf

Yes, I can create email accounts for your domain and help you access them on your devices.