#5 – Managed Hosting
What does that even mean? I have hosting for my website. And someone manages it, right?
Yes, if you have a website, you have hosting! And it’s most likely being managed by a lot of computers, people you don’t know, and who knows where? We recently took over web hosting for a Grand Rapids business whose host was in Barcelona!
First things first. We are referring to hosting for WordPress websites as that is the only platform we use. Why we only use WordPress. WordPress is, by far, the most popular content management system in the world and one of the most popular blogging platforms, powering 35% of websites GLOBALLY as of this writing. A website from Kalamazoo Web Design is built on the same platform as sites such as Sony, Time Magazine, TED Blog, AMC, The Rolling Stones, and countless others!
Many (not all) web designers and agencies put your site on shared hosting that is not proactively managed. Also, shared hosting means your site is sharing the same server with thousands of other sites. Not so safe. Some businesses choose to host their sites themselves – do you really have time for that? (Read on…) Cheap hosting = red flags and opening yourself up to site vulnerabilities, frustration, and possible lost time and revenue. We are transparent about our hosting services and proud to partner with Michigan-based company Rumspeed for premium managed hosting services for our clients.
WordPress sites (just like any other platform) are not hassle-free. They require frequent software updates, plugin updates, security patches, theme updates, etc. A proactive web host will stay on top of all of these things for you! Many people who have chosen to take care of their own hosting will tell you there is nothing more frustrating than clicking the UPDATE button and something crashing due to software conflicts or security vulnerabilities. Or worse, not updating and your software being so outdated and compromised that your site will crash at any minute.
Think about it – if you’re investing in a car, you’re going to insure it. You’re also going to proactively maintain it to keep it running smoothly. You may not be a mechanic, so you have someone you trust to take care of it for you. It’s the same with a website. This is not the place to try to save dollars. It will most definitely come back to bite you in the a$$!
- Common low-priced shared hosting provider:
“You are responsible for your backups and web content. We create our own backups on the shared servers, and we can restore from those. However, this is NOT a procedure you should rely on to keep your content safe.” - Hosting through Kalamazoo Web Design
We are super passionate about offering the BEST in managed WordPress website hosting! Our local support staff is always keeping an eye on things and is just an email away if you have questions or need help. We keep everything backed up and updated for you, so you can run your business, not an IT department.
Ok, so what is all included in a Managed Website? We’re so glad you asked! Grab some coffee, it’s gonna get techy!
Managed WordPress Website Hosting
- WordPress Updates – Never worry about WordPress core software updates again. Relax, we’ll handle all the details for you.
- Plugin Updates – Out-of-date plugins are the #1 cause of websites getting hacked. We provide weekly updates at a minimum.
- Theme Updates – Updating themes can sometimes break the design and layout of your site. We make sure it gets done right.
- Backup and Restore – We provide nightly offsite backups of your database and file system. No need to worry about losing your data.
- Security Monitor – We scan your site daily for any potential security issues. We are alerted and promptly remedy any issues.
- Uptime Monitor – Our monitor alerts us if your site goes down for any reason. This way, we can quickly address the issue.
- Page Caching – Slow sites will frustrate your visitors and get penalized by Google. We make sure your site is running efficiently.
- Image Compression – Your image file sizes will be trimmed for faster download speed. No more 5MB thumbnail images.
- Database Optimization – Your database can get bloated with post revisions, spam comments, and clutter from inefficient plugins. We keep it light.
- Website Firewall – Our partnership with security services guarantees your WordPress site will be safe and secure.
- Support Requests – Our Kalamazoo-based team is here to provide you with WordPress guidance, advice, and the answers you need.
Whew! Wasn’t that exciting? 🙂
All of this is included in our websites starting at only $40/month. And for only $10/month extra, we’ll update your content for you! This is truly the cherry on top of our Worry-Free Website plans.
Content Support
Our typical client does not want to login to their website to make changes. We offer superior value by saving them time and frustration. Business owners need to be doing the other 125 things to run their business. We lighten the load when it comes to your website.
Because of our knowledge of web design, content formatting for the web, and onsite SEO, we can update your content right and fast! A simple email to our support system and your update will be made for you. Updates include things like:
- Sale announcements
- Special holiday hours
- New staff members
- New products/services
- BLOG POSTS – Super important for SEO!
- Refresh photos or add to galleries
- General content changes to pages
- Removing outdated information
- Adding new videos
You get the idea…
We pride ourselves on offering the best in website design and hosting services for Kalamazoo-based businesses and beyond. Since 2008 we’ve been staying up with website standards and making sure our clients are covered. We’d love to partner with you and give you one less thing to worry about!