Domains and Hosting

Your Domain Name: (or url) is your unique address on the internet. It will be the main way for people to access your website. www.tastyseed.com is this site's domain name.
Your Webhost / Web Server: is your online landlord. They store your entire website on their servers (powerful computers) which just means they are officially in the "online" web space available to send and receive data.
Your Website: is actually just a bunch of files, folders, images, and data, just like all the files, folders, data you have on your personal computer. Technically anyone can host their own website and put it online, but I really do not recommend that starting out because it is A LOT HARDER.

Domain and Web Hosting Pricing.

Web hosting is as little as $4.00 - $10.00 per month.
A domain name is about $10.00 per year to own.
These costs are very small so it should not be a significant obstacle to building your website. But if you are not convinced you should pay for these services, read on.

Advantages of Paying for Hosting.

Pro companies have tons more servers than you ever will.
They sit in security-guarded, climate controlled buildings.
They can also span multiple geo-locations. (for security and efficiency)
More up to date on the latest technology, language support, and security.
An entire organization of people are looking out for your server!

Guide to buying a domain and hosting.

Different companies cater to different customers.
The following is a breakdown of 3 types of companies:

Very Newbie Friendly.
These have very attractive pricing, and all sorts of tools to try and walk you through everything. They focus on a lot of "build it yourself" tools, with free templates, and web-based design tools. They can answer general questions but are not too good about more advanced aspects.
They try to keep things real simple.
Companies really good at marketing.
I feel I need to mention this category because there are just SO MANY hosting companies to choose from, and lots of people get sucked into hype and good marketing schemes. While not all companies are complete trash, I do not honestly believe they all have the customer's best interests in mind.
Companies geared toward advanced users.
These have the highest level of access to really advanced controls, The support can troubleshoot advanced problems, and they usually always have a very OPEN window to what they are running and how everything is operating. They almost always require a minimum of one year payment upfront, which is more than normal, but is actually the best value overall.

I have hosted sites on all 3 types. I recommend either the 1st or 3rd category. There are tons of companies out there, so rather then compare them all, I recommend sticking to the well known and longer established companies. This will let you get a better long term indication of how well they've been able to keep their customers satisfied.

Also note:
There are often heavy reccomendations online, but be warned that many of those recommendations exist soley as affiliates pushing a product that pays the biggest commissions (just good marketing).

The Tastyseed Webhost

Dreamhost is a 3rd category company. I believe this to be the best longterm value investment. Benefits include:

500 GB Disk Storage (more then you will likely ever need.)
5 TB Monthly Bandwidth
Bandwidth is the amount of data that can be sent out to your audience. For example if your site had 40kb of data per page, then you would be allowed over 1 BILLION pageviews per month.
You can host an unlimited number of different websites
Advanced coding support with unlimited mysql databases
97-Day Money-Back Guarantee
Free drop in modules, easy google mail support

The only relative "drawback" is that you have to pay per year's hosting upfront. The total is $119.95 for 12 months ($9.95 per month) but you can use my coupon code to save $50.00 and pay only $70.00 for the year. Even if the upfront payment scares you a little, that worry is extinguised by the 97-day money-back guarantee.

If you simply do not want to pay $70.00 and just want to get your feet wet, then we will head on over to our first category:

How to Get Hosting and a Domain for $10.77

Beginner hosting from Godaddy

Godaddy has the best month-to-month plan I have seen. You pay upfront for only 2 months and then month-to-month after that at a rate of $4.30 per month. If you buy hosting, your domain costs $1.99 for the first year and $9.95 per year thereafter.

2 months hosting = $4.30 x 2 = $8.60
1 domain name + fees = $2.17
Total = $10.77

Godaddy is great because your domain is only $1.99 and you actually own it. You can host WITH ANY OTHER COMPANY and not pay any transfer fees. I have 10 domain names purchased and managed with Godaddy and hosted with Dreamhost.

Points to be aware of When Purchasing Hosting and Domains:

caution icon

Most well-marketed companies will offer a very low month-to-month rate and a free domain, but when you get to the checkout page, you finally see that you have to pay for 6-12 months upfront. If you are willing to pay upfront in the first place, you should choose a 3rd-category company for the best longterm value investment.

Whenever you see "FREE Domain Name Included" realize that its only free "as long as you host there". In many cases you do not really own the domain, the webhost does, so if you ever change hosts, or stop service, you'll have to pay to use your domain.

Free Domains are still a good deal as long as you choose a host that lets you EASILY maintain your domains. The best companies will let you buy domains from them, but host it anywhere else you'd like with zero obstacles or fees.

Even though I recommend specific companies, I do so with the intent of saving you time. If you are not convinced, I encourage you to google webhost companies and see these tactics first hand. They will rope you in on price, only to reveal at checkout that you must pay for 30 years hosting. Most all the websites that "rank" hosting providers are mass affiliates that don't really care which host you go with, or what your specifics needs truly are. They do, however, have some good resources to get your familiarized with webhost terms and features.

Conclusion:

Your final decision will be based simply on how much you want to pay upfront. By choosing the lowest upfront cost initially, you'll have the freedom to decide later, if you'd like a more robust feature set, and you'll still keep your domain.

You are looking for a simple and low cost point of entry,

THEN

Your best bet is the $10.77 Godaddy deal. You get 2 months hosting and 1 domain (that you own). It's $4.29 per month after that, and $9.99 per year for the domain. If you ever switch or upgrade hosts, Godaddy will very easily let you point your Domain to your new host.

Directions for buying Godaddy Package:

Company Site: www.Godaddy.com - (this link automatically includes the code)
Promo Code: cjcdeal82

The Godaddy $10.77 deal does not need any promo codes to work. Simply choose the very first "2 month" package from the "Economy Plan" window. With the hosting plan, any domain you buy will cost only $1.99 for the first year.

Use the Godaddy promo code if you want to buy a domain ONLY. With this code your domain costs only $6.95 instead of $9.95.

you can afford $70.00 upfront ($6.00 per month) for a year's hosting.

THEN

You should get the more feature and value rich Dreamhost. It gives you a ton more bandwidth than you'll likely need, you can host UNLIMITED websites (yes, as many separate entire websites as you want) and you have lots more access to a whole bunch of things I do not even fully comprehend yet.

Directions for buying Dreamhost Package:

Company Site: www.dreamhost.com - (this link automatically includes the code)
Promo Code: TASTYSEED

Regular price on the dreamhost plan is $9.95 per month or $119.95 per year. By using my Dreamhost Promo Code: TASTYSEED at checkout, you'll SAVE $50.00 and pay only $70.00 for the year.

Disclaimer 1:
I can't possibly account for every company out there. While some may advertise lower prices or have slightly more features at any given point, I learned that if a company does what I need it to do, is there when I need it, not when I don't, and charges a reasonable price, then I'm happy. There are just too many companies out there to stress over. Do not let saving pennies get in the way of making dollars.

Disclaimer 2:
Tastyseed is an affiliate of both Godaddy and dreamhost. If you end up buying something and using our links or codes Tastyseed gets a commission. I want to be upfront about this because this site needs to be sustainable, and since I really believe in the products I mention, it is a win/win situation. Every hosting provider has affiliates, so I could have easily signed up for the one with the biggest commission.

You can use my Godaddy Promo Code to get your domain for $6.95
Regular price is $9.95 (if you buy a domain only and not hosting).
My Dreamhost Promo Code will save you $50.00 on a year's hosting.

If you explicitly do not want to use my promo codes you can just google either "godaddy coupon codes" or "dreamhost coupon codes" and there will always be some available.

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