Advice re hosting - Please!

Aisling · 2015-09-17 05:05:21

Hi, I really like the look of the Turning Gate plugins and the idea of being able to update my website from within Lightroom however to switch my current website to this system I will need new web hosting. I understand that TTG recommends Bluehost however I am concerned about signing up with them as I have read so many recent really bad reviews particularly about customer service and uptime. I live on the other side of the Atlantic so I am concerned about the distance and the time difference and also don't want to have to make expensive long distance phone calls if I have a problem. Please can anyone advise me if it is safe to go with BlueHost? - particularly any European users??? I have looked in to more local web hosting services but they are much more expensive and have very limited space (no unlimited / unmetered space and bandwidth). Most local options within my budget only offer about 20GB space and 400GB monthly transfer - would this be enough?
Any advice/ experience appreciated!!
Thanks, Aisling.

Ben · 2015-09-17 21:08:21

Hi Aisling, as far as I know we've all been happy with Bluehost. Can you point us to any posts or bad reviews? Reading them should let us be able to advise based on our our experience. I've personally been with them for three or four years, and no complaints. I'm fussy with my hosts. Their online chat has solved any questions I've had, and I've never needed to call them.

Some of our European customers should be able to advise on more local hosts for you.

Aisling · 2015-09-18 04:45:18

Hi Ben,
Thank you very much for your reply - I really appreciate it. It was just through a Google search for 'Bluehost review' that I came across them. Below is the link to one of them, I don't really know enough to know where to look for genuine reviews!
http://mcjonline.com/blog/bluehost-revi … ost-sucks/
Thanks, again. Aisling.

Matthew · 2015-09-18 14:58:26

Hi Aisling,

Ben and I have both been happy with our Bluehost hosting. As for being over the Atlantic, I wanted also to point out that I live in Seoul, South Korea, and Ben is in Australia. So geography hasn't damped our impressions.

I don't see that review as being very negative. Most of his complaints are inherent to shared hosting, so could be said of shared hosting with any company. As for the comments, I don't put much stock in them. Things to keep in mind when reading comments, in general:

Comments may be bogus, posted on behalf of competitors to drive traffic elsewhere. This is a very common tactic in online markets, such as mobile app stores, etc.

The disgruntled are typically a vocal minority, so you will hear a lot of complaining; meanwhile, the happy majority doesn't usually feel it necessary to post their positive experiences. And finally, a lot of people posting comments just don't know what they're talking about.

I'm not aware of anyone using TTG that hasn't been happy using Bluehost. The Turning Gate itself runs on MediaTemple, but that's because we had outgrown shared hosting plans several years ago. As a result, I pay $50/mo for hosting TTG, while my personal site lives at Bluehost for far less.

I'm a Bluehost affiliate, so if you use links from The Turning Gate to get there, you'll be helping us out. Click here to help us out! So there's your full disclosure. But if I didn't feel that Bluehost were an excellent option, then I wouldn't be an affiliate; I'm very choosy, and have on many occasions turned down affiliate relationships because I lacked good faith in the partnership or product.

Aisling · 2015-09-19 02:53:54

Hi Matthew,

Thank you very much for taking the time to reply - much appreciated! I understand that it is next to impossible to please everyone all of the time, especially with a big company (however I have only read positive things about the Turning Gate!!!) so I'm glad that you have confidence in Bluehost as to use a local company was not going to be viable for me financially and I really think your plugins would be much simpler than my current workflow.

Thanks again,

Aisling.

Matthew · 2015-09-21 15:59:23

Thanks, Aisling. And I'm glad to hear you've heard good things about us.

Community @ The Turning Gate

#1 2015-09-17 05:05:21

Advice re hosting - Please!

#2 2015-09-17 21:08:21

Re: Advice re hosting - Please!

#3 2015-09-18 04:45:18

Re: Advice re hosting - Please!

#4 2015-09-18 14:58:26

Re: Advice re hosting - Please!

#5 2015-09-19 02:53:54

Re: Advice re hosting - Please!

#6 2015-09-21 15:59:23

Re: Advice re hosting - Please!

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