Web Hosting At HostGator

I began hosting at HostGator in March of this year (2009) and wanted to give it some time before I reported my experience. After two months, I'm ready to share.

I've actually got several accounts with several hosting companies. Each has its value that works for my needs. I was quite content with 1and1 for general hosting needs, but when I started my adventure in the world of pay-per-click (PPC) advertising I found I needed more flexibility.

For instance, I began using some applications that required zend. While 1and1 had instructions for installing it, I just couldn't get it to work properly. To their credit, tech support talked me through it. Then I found out that they didn't allow tracking applications because it was too big a load on their servers. Well, as we all know, tracking is a critical element of PPC so I decided to look elsewhere. I kept my 1and1 account and still have sites that are hosted there. I'll save a review of them for another post but suffice it to say, I am happy with them for those sites.

I spent some time researching my options. After hosting for awhile, I knew my major requirements which included zend, php, multiple to unlimited domains, multiple to unlimited MySQL databases, as much bandwidth as possible, the ability to install tracking applications, and preferably cPanel. While many hosting companies offer these things, I tried to read between the lines of fine print and ending up choosing HostGator.

To date, I am very happy with the level of service I've received from them. They have a great chat feature that I have used on several occasions. I will say that there were times during a chat that I felt deserted, as many minutes went by without a response. But at least I could work on other things while I waited for a response. I guess it's not too much different from being on "mold" on a phone.

And speaking of the phone, their phone support has been excellent as well. I've called at 2AM more than once and have always received friendly and knowledgeable support from someone whose primary language is English (they don't outsource their support). On one of my calls I was exhausted and foggy-brained and just couldn't grasp what the support tech was trying to tell me. He was incredibly patient and worked with me until I got it straight.

There is one word of caution, however, regarding their prices. When you click on the Web Hosting tab you see a page that has options for three different packages. The price you see at the bottom of each column in the first section is actually for a 3-year prepaid plan. You have to hover over the price to see the various payment plans. But even the monthly payment option is still very reasonable for all you get. They even have a $25 Google Adwords credit.

So, if you're just starting out and are looking for an affordable and flexible hosting package, HostGator is a great option. Or if you've been in an Internet business for awhile and you've outgrown other hosting companies, I highly recommend HostGator. I like them so much that I decided to become an affiliate so yes, these are affiliate links and I appreciate your support in using them. After all, this is what we do.