Part of the Website Ownership Tips video series.
If you own a website for your business, here’s a tip. You likely got it designed and developed, or you’re about to, but then what? What happens after the website is complete and ready to go live? That’s where hosting and maintenance come in.
What is website hosting and maintenance?
We can illustrate this by comparing it with purchasing a vehicle. When you buy a new vehicle, is the purchase price the only expense you’ll incur while using it? Well, no. You have maintenance, fuel, electricity, insurance. All of these additional items keep your vehicle running at peak performance.
A website is the same. You need fuel (your hosting), which gives you a slice of the Internet so people can visit your website.
You also need maintenance, which keeps the website running smoothly. Websites are built on software that continues to evolve. You know how your phone gets updates, sometimes for security reasons and sometimes for new features? Your website is the same. There’s a constant stream of updates to your core software, plugins and theme, and all of these need to be applied safely, without breaking your site or taking it offline.
What is the risk of not having website maintenance?
Can you think of the biggest risk of not maintaining your website? First, your website could go offline. But it could also get hacked! Security vulnerabilities that aren’t taken care of could let hackers steal your customers’ data, put viruses on their computers, or install ransomware, which can be very costly.
How can website maintenance help me avoid site problems?
All of this can be avoided by:
- Performing regular maintenance on your website.
- Having server-level backups, which my server does daily. If something goes wrong, it’s one click to restore a clean version.
Conclusion
Through my monthly Website Care Service, you also get personal support for your website and the first hour of content updates. With a hosting and maintenance package from a quality webmaster, you can rest assured your website is in good hands!
About the author
Leighton Smith is Pioneer Media’s website designer, web developer and webmaster, based in East Tennessee. As a solopreneur, he is each client’s one point of contact and has built hundreds of websites since learning to code in 2006.
