We don’t expect our clients to know everything about our line of expertise. After all, we wouldn’t know where to start plucking a turkey.
To the uninitiated, it can all be so confusing, with most people not knowing their CMS from their SEO. "Fear not!" said he, for mighty dread had seized their troubled minds; here's the simple Freebird guide to things that can get you in a flap. Of course, it may be that your particular question isn't answered here. Well tough. Only joking - just get in touch and ask us directly. You never know - it might even end up on here if it's good enough!
Q. Website hosting - what’s that?
A. Website hosting, quite simply, is the space (or cyberspace) where your website lives, so that the world at large can view it. It’s a bit like renting a shop, and it’s payable every year.
Q. So what’s a domain name?
A. Your domain name is what people type into the browser on their computer in order to visit your website. It usually begins with www. - which means World Wide Web. Behind the scenes, your domain name (or URL, as it’s sometimes called) has a series of unique identifying numbers. Think of it like a phone number - when someone types in your domain name, it calls up your website on its rented server space and says: "someone wants to look at you."
Q. What’s CMS and why do I have to pay for a licence?
A. At Freebird, we offer two kinds of website - a brochure type, or CMS type. A brochure site is one which you can’t update yourself, and it therefore only attracts the basic annual hosting fee. CMS simply means Content Management System, which is a posh term for being able to make your own changes and updates to your website, and is usually more appropriate and cost-effective for people who need to make regular changes to images or information. A fully functional CMS can be extremely expensive to develop so, at Freebird, we invested heavily in our own very easy-to-use system which we licence out to our customers. It means you get the benefit of a world class CMS but only have to pay a small annual fee to use it.
Q. What if I don’t want my website anymore?
A. At Freebird, we’re committed to giving you the best possible, uninterrupted service and so we pay all your domain name and hosting charges up-front on your behalf. We invoice you the month before, and it’s essential that you either pay your invoice within seven days or let us know that you no longer want either your domain(s) or hosting. If you don’t, we’ll go ahead and renew it for you and you’ll become liable. We do this so that you don’t lose either your domain to the open market, or your web presence if your hosting expires.
Q. What happens if I don’t pay?
A. In the past, we’ve sometimes encountered problems with customers not paying their hosting promptly, and then occasionally not at all. This leaves us out of pocket, and impacts on the cost for other customers. We now have a system which automatically takes websites down after a period of non-payment. It cannot be overridden by any member of the team, and requires either a cheque number, credit / debit card authorisation or bacs reference to keep the site live. Remember, if your site is taken down you may lose valuable search engine rankings, which is why it’s really important to make your payment promptly.
Q. Can I get my hosting cheaper somewhere else?
A. We don’t believe you can. Website hosting is a complex issue, and several things have to be taken into consideration to make sure it’s right for the job, including what your website is going to be doing and how much data it needs to deal with. We use state-of-the-art servers with unlimited bandwidth, but if you think you can get the same specification as ours elsewhere for less, then simply give us the details. We’ll look into it for you and, if we think your alternative will stand the pace, we’ll match the price. That way, you’ll never pay more for your hosting with us than you would anywhere else. If the specification isn’t robust enough in our opinion, it’s entirely up to you if you decide to move away and give it a go, but if it falls over we won’t be able to offer any support. That’s not us being awkward - we simply won’t have access to it any more.
Q. What’s SEO?
A. SEO stands for Search Engine Optimisation, and is a very important part of having a website. You can have the most gorgeous website in the world, but if nobody can find it, it ain’t worth diddly squat. All Freebird sites are as organically optimised as they can be at the point of launch, but the grass can quickly grow under your feet so it pays to keep ahead of the game. We provide monthly Flightplans, which offer a cost-effective way to keep your site updated, and have it romping home in the SEO stakes. Just ask us for more details.
Q. Is that all there is to hosting?
A. Pretty much. We think we’ve given you the skinny here on some of the basics, and hopefully it explains a few of the dark arts of t’interweb. If there is anything you’re still not sure of though, please just get in touch with us. We won’t bite, and we’re here to make your life easier wherever we can.
