Liquid Web Review: Best Web Hosting For Bloggers

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Liquid Web is the Best Hosting for Bloggers

Liquid Web Review: Best Web Hosting For Bloggers

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For those of you who know me (or who read this blog), you might be tired of hearing about Liquid Web because I talk about them all the time. I love them for a variety of reasons and have been with them for a total of eight years. While I have used a lot of their services, I primarily used them for web hosting as a blogger. I’ve also used their VPS, WordPress management and more. Let me be frank and upfront with you guys: It costs more than other

hosting companies that I’ve used, so you may wonder why I keep going back to LW. The answer is simple: they rock!

 

They give you the tools you need so that you don’t have to worry about the hosting aspect of your job. As a blogger, you should be focused on writing and critiquing yourself instead of where it will be put once the piece is done.

 

I created this review because I think all bloggers should consider Liquid Web, even if they’ve currently got another host with which they work. We’ll discuss a lot of their features and benefits, but we’ll also dive deeper into why you need a web host. That way, if you’re not already on the bandwagon, you will learn why you need it.

 

Pros And Cons: The Summary

 

I know what it’s like to be in a hurry and not want to read through an endless blurb about one particular thing. I’ve come up with a few things that I love and one or two that could use a little work so that you can get in and out if that’s your thing.

 

My Likes

 

  • Support is excellent (You’ll always talk/type to a human)
  • Help to choose the right product
  • Tons of products available
  • Perfect for freelancers (bloggers, entrepreneurs)

 

My Dislikes

 

  • Costs more
  • Setup can be hard if you’re not familiar (but support is there to help!)

 

Since I listed one of my dislikes as being a higher cost, it’s best that I knock that out right now so that you guys can continue reading if you want to know more.

 

Bloggers will likely find that managed WordPress, Cloud websites and Cloud VPS servers are going to be their best bet, which is what I will primarily focus on here.

 

With the Cloud VPS Server product, you can get two GB of RAM for about $59 each month (they run promotions all-the-time as low as $29/month), depending on how much disk space you need and which OS you have. You’ll also find higher RAM amounts that cost a little more. With the VPS Server, you get email, optimized WordPress, multiple CMS’s are supported, and you get fully managed help 24/7.

 

If you just want optimized WordPress that is fully managed, the Managed WordPress product may be more suitable. They’ve got personal, professional, business, and agency options. The personal gives you one website while the agency provides 50 sites. The personal one is $69 a month, which may not be entirely enough. You may want to have 10 or 25 sites (professional and business, respectively), which are $99 and $149 a month, respectively.

 

Last, but not least, you have Cloud Sites available, which allow you to support a variety of CMS’s and is scalable for high traffic spikes. You probably won’t need this if you’re just a blogger, but I included it because it’s under Liquid Web’s freelancer features. It is regularly $150 a month.

 

Why I Needed LW

 

For over eight years, I’ve been an entrepreneur struggling to make ends meet. I knew what I wanted to do and knew that I could do it. The only problem was figuring it all out. You’ve probably been in that same boat because you enjoy writing or blogging, and you want to stay on top of it all. The competition is fierce, with almost everyone having a website now. You can’t risk your site being down or not having the appropriate WordPress plug-ins. Keeping up with all that mess means you probably focus more on your website and its inner workings than writing and blogging.

 

I was in your shoes once too, as I had focused on using the cheapest web hosting companies to keep my costs low. Then, I found Liquid Web and something compelled me to give it a go, even though it was much more expensive. After that first month, I was hooked, and I never looked back. They don’t just give you a website or give you the tools to manipulate your site appropriately. They take charge and make sure everything is done for you. It’s a no-brainer if you’re like me and aren’t very familiar with computers. You will love the fact that you don’t have to be a WordPress genius and can focus on your passion: Blogging!

 

To those who are claiming that it’s too expensive right about now, I tell you this: Think about value instead of cost. Do you think that those super-moguls that run corporations only look at price? It may be a factor, but it’s not the only one. They want to know what it does, how it works, and why they need it. The same is true for you and, if you keep reading, I’ll tell you.

 

Cloud VPS

 

The first thing I’m going to say is that you may have a personal or business website. If you own a company and want to blog to get people interested, that’s awesome. If you’ve come this far, you probably worry that you can’t benefit from Liquid Web because you don’t want to use WordPress. Thousands of articles on the web claim that if you have a business site and use WordPress for the blog, you’re hurting yourself and I believe them. (You should believe them, as well). The point is that Liquid Web doesn’t just help those with WordPress sites, though they may promote themselves as such.

 

The Cloud Virtual Private Server is confusing to most entrepreneurs because they aren’t familiar with it. They know what Cloud is and they know what a Server is, but when you tie it all together, it’s a jumbled mess. Let me clarify things for you right now. Cloud VPS is a hybrid, which means it offers shared and dedicated hosting together. Did that help you at all? It didn’t for me when I first learned of it either, but I delved farther in and discovered a lot more.

 

Liquid Web has a massive server at their location (well, I’m not sure if that’s true, but it probably is and will work for this explanation). It has unlimited bandwidth and disc space and includes its own OS. They divide that large server into multiple spaces, which creates smaller, independent servers. When you buy the product, you have access to one of those spaces. You only see your information, and it can be rebooted or treated like a dedicated server. When and if traffic overflows your site because you’ve got some excellent sales going on or you just posted something that went viral, it overloads that server, and if it were yours at your location, it would probably crash. With Liquid Web’s Cloud VPS, it would shift that extra traffic to another space or virtual environment so that your site doesn’t experience any downtime or lag.

 

Okay, that long-winded explanation probably doesn’t tell you why you need one if you have a business with a website. For one, you should keep your blogging and all your information in one spot because if you don’t, Google and other search engines are likely to ding you. It’s that whole algorithm nonsense that I won’t go into here. What it means is that if you have multiple websites, all linking back to each other, Google thinks that you’re a spammer and not a legitimate business.

 

Therefore, you need to host all those websites from one location. You may have an e-commerce site that allows you to sell online but you probably also have informational sites that explain what you do or give descriptions. You may also want to include a blog/vlog that provides people with helpful info when they need it. All these things can be hosted on Liquid Web.

 

For example, if your domain is hosted with a 123-reg, that domain name can be pointed to the VPS’s IP address at Liquid Web. It’s complicated, but they will help you work it all out when you call support, which means once it’s done, you can have all your websites with your domain and their server. It’s not quite easy as pie (though have you made a pie recently? They aren’t easy to do!), but you’ll see nothing but benefits once it’s complete. Of course, you don’t want to do that a lot over the next few years, so it makes sense that you would consider all your options. I’m not telling you not to try other companies, but I’m telling you that LW is one of the best web hosting companies out there, especially for those who have incorporated a blog into their regular business routine.

 

Okay, so we’ve learned what the server does and why you have it, as well as how LW can help you. However, what happens if you own a company that allows you to input personal/private information? Credit card and health information require a lot of extra steps, such as HIPAA compliance or PCI compliance. You may be wondering if you can utilize LW for such needs, and the answer is a resounding yes! They offer a ton of add-ons, such as DDoS-attack prevention, load balancing, firewalls, backups and more. However, they are likely to recommend that you choose single- and multiple-server for any compliance needs, which isn’t considered freelance options. However, I just wanted to add that in case any health and other industry companies are considering blogging.

 

WordPress

 

When I first started blogging (well, considered it), I wondered why it was even necessary. I mean, come on, there are seemingly endless blogs and articles about endless products/themes, so why did I need to put in my two cents, too? If you’re wondering the same, I can’t necessarily answer those questions for you, but I can tell you what I came to learn. Whether you’ve got any other site or not, you want to increase traffic to your website or blog. That is your primary goal right now because the more people who see it, the better. They will tell others, share it on social media, and you’ll get followers. That’s the first step, and once you have those followers, you can do so much more. You’ll find guides online telling you how to make money from vlogs and blogs, so I won’t go into that there. Just know that you can make a substantial income if that’s your desire.

 

Now, how does that tie into WordPress and Liquid Web? For one, you’ll need to have a website to hold all the information on your blog. Whether you’re just writing about off-the-wall topics as they pop into your head or have a full idea of what you’re hoping to accomplish, you need a place to store it and a domain. Many people turn to WordPress because it’s easy to set up and it can be free and starts out that way. The only real costs you find is when you want it hosted by another company or need a particular domain name.

 

With Liquid Web, you never have to worry about another plugin update because they take care of all it for you. Plus, they can host the site, ensuring that it never goes down. That means you’re always online and people can read your information and respond to it no matter what time of day. It also means that you’re free to write and create content that engages the readers instead of focusing on the back-end work, such as updating your plugins, worrying about site speed, and more.

 

Cloud Sites

 

Now, let’s say that you have multiple websites for various needs. You may have a WordPress site for blogging about puppies, but you may own another website for crafts or hobbies. You may also have a site that ties both together, such as knitting puppy clothes. Therefore, you need one secure place to keep all that information. Liquid Web offers Cloud Sites to those who are in this situation. Whether they’re all on WordPress or some are on Joomla, Drupal, and other places, they can all be tied together so that you can manage them faster and launch them quickly.

 

If you’re considering another website on top of it all, or plan to have multiple sites, Cloud Sites is best for you. You can build it the way you want without having to learn about server management or cPanel. Plus, you can develop it in .NET, PHP, or use one of the many sites already out there.

 

Therefore, you don’t have to worry about managing your servers, setting up each server and site, and all the mess. You can make them customized to your needs and launch them with just a few clicks. Plus, it works for apps, too!

 

Another significant problem bloggers have is that they want new sites to branch out into new niches, whether within the same industry or altogether new. You can take time out of your busy schedule to create a new site, but it can cost you because you’re not blogging. You’ll find that with Cloud Sites, everything is more organized, and you can quickly create new sites or update the ones you have.

 

Features/Benefits

 

While I have been discussing the features of each one and how they may apply to you, I still wanted a section that was only about the benefits of each web hosting option that Liquid Web provides. That way, you’ll be able to access it quickly if you haven’t read through this whole review so far. I’ve made it in a table format to help those who prefer to skim.

 

Cloud VPS §  Backups Included

§  Unlimited Websites Allowed

§  DDoS Protection

§  Scalability Is Easy

§  Guaranteed Network/Power Uptime

§  Up To 128 GB RAM Available

§  Email Included/Available

WordPress §  Fully Managed

§  No Traffic Limits

§  Full Access To Servers

§  No Calls For Upsells

§  Daily Backups Automatically

§  Security Included

§  Faster Speeds

Cloud Sites §  No Skills Needed

§  Unlimited Apps/Sites Hosted From One Place

§  Supports Many Platforms (Joomla, WordPress, Drupal, etc.)

 

Plus, along with each product’s features, you’ll find that they always have support available. You can choose Live Chat (which is impressive) or call them and will get a quick response. While the prices may be higher, you’ll find that they are transparent. You will never wonder why you’re being charged and will never have surprise fees.

 

Conclusion/Summary

 

So, with all that I’ve talked about and gone through, you may be better qualified to understand why you need a hosting website. You may also be sure that you need Liquid Web and wonder how you’ve made it through this far without it. If you’re like me, you’ll head over to their site and start the process of picking the right options for you.

 

However, those who are still, even after all this, on the fence, to you I say thank you. You aren’t the type of person to listen to one reviewer or one person. You may not even listen to hundreds of reviews and testimonials. You’ve got your own plans, and you want to take things slowly. I commend you, and I was you at one point. I didn’t rush right out and try the newest thing just because someone said it was good. I went through multiple web hosting companies, never finding exactly what I needed. However, once I found LW, that all changed.

 

If you were lucky enough to find this review before you’d tried others, you may be hooked and never want to consider anything else. Or, you may just find that you want to go elsewhere just to appreciate Liquid Web more in the future.

 

I can’t promise that your life will be more relaxed or better because you use Liquid Web. I can only tell you that LW has changed my approach to business and my outlook on entrepreneurship. You are your own person and will have to make your own decisions. I’m just one person who loved what I found. However, Liquid Web does make a lot of promises that they will keep. For one, they promise that your site or app will always be up and running without downtime.

 

They also guarantee that you’ll always talk to a real person. Of course, talk can mean different things as you won’t talk to someone when you email or chat with them. The point is that you will never get an automated response. You know the ones I mean where they say we’ve received your question or concern and someone will get back to you. Those are so annoying, right? Sometimes, LW will respond and tell you that they haven’t got the answer just yet, but that’s different. They’re letting you know where they’re at in the process so that you know they haven’t just forgotten or ignored you. There is a huge difference and if you’ve worked with other hosting companies, you probably already know.

 

I’m going to close with one more mention of LW being fully managed hosting at your fingertips. That means they can help you pick the right plan, move everything to their servers, and ensure that you are protected and safe. It also means that your operating system and server are frequently updated to make sure that it is secure. You’ve still got full control over what you put on your site or write in your blog, but they give you more time to work on your creative content instead of focusing on the semantics of getting it out on the Internet. Check out Liquid Web here and tell ’em Dave at List Land sent ya!

 

 

 

FTC Disclosure: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.