Getting locked into a long hosting term contract isn’t always the smartest choice for new bloggers or affiliate marketers. Around 90% quit after three months and usually after wasting a chunk of cash in the process.
A good way of testing the water before committing to a longer-term investment is through Pay as you go monthly web hosting. Paying on a month-by-month basis is a smart option for those beginning their journey into blogging or affiliate marketing.
It keeps risks, costs and commitments very low. It’s also ideal for those with limited budgets who don’t want to pay out for years of web hosting in advance.
Why Pay As You Go Monthly Hosting Can Be A Better Option For Newbie Bloggers and Affiliate Marketers
The concept of blogging and affiliate marketing is exciting but it requires time and patience.
Unfortunately, many newbies dive in wholeheartedly on the crest of an adrenaline wave generated by reading other blogs and pick a web host recommended by the author of the blog they are reading.
It’s not always the best option. For instance, we see Bluehost getting recommended by people not even using the service.
The Truth About Why So Many Bloggers Recommend Bluehost
Here is a secret – Most bloggers recommend Bluehost because the company pays them top rates of commission for referring you.
If you click on one of their affiliate links and proceed to sign up to a paid Bluehost account, then they earn anything from $65 up.
Now, most web hosts offer generous affiliate programs, but few match the level of affiliate commissions given by Bluehost.
However, what you might not have noticed is that most Bloggers recommending Bluehost don’t share the reviews. They aren’t always a good look.
Bluehost Reviews
At the time of writing, 83% of reviews on Trustpilot give Bluehost a rating of 1 out 5.
Now we’ve used Bluehost and don’t find it particularly bad. Our feeling is that some of the reviews on Trustpilot are a little harsh. We’ve got a couple of sites on there, and our experience is that it’s been OK, and the support we received was above average.
Nonetheless, we wouldn’t recommend it as the best choice for newbie bloggers for three reasons:
- You need to sign up for a longer-term plan to get the best price.
- There are other hosts with better ratings and support.
- Bluehost doesn’t offer monthly hosting.
SiteGround – Highly Rated Blogging Web Host
Let’s take a look at another host widely touted by Bloggers – Siteground.
SiteGround doesn’t offer ongoing monthly hosting either, but at least you can take out a first-month trial before committing to a longer-term. They also provides a good discount on yearly plans – a shorter commitment than a comparable plan from Bluehost.
The WordPress Hosting / Starter Plan is the cheapest they offer and a good plan for new bloggers.
SiteGround Reviews
SiteGround has a phenomenal rating on Trustpilot. Also, if you join any social media blogging groups, you’ll discover the host is regarded highly among its user base.
The only disadvantage of SiteGround for new starters is that they don’t offer monthly hosting and you’ll pay a year in advance. Of course, you can take out the one trial month to check the host out – but be mindful that the trial period is charged at full price.
Check out SiteGround Web Hosting Plans
Monthly Web Hosting – Pay As You Go
Choices are more limited if you are seeking monthly hosting options, but we’ve picked out three solutions that could match your requirements.
Cloudways – Hosting with Digital Ocean, Amazon AWS & Google Cloud
Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud and Digital Ocean are powerful cloud hosting solutions. However, the native user interfaces provided by these tech giants are more suited for web professionals than startup bloggers. Amazon and Google Cloud are tricky for non-technical people to navigate.
Cloudways to the rescue – making it easy
Here is where Cloudways comes to the rescue. They offer a really simple user interface that links into the cloud solution. You can pick your own server, the hosting platform and the applications (i.e. WordPress) to install.
So while your website is hosted on one of the powerful cloud servers, you administer everything through a simple interface and avoid the complicated stuff under the hood.
You can create a fully functional self-hosted WordPress site in minutes with a few clicks. Cloudways makes the whole process easy.
Cloudways Reviews
Cloudways have great reviews on Trustpilot. We use them to host several sites and find the flexibility is excellent.
A Virtual Server of Your Own
You don’t just get a hosting account with Cloudways. You’ll have your own virtual server. This provides the flexibility to install multiple websites and applications within the same account.
Fully Functional Free Trial – Check it out
Cloudways offers a fully functional free trial, where you can set things up and try it out for a few days without paying anything up-front. You don’t even need to add your card details. It’s a healthy “try before you buy” solution.
Check out Cloudways for free. Set up your WordPress site in a few clicks.
If you decide to continue with Cloudways, then you’ll need to add your card details to the account. You get billed at the end of each month.
Cloudways Discount Code
At the time of writing, Cloudways have a discount code where you can get 30% off your first couple of months hosting.
Combine the following link:
- Goto the Cloudways Home Page from this link.
- Click the GET STARTED FOR FREE button
- Sign up and enter the promotional code SCALEINSUMMER
Dreamhost
Dreamhost power over 1.5 million websites; above all, they are also one of the vendors explicitly recommended by WordPress.
Dreamhost offers a simple straightforward monthly starter package, and it’s a competitive offer.
The monthly starter plan includes a web hosting package where you can have WordPress pre-installed and ready to go, together with one email account.
Dreamhost Reviews
Dreamhost has a strong reputation accompanied by excellent reviews.
Check out Dreamhost. Options include pre-installed “ready to go” WordPress.
Interserver
A final option to consider is Interserver’s VPS Package. Similar to Cloudways, you get a Virtual Private Server where you can install multiple websites and applications.
Interserver Reviews
We haven’t used Interserver, so can’t make a comment based on personal experience.
The reviews on Trustpilot are good, based on a small sample.
Check out the Interserver Packages and Pricing (From their offerings, we’d suggest the VPS Package is the best candidate for a WordPress website)
Thank you very much for this post, I have previously had a blog, but as with most new bloggers I got sucked into a long-term plan. This didn’t end too well as I gave up on the blog site after a few months.
I wish that I had seen a post like this which gives options for the monthly plan and it has also encouraged me to start again with my blog using this option rather than signing my life away from 12 months.