Author Topic: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?  (Read 9784 times)

FrugalFisherman10

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 390
    • Fly Fishing Photo Project
Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« on: August 10, 2017, 07:50:27 AM »
I'm trying to get my own site started up. It's going to be very photo/video heavy, like a gallery of my best photographs and some short travel videos I make.

I'm not very technical, so initially I was considering something like squarespace or Wix for use of their website builders. Then I started to realize that 'hey, nobody wants a free site (no custom domain name), and the price is more like $15 - $20+ month once you get into their paid subscription services, maybe I should look at a free Wordpress site with some cheap hosting (like Blue host?). Couldn't that be better long term and maybe cheaper (or at least more cost effective)?"

I had also read that going with a Wordpress site from the beginning is going to be better in the long run if it were to actually need to scale and if you started gaining a lot of traffic. (i think Mrs. MM says that in her post here about it)

So I'm looking at wordpress sites and hosting and all that, and see that MMM himself, as well as many others, recommend super cheap hosting with BlueHost, so I'm thinking "wow this would be a way cheaper option."

But, I need to build the site - hard to do without a website builder and without knowing wordpress..
Then enter "Divi" and their latest website builder https://www.elegantthemesdemo.com/?et_fb=1 (link if you don't know what I'm referring to... Basically they put something as capable and seemingly user friendly as Wix on top of WP, and it seems to work really well (from what I can tell without actually getting to demo it myself).

SO, now I'm thinking:
A. Wordpress site (free)
B. use Divi 3.0 to build it (which is like $90/year for a license, or I can just stop paying for the license and the site will keep working but it will not get upgraded), and
C. figure out where to host it.

Which is where you web developer/knowledgeable people come in - I can look online at 100s of comparisons of hosting providers and it's nearly impossible to tell what I need, and also to receive unbiased information (non-affiliate stuff).
If I'm expecting maybe 100 visitors to my site in a day (who knows.. probably much less for a while), should I just go with Shared Hosting on something like Bluehost?

Shared vs Managed hosting?
I don't want to spend a ton of time figuring out all this 'cpanel' backend stuff to keep my site up and running. I don't know what that means. So I'm considering managed hosting, but just not sure if I'm the 'right customer' for that yet.

my site will have big jpegs and videos, lots of pictures... so speed is a major consideration. Does SSD hosting matter? or will they all be pretty fast?

Either way, I have enough 'design' in me to try and build my site myself, that's kinda the whole point actually... I want to extend my creative outlet of photography and share that in a more formalized way.

Thanks for any suggestions or recommendations!

FrugalFisherman10

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 390
    • Fly Fishing Photo Project
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #1 on: August 14, 2017, 10:17:06 AM »
{bueller?}

meatface

  • Guest
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #2 on: August 15, 2017, 07:02:59 AM »
To clarify, you're against doing a SquareSpace/Weebly/Wix sort of thing?

FrugalFisherman10

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 390
    • Fly Fishing Photo Project
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #3 on: August 15, 2017, 07:18:38 AM »
Not against it entirely, just kinda thought there may be better alternatives by getting my 'own domain and hosting'.

In fact I basically have a dummy site built out right now on Wix that I could just roll with. But I feel like if I do that then everything I want to do will be within the confines of their little "universe"...like SEO and getting ads on my site one day to help it pay for itself, etc. I just don't know that I would really expect a site hosted on Wix to ever become something where you're driving a good amount of traffic to it and able to reap the benefits of it in an efficient way. Maybe I'm just suspicious

meatface

  • Guest
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #4 on: August 15, 2017, 08:45:32 AM »
You can get your own domain, and without ads, on any of those sites. You don't have to have their name in your web address.

FrugalFisherman10

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 390
    • Fly Fishing Photo Project
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #5 on: August 16, 2017, 10:36:51 AM »
Right, but what if I wanted to enable sponsors to advertise on my site so that I could get the revenue? It just seems more convaluted to go through a "website builder" like that, no? Or am I missing something and it is that simple

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk


meatface

  • Guest
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #6 on: August 17, 2017, 05:38:06 AM »
You can certainly do Google AdSense and affiliate links on SquareSpace, for example. No doubt the others are the same.

I think the main advantage of WordPress is that it's more customizable than SS/Weebly/Wix, but also requires more effort on your part. That said, there are a bazillion WordPress themes, for free or less than $100, that will make your site look really good. You'll need to go through some online lessons to get a good idea of how it all works.

A. Wilk

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 5
  • Age: 36
  • Location: Japan
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #7 on: August 17, 2017, 07:30:03 AM »
Ok. I am not a web developer.

I am a blogger that used to host with Bluehost, HostGator, Dreamhost, SiteGround, etc you name it. I have a blog that pretty much receives high traffic and all those hosting performed poorly.

Until I found the love of my life. Digital Ocean.

Digital Ocean was recommended by my game developer brother and web designer sister (not bragging about their profession but just letting you know that this recommendation came from them and not from me, and now I recommend them).

I moved from HostGator > BlueHost > Siteground > DigitalOcean. Finally contented.

I am self-hosted and using the standard droplet plan of $20 a month. https://www.digitalocean.com/pricing/#droplet (not affiliate link). I never experienced down time since moving. But installing WordPress for the first time can be a pain in the ass. My brother installed it for me.

I think it's perfect for your WordPress photo site.

MBot

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 506
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #8 on: August 17, 2017, 09:12:48 PM »
I like iPage for a bunch of reasons.


I'm a very amateur web developer who used to know a little about HTML but not much. I took several years' break before building anything, but found this pretty intuitive. I've done both Wordpress and their template sites.

The reasons I chose it.

#1, top of it all. Good rates! Even at renewal. Not just great introductory offers.

 I don't want to migrate sites over or rebuild them every few years. They renew at good rates. And it's a pretty good deal to start too. I use the integrated Wordpress hosting for my main site.



2. If you don't need Wordpress, it's even cheaper.

Their integrated templates work a lot like Wix or Squarespace (almost as dead simple). I've built sites for $15 using their templates, just buying a new domain + using my current hosting account.



3. They have a decent affiliate program.
I rarely plug it, but it does work. I chose the option where I get cash rather than hosting credits. No need to use my link of course, but I wouldn't object
« Last Edit: August 17, 2017, 09:16:21 PM by MBot »

beee

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 244
  • Age: 36
  • Location: Edmonton, Canada
    • HoneyMoney.io
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #9 on: August 18, 2017, 10:45:30 AM »
Buy your own domain name and use a constructor (SquareSpace/Weebly/Wix).
UNLESS
You're interested in becoming a web-developer or at least enjoy learning that stuff.

Web-development is such a big field, that you'll waste a lot of hours for no return.
Nobody cares whether your website is on wordpress/wix/squarespace/weeble/custom cms/etc.

The only thing that matters is your content.

Do it for 1 year, then revisit this decision. You can migrate your website any time, even preserving old urls.

Wordpress and own hosting sound simple until something goes wrong (error in plugin or theme or wordpress upgrade script). Then you'll have to waste even more hours or hire somebody for $50/hour to fix things.

MrSal

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 889
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #10 on: August 18, 2017, 11:23:56 AM »
The best host is https://www.siteground.com/recommended?referrer_id=7614852. (referral link there) (Best host within the shared/VPS hostings cheaper - of course we could go to hosting companies that charge 40-80/month or more)

You can buy their hosting for about 3 dollars/month.

Use them with Wordpress. Wordpress is easy. Click a button to install and then in wordpress just choose a template and you are ready to do whatever.

There are even free page builders within wordpress.

Dont use Wix/Weebly etc... not only its more expensive since to have your own domain you have to have the premium package, but their coding is not the greatest and might impact you in google rankings.

I have my websites at Siteground... most my pages open in 0.5 seconds while my competitors open in 4-5+ seconds.

You will be independent and start getting some SEO ranking.

SG customer service is pretty good and speed is also top notch im my opinion. TTFB on their server is around 100 ms which is very low already... if people are on SG and they are having speed problems is because they have some other issues on their site.

Use a light theme such as Generate Press or Astra or Genesis (paid) and you are good to go...

« Last Edit: August 18, 2017, 11:29:37 AM by MrSal »

narrative

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 53
  • Location: Longmont, CO
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #11 on: August 19, 2017, 11:25:56 AM »
Wordpress is relatively simple to setup, and many hosts have automated installers that make it even easier.

I have been using 1and1 for a few years on sites just to mess around and setup a site for a local church on 1and1 with Wordpress also and they have been fantastic. I call each year before my basic shared plan renews and tell them I am going to cancel and they give me the promo rate again (something like $12 a year).

If your site gets bigger (hopefully!) you may not be able to do this though.

It is pretty easy to get going with free Wordpress templates and customization via HTML/CSS isn't too tough either.

My two sites (for examples):
stpatrickshavana.com
chromeschoolers.com (still setting this one up and adding content)

I can answer specific questions if you have any - just send me a message. :)



HildaCorners

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 44
  • Professional Polymath
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #12 on: August 19, 2017, 11:38:10 AM »
I am a web developer. I'm currently doing contract work full time, but I used to do freelance, mostly WordPress with a little other stuff as well.

I've never had problems with Hostgator. You can do your domain name registration through them, or use a separate DNR provider.

The nice thing about WordPress is that you can change themes in the future, and your content is protected. So you can start with a free theme that's "good enough" then change it later.

Definitely follow Mrs MM's recommendation about installing JetPack and Akismet, and changing the Admin name. If you allow comments at all, you will get comment spam, and Akismet is great at catching it.

I need to add to her post about one other thing I consider essential for all WP sites: a security plug-in. I always use iThemes Security (free) ... there's a "just the basics" setup, and a lot of individual controls as well.

If you ever took a computer course and got a C+ or better, you can learn everything you need to know about using WordPress for a basic blog. While you can go a lot deeper, you never have to.

FrugalFisherman10

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 390
    • Fly Fishing Photo Project
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #13 on: August 25, 2017, 09:29:15 AM »
Buy your own domain name and use a constructor (SquareSpace/Weebly/Wix).

I'm intrigued by this idea. So who do I buy my own domain name from to do this? One of the 'hosting' sites right? ...(godaddy, hostgator, siteground, etc.) or am I misunderstanding that

Do it for 1 year, then revisit this decision. You can migrate your website any time, even preserving old urls.
Unfortunately on Wix, the one I think I like the best, you cannot migrate your site. It isn't coded in that way :/
Which is a pretty big hang up. Unless I really just like them and can continue to use the site their for the next 5, 10+ years.

FrugalFisherman10

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 390
    • Fly Fishing Photo Project
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #14 on: August 25, 2017, 09:32:16 AM »
TTFB on their server is around 100 ms which is very low already...
What is TTFB?

if people are on SG and they are having speed problems is because they have some other issues on their site.

..such as? Having a ton of high quality pictures and video on their site :)   ?
That's what I plan to have, so just asking.

Use a light theme such as Generate Press or Astra or Genesis (paid) and you are good to go...
I don't think the theme I'm interested in would be considered 'light' as it is basically a website builder..it's called Divi 3.0. Can you tell me if it's "light"?How do I determine if it is

meatface

  • Guest
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #15 on: August 25, 2017, 12:44:39 PM »
Buy your own domain name and use a constructor (SquareSpace/Weebly/Wix).

I'm intrigued by this idea. So who do I buy my own domain name from to do this? One of the 'hosting' sites right? ...(godaddy, hostgator, siteground, etc.) or am I misunderstanding that

Either buy it from GoDaddy or buy it through SquareSpace/Weebly/Wix directly.

beee

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 244
  • Age: 36
  • Location: Edmonton, Canada
    • HoneyMoney.io
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #16 on: August 25, 2017, 12:51:20 PM »
Quote
So who do I buy my own domain name from to do this?

Godaddy can work.

Quote
Unfortunately on Wix, the one I think I like the best, you cannot migrate your site. It isn't coded in that way :/
Which is a pretty big hang up. Unless I really just like them and can continue to use the site their for the next 5, 10+ years.

By "migrate" I meant rework, sorry for confusion. If you're just starting, you don't really know anything about your future website, your audience, your content, your ability to produce that content, your "style" of maintainig your website, etc.

For now, you just need to start, you will want to rework your website in a year or two anyways, no matter how you start now. That's why I think it makes sense to start small, easy and fast, by using a constructor with custom domain name.

Content is the most important thing for any website. The faster you start doing what is important (producing that content and making it public), the faster you can validate your idea of having a website.

You can worry about design, TTFB (time to first byte), speed, etc later. It's not that important when you're just starting out.

toganet

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 239
  • Location: Buffalo, NY
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #17 on: August 25, 2017, 12:55:42 PM »
I second the SiteGround recommendation, as well as the choice of WordPress to build the site.  I will warn you that you must be prepared to keep WP updated, and use a combination of approaches if you want to avoid malware, hacks, and the general annoyances that come with using an open-source platform that powers over 25% of the world's websites.

Disclosure: my company provides managed hosting services for WordPress, and we resell SiteGround.

Magy Lin

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 2
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #18 on: August 28, 2017, 07:02:38 AM »
Never thought about the fact that hosting is very necessary. I should read more about this

narrative

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 53
  • Location: Longmont, CO
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #19 on: August 28, 2017, 12:20:48 PM »
This popped back up today and I re-read through your wants/needs.

The reality is that once you have WordPress setup, you won't have much to do in cpanel or an admin console, but you will spend LOTS of time in the WordPress admin screens where you create your blog content. Those WordPress screens will be the same no matter where you host (store) the site.

I think a managed WordPress hosting setup would be a good place to start. It will allow you to focus on the part you are interested in - creating your content.

I think these would be good options:

(Hosting links are NOT affiliate links. Just links from my own research. The eBates link is my referral link.)

Something like the 1and1 WordPress Basic plan (looks like about $12 the first year)

or the GoDaddy Basic Wordpress plan (looks like about $24 the first year)

Also, GoDaddy has a 9% cash back deal with ebates (that's my affiliate link), so that helps on price a little bit.

Bluehost has WordPress specific plans too, and they include SiteLock but they are more expensive - looks like about $20 a month to start. There is a $10 ebates cash back on bluehost too.

Pictures and video shouldn't be too much of a problem on any of them. Something else to think about - Will you host your video content locally or will you embed it from another site like YouTube?


Bbqmustache

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 221
  • Age: 2019
    • Financial Literacy Conversations
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #20 on: August 29, 2017, 05:37:08 AM »
Any recommendations for a site/hosting solution for a small e-commerce website with Etsy links?  Can WordPress do e-commerce?

toganet

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 239
  • Location: Buffalo, NY
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #21 on: August 29, 2017, 08:21:29 AM »
Any recommendations for a site/hosting solution for a small e-commerce website with Etsy links?  Can WordPress do e-commerce?

Take a look at WordPress + WooCommerce. and the various ways to link it to Etsy.

You may also want to look at Shopify, as an alternative to all of the above.

FrugalFisherman10

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 390
    • Fly Fishing Photo Project
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #22 on: August 30, 2017, 08:55:35 AM »
Something else to think about - Will you host your video content locally or will you embed it from another site like YouTube?

I will likely embed it from another site like youtube or vimeo, as I guess that's what I'm used to seeing,  but I'd be interested in knowing the pros/cons of each. Do you have any more info about that?

narrative

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 53
  • Location: Longmont, CO
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #23 on: September 13, 2017, 04:25:54 PM »
I will likely embed it from another site like youtube or vimeo, as I guess that's what I'm used to seeing,  but I'd be interested in knowing the pros/cons of each. Do you have any more info about that?

No real personal experience with video, but this links covers it pretty well:
http://www.digitalthirdcoast.net/blog/self-hosting-vs-youtube

I have been working on a few screencasts for my blog and addressing the same question. I don't have a solid answer right now as for which is better. I am thinking for simplicity's sake I will probably use youtube.

toganet

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 239
  • Location: Buffalo, NY
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #24 on: September 19, 2017, 07:32:03 AM »
I've done a ton of online and over-the-top (aka "streaming channels") and would be happy to outline the pros and cons for anyone really interested.

BUT, the TL;DR version is: you don't want to host your own video.  Start with YouTube or Vimeo, use their embedded player, and if you start having enough traffic that you outgrow that, you should be monetized well enough to worry about your next step (which still own't be hosting your own video).

HildaCorners

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 44
  • Professional Polymath
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #25 on: November 04, 2017, 09:01:18 AM »
Any recommendations for a site/hosting solution for a small e-commerce website with Etsy links?  Can WordPress do e-commerce?

Take a look at WordPress + WooCommerce. and the various ways to link it to Etsy.

You may also want to look at Shopify, as an alternative to all of the above.

Shopify ... I did a freelance project using them.
Shopify is the way to go if you're selling physical products and are willing to do the fulfillment (packing and shipping) yourself. Not only do you get your e-commerce site, but they help with inventory control, cost management, and shipping — they can even print your mailing/postage labels. Shopify isn't the cheapest host on the block, but they offer excellent value if you need their services.

If you're selling virtual product (downloads) or curating product sold through other vendors, I like Wordpress + WooCommerce. This takes a bit more setup, and a bit more skill, but as I said above, anyone who got a C or better in a computer programming class has the chops. For a free plugin, WooCommerce is very powerful.

FrugalFisherman10

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 390
    • Fly Fishing Photo Project
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #26 on: December 23, 2017, 08:22:24 PM »
Buy your own domain name and use a constructor (SquareSpace/Weebly/Wix).

I'm intrigued by this idea. So who do I buy my own domain name from to do this? One of the 'hosting' sites right? ...(godaddy, hostgator, siteground, etc.) or am I misunderstanding that

Either buy it from GoDaddy or buy it through SquareSpace/Weebly/Wix directly.
Should I include the 'privacy' thing when buying the domain names?

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk


toganet

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 239
  • Location: Buffalo, NY
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #27 on: December 27, 2017, 07:27:05 AM »
Buy your own domain name and use a constructor (SquareSpace/Weebly/Wix).

I'm intrigued by this idea. So who do I buy my own domain name from to do this? One of the 'hosting' sites right? ...(godaddy, hostgator, siteground, etc.) or am I misunderstanding that

Either buy it from GoDaddy or buy it through SquareSpace/Weebly/Wix directly.
Should I include the 'privacy' thing when buying the domain names?

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

I usually say it's not worth it -- but it really depends on your circumstance and personal preference.  If you don't choose it, anyone can use a tool called "whois" to look up (some of) the contact information you provide for the domain.  If that bothers you, or if the topic of your site is something that might be a target for hackers, trolls, or other annoyances, it might be worth the extra few bucks.


FrugalFisherman10

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 390
    • Fly Fishing Photo Project
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #28 on: July 20, 2018, 04:15:54 PM »
So, it's been almost a year since I started this thread, and I've had my site up and running for a about 9 months of that.

I ended up just going with the site I had started building out on Wix, because I had all that work into it. I bought the domain name (flyfishingphotoproject.com if you feel like checking it out :) ) and started getting more content on there. It's a slow process and I don't think I'm getting many visitors yet, although I don't feel like I have many ways to check?

I'm reincarnating the thread because my main question/issue is: my site is S-L-O-W. Atleast it is on the computers and devices I access it from. Go ahead, click the link and tell me if it loads quickly or not for you.

Now I know this is largely due to the 'high quality'/large images (and potentially the links to youtube videos) I have on my website. But, I mean, it's a photography/videography website. Isn't there some way to have both a fast site AND lots of high quality imagery for your visitors?
Do I need a faster host?

What suggestions do you have?

toganet

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 239
  • Location: Buffalo, NY
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #29 on: July 20, 2018, 04:53:30 PM »
Great photography, BTW, I'm glad you're sharing this so let me see if I can help.

I'm not very familiar with Wix, so I don't know if their sitebuilding tools are the culprit, but from a cursory inspection I can see a LOT of content being loaded for what should be a pretty simple photo-centric site.  The way to see this is to activate the "developer tools" in your browser and look at the Sources tab.  The attached screenshot is the homepage loading -- there are over 500 requests needed to load the page, and around 12MB total downloaded before the page finishes loading.  It looks like certain javascript libraries are loading multiple times as well, which I suspect is a side-effect of stuff Wix is doing.

Now that you've got something working you can either work on optimizing it, or take what you've learned and the look & feel you've arrived at and re-do it using something more powerful, or something focused on photography.  It looks like there are photo blogging platforms out there that might be a fit.

FrugalFisherman10

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 390
    • Fly Fishing Photo Project
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #30 on: July 21, 2018, 09:15:23 AM »
Great photography, BTW, I'm glad you're sharing this so let me see if I can help.

I'm not very familiar with Wix, so I don't know if their sitebuilding tools are the culprit, but from a cursory inspection I can see a LOT of content being loaded for what should be a pretty simple photo-centric site.  The way to see this is to activate the "developer tools" in your browser and look at the Sources tab.  The attached screenshot is the homepage loading -- there are over 500 requests needed to load the page, and around 12MB total downloaded before the page finishes loading.  It looks like certain javascript libraries are loading multiple times as well, which I suspect is a side-effect of stuff Wix is doing.

Now that you've got something working you can either work on optimizing it, or take what you've learned and the look & feel you've arrived at and re-do it using something more powerful, or something focused on photography.  It looks like there are photo blogging platforms out there that might be a fit.

Thanks for the info! this is exactly the type of thing I was wanting to look into but didn't know how to get started (i.e. the 'culprit' of the site loading so slowly). I'll reach out to Wix and ask them if they think it can be made faster or if it is just the nature of their website builder/platform.

I'm checking out FotoJournal now because they claim 'high speed for high resolution photos'. I think squarespace and the other website builders would likely behave similarly to Wix, but not sure.

Thanks for the comment on my photography too! I've enjoyed it over the last few years and am now learning some video stuff.. Just posted a new video yesterday actually!

MrSal

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 889
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #31 on: July 22, 2018, 04:19:54 PM »
Frugal,

Your site is awefully slow.

First off... you don't want to host your videos on your server/hosting company! It's a very high intense resource and it's better to use a special service that is optimized for video delivery. Use YouTube or Vimeo to host your videos and then just embed them on your pages! This should cut down the time responsive dramatically.

I am a photographer and I shoot weddings as well... as you can probably guess, good images and high quality is what I am after... however, there is no point to host on your website super high resolution pictures.

Most monitors are 1920x1080 so why deliver 6000x3000 px images if these are just going to be rendered and scaled down by the browser?

The most I use on my websites are 1920x1080 images, and ONLY on images I intend to be viewed on full screen. Everything else I scaled down to proper sizing and I also use optimization software such as short pixel where they compress images up to 80%

It is completely different to have images delivered at 2 MB each vs 100 KB each for example.

Also, one of the things that is bottle necking your website is the social widgets for instagram for example. Those things alone are putting a load of 7 seconds on your website.

Your website is 9MB size and loads in 23 seconds.

My homepage for example is about 750 KB and it loads in under 1 second.

According to stats from Google, you lose 70% of your visitors if your page takes more than 3 seconds to load.

FrugalFisherman10

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 390
    • Fly Fishing Photo Project
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #32 on: July 30, 2018, 08:42:13 AM »
So I reached out to Wix and received the email response below. At this point though, I'm wondering if it would just be a better use of my time/money to have someone else take a look at it and 'fix it for me.' Sure I could start messing around with optimizing all this stuff and learn a lot, but I would likely just find myself going into the depths of research on all these various topics, and not getting anywhere fast.

I would love it if someone could re-work my site for me, based on the recommendations in this thread and in the email below, and then come back to me with a few options like:
"1) In this version, I added a landing page and then separated out your content into a gallery page and a blog page. I also optimized all the pictures to be at the 'efficient frontier' of eye-poppingly good quality, yet practical for most people's real life displays.
2) in this version, I simplified the site to just the video player on the main page, and some gallery content below. The blog is on it's own page.   Either option will be workable for you to update without breaking a bunch of stuff. It will be self service, so you can add and change content within the parameters I've outlined (like, make your image sizes no greater than X.)
3) in this version, I created a skeleton of how I think your website would work if you moved platforms to be wordpress based."


Does anyone have a recommendation of how to get this type of thing accomplished? Do you think this is too much to ask of someone on Fiverr, or similar platforms? Would anyone here be interested in tackling this for me? If so, send me your price.


Email response from Wix:


I’ve noticed that you’ve added multiple features on your homepage that are affecting your site’s loading time.
Please note, there is a always a compromise between site loading time and heavy interactive features.

The following elements on your homepage are influencing your loading time:
Wix Video
Instagram Feed
Blog
Art Store
Wix Chat
 
In case you feel that your homepage loading time is still slow, I would like to recommend that you spread the content over multiple pages (especially, blog) in order to prevent your homepage from loading slowly, as it is the first page your visitors see. In addition, I would recommend adding a landing page. If you want to experiment with arranging your site in different ways, you can duplicate it first.

Also, I have noticed that you have added some heavy images. These large, high quality images can increase in your site's loading time. For example:

Here is a list of all the images on your site. I recommend that you check over them and replace any “heavy” images.
For JPG images, there are tools that can be used to adjust quality, which can result in even smaller files. While we don't provide such tools, there are many freely available online.

I can also see you have used some fancy fonts. These tend to have more css data and take longer to load. Learn more about fonts and loading time here

FrugalFisherman10

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 390
    • Fly Fishing Photo Project
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #33 on: August 05, 2018, 04:36:36 PM »
So I reached out to Wix and received an email response. At this point though, I'm wondering if it would just be a better use of my time/money to have someone else take a look at it and 'fix it for me.' Sure I could start messing around with optimizing all this stuff and learn a lot, but I would likely just find myself going into the depths of research on all these various topics, and not getting anywhere fast.

I would love it if someone could re-work my site for me, based on the recommendations in this thread and in the email below, and then come back to me with a few options.
Does anyone have a recommendation of how to get this type of thing accomplished? Do you think this is too much to ask of someone on Fiverr, or similar platforms? Would anyone here be interested in tackling this for me? If so, send me your price.

bump

toganet

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 239
  • Location: Buffalo, NY
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #34 on: August 05, 2018, 08:19:13 PM »
So I reached out to Wix and received an email response. At this point though, I'm wondering if it would just be a better use of my time/money to have someone else take a look at it and 'fix it for me.' Sure I could start messing around with optimizing all this stuff and learn a lot, but I would likely just find myself going into the depths of research on all these various topics, and not getting anywhere fast.

I would love it if someone could re-work my site for me, based on the recommendations in this thread and in the email below, and then come back to me with a few options.
Does anyone have a recommendation of how to get this type of thing accomplished? Do you think this is too much to ask of someone on Fiverr, or similar platforms? Would anyone here be interested in tackling this for me? If so, send me your price.

bump

You are on the right track with what you are asking for, and I can PM you details (and some contacts) if you like, but be prepared to spend some money if you want good work.  I know from experience on both sides of the transaction that this sort of project is not something you want to source in the bargain bin that is Fiverr et al. 

I would also suggest you ask yourself what you are expecting to get out of the site, and what you are willing to spend to get that.  What's important to you -- having a custom, unique experience around browsing your photographs -- or presenting them in a professional, easy-to-use manner?  Better yet, what is your audience expecting, and how can you deliver that?

FrugalFisherman10

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 390
    • Fly Fishing Photo Project
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #35 on: August 08, 2018, 08:38:01 AM »
So I reached out to Wix and received an email response. At this point though, I'm wondering if it would just be a better use of my time/money to have someone else take a look at it and 'fix it for me.' Sure I could start messing around with optimizing all this stuff and learn a lot, but I would likely just find myself going into the depths of research on all these various topics, and not getting anywhere fast.

I would love it if someone could re-work my site for me, based on the recommendations in this thread and in the email below, and then come back to me with a few options.
Does anyone have a recommendation of how to get this type of thing accomplished? Do you think this is too much to ask of someone on Fiverr, or similar platforms? Would anyone here be interested in tackling this for me? If so, send me your price.

bump

You are on the right track with what you are asking for, and I can PM you details (and some contacts) if you like, but be prepared to spend some money if you want good work.  I know from experience on both sides of the transaction that this sort of project is not something you want to source in the bargain bin that is Fiverr et al. 

I would also suggest you ask yourself what you are expecting to get out of the site, and what you are willing to spend to get that.  What's important to you -- having a custom, unique experience around browsing your photographs -- or presenting them in a professional, easy-to-use manner?  Better yet, what is your audience expecting, and how can you deliver that?
Cool cool - yes please send details and contacts. That would be great

Not that you were necessarily looking for a response, but you asked a good question and I think it's worth me answering that here in writing.

So, here's the 'purpose statement' of my site:
Functionally, I'm looking to present my photographs in a professional, easy-to-use manner, alongside some blog/storytelling-style writing. Additionally, as my work extends into creating video content, not just still images, I'd like the ability to present my latest video on the page as well, to be viewed via youtube or vimeo, as I anticipate my "video audience" (if any) growing more through those video-centric platforms themselves.

What does my audience expect?: Not that I have much of an audience yet, but as part of the 'audience' of other adventure/travel photographers/videographers/writers (see 'theflyfishjournal' as reference), I would just want a quick and responsive site to explore the creator's high quality content. If I want to watch their videos, I'd like to be able to do so via their site or via youtube/vimeo. I also think some sort of interaction between creators and audience is critical to creating a sense of belonging and a sense of vested interest that creates loyalty...this could be accomplished through purchases (audience wants to buy some prints/books or a shirt or a hat to 'rep' the magazine or brand they like), or through interactions via social media, etc.

CubicleWarrior

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 18
    • SixSigmaStudyGuide.com
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #36 on: September 06, 2018, 12:57:53 PM »
I've been here, sorta. When my site crossed the 1M visitors / year mark everything started slowing down. You do have to battle through. Here's the checklist I wish I followed:

1) Find 5 websites that you like that are reasonable approximations of what you want your site to be.

2) Figure out what they do. You can do this by looking at source code and looking at whois.org, or you can just post the sites here an someone can tell you. You can also network with them. Email them, create relationships, tell them you love what they do and ask how (roughly) they built it.

3) Make a plan to incrementally build your site to their levels. New websites look like ... new websites. Same as everything else.

Happy to help walk through if needed.


kidmont

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 14
Re: Hosting Recommendations - any web developers out there?
« Reply #37 on: September 18, 2018, 01:36:16 AM »
Yes, I am a web developer as well. As a new site owner, I don't recommend to buy heavy plan hosting. It will increase only your hosting cost. As a newbie, you can buy 1 year hosting and free domain only at $12.
If your visitor increase then you can move for a higher hosting plan.

 

Wow, a phone plan for fifteen bucks!