What is SEO Hosting?
I don’t know about you but when I first heard the term SEO hosting I
had no idea what it meant. To me SEO means search engine
optimization so what has that to do with hosting?
After a little research I determined that SEO hosting boils down to a
multiple IP hosting solution. Anyone familiar with SEO understands the
importance of having your sites look as though they are coming from
different locations. This makes it look more natural to the search
engines. If one IP address has hundreds of domain names pointing to
it, this can devalue the domains in the eyes of the search engines.
With IP addresses there are different classes that you can purchase.
So this is not an area to jump into blindly. Do some research on the
various classes and see which ones are best suited to your needs.
Here is a quick explanation of the different classes:
Your IP address is made up of 4 different areas and looks something
like this: 61.43.547.98
Now label each section A, B, C, D these are your classes.
Servers can often have the same numbers in them especially in the
Class C area. If you have too many of these it looks suspicious to the
search engines.
The SEO hosting company will sell you IP addresses
with different Class C numbers.
Most hosting companies offer Class C and Class B IP addresses in
their packages. This method will cost you more money but might be
worthwhile if you have a large number of websites.
One important thing to remember is that Google or any other search
engine can still track you by your contact info. So, you if decide to go
to the expense of using SEO hosting use different contact info on
your domain names.
A good SEO hosting company will have the ability to host your
domains across multiple IP addresses and across multiple locations.
When selecting a company use one that offers plenty of class
options on each account. This way if you add more domains you
won’t have to pay for additional IP addresses.
Remember that SEO hosting is more expensive but for serious internet
marketers with multiple domains it can be a wonderful and
profitable solution. Because you are hosting numerous sites with
them make sure they have high speed bandwidth levels and use
modern equipment.
Your Pop3 Server Explained
Technology is a wonderful thing but it can also be downright
confusing. This is very true when it comes to hosting websites and
setting up your own email accounts.
Once such term that is often confused is a Pop3 Server, just what
does this mean?
Well Pop simply stands for Post Office Protocol. This is an application
which is used by email clients to retrieve their mail. The number 3
stands for the version number. Pop3 is the current model which is
used by services like Gmail, Hotmail and Yahoo mail.
If you have Outlook or Outlook Express on your computer this will also
use the Pop3 server protocol. The Pop3 server collects your mail from
a remote location by listening in on a port and collects the mail at a
pre-set interval. The port used is a well-known one Port 110. You can
force the Pop3 server to check for mail or set it to check every 15
minutes or more.
To make the Pop3 server work you will need a username and
password. The protocol, which can be compared to a simple
program, uses certain commands to instruct the Pop3 on what to do.
The commands that the Pop3 Server understands are:
- USER – Enter your user name
- PASS – Enter your password
- QUIT – Quit the Pop3 server
- LIST – List the messages and their sizes
- RETR – retrieve messages
- DELE – delete messages
- TOP – show the top number of lines
Your email service instructs the Pop3 server on what to do and you
end up with mail in your inbox. Most servers will delete messages
from the originating server unless you have instructed them not to.
A Pop3 server removes the emails to your computer. If you lose them
from your hard drive they cannot be retrieved. Another thing to
remember is that you cannot download via Pop3 to your mobile
device and computer. So, if you want to check your mail while away
from home you may need to use a different service.
An IMAP server which is what Yahoo mail and Gmail use allows your
email to stay on the main server. IMAP stands for Internet Mail Access
Protocol. While this is a great option it does mean that you can only
access your mail while connected to the internet. A Pop3 Server
allows you to read mail while not online.
You probably use a combination of both types of mail protocols
depending on where you are. This is one benefit of technology that
has made our lives that much easier.
Where to Find Cheap Hosting
Everyone today wants to save money and this includes trying to find
cheap hosting for your website. Paid hosting is a great way to go
and if you can save money on hosting fees then why not?
To save money on hosting you can look for a hosting company that
offers a free trial for 30 days. This allows you to install your website
and test out the features and functions that they offer.
If you go this route then make sure you test out their customer service
department. See how long it takes for a support ticket or question to
be answered. Can you call them or do they have an online support?
chat system?
During this time look into the features that your hosting company
offers. Do they allow you to install a shopping cart or PHP scripts? Try
to think ahead about what features you may require in the future
and see if they cater to them.
Another way to find cheap hosting is to look for specials from hosting
service providers. Many times, you can find a coupon code that can
save you a lot of money on hosting services.
You can also reduce your hosting costs by pre-paying in advance.
Normally the more months or years that you pay for the cheaper
your hosting becomes.
For example, at HostGator if you commit to a 3 year plan your costs
will work out to just $3.96 per month. This gives you unlimited disk
space, bandwidth and a shared SSL secure server.
You do need to be careful when looking for cheap hosting. The
saying you get what you pay for is very true. Some hosting services
may offer cheap, cheap prices but there is normally some downfall
to this somewhere. They may not have a very good support system. If
you encounter problems you will have to try and fix them yourself.
This has the potential of having your website offline for hours if not
days.
The best method for cheap hosting would be to look for coupons to
use.
If you can possibly afford to pay months in advance this is
another very good option.
By doing your homework you can
compare various hosting providers and narrow down your choices.
Plus, don’t forget to ask fellow online marketers or businesses what
hosting company, they recommend. Word of mouth referrals are very
powerful!
