Guides for small business websites.

About the HostDingo blog

The HostDingo blog is where we answer the questions small business owners ask us every week: how to choose a domain name, why hosting prices change at renewal, how to move a website without downtime, and how to keep WordPress fast and safe.

Every guide is written in plain English by the people who answer HostDingo support tickets, so it comes from real problems we fix for real customers. No jargon, no filler, and no pretending one plan suits everyone.

What you will find here

• Hosting guides: prices, renewals, speed and choosing the right plan for your business.
• Moving host: step-by-step help to switch without losing email or going offline.
• Domains and email: picking a name, transferring a .co.uk and setting up email on your own domain.
• WordPress: updates, backups, plugins and security for busy owners.

How we keep the HostDingo blog accurate

We check prices and facts against the original source before we publish, show the date we checked, and update guides when things change. Where an official guide exists, such as the WordPress documentation, we link to it so you can read more.

Can’t find what you need? Ask us. We aim to reply within four hours, Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm, and it’s always a real person. Your question might become the next guide on the HostDingo blog.

New to websites? The basics in one minute

• Web hosting is the computer that stores your website and sends it to visitors. Good hosting is fast, backed up every day and looked after for you.
• A domain name is your address online, like yourbusiness.co.uk. You rent it by the year, and it is worth checking the renewal price before you buy.
• Business email lets you use you@yourbusiness.co.uk instead of a free webmail address, which looks more trustworthy to customers.
• An SSL certificate puts the padlock in the address bar and keeps forms and payments private. It should be free and renew itself.
• Backups are copies of your site you can go back to if something breaks. Look for daily backups you can restore yourself.

Five things to look for in a UK web host

Many of the questions on the HostDingo blog come back to choosing a host. If you only remember one list, make it this one:

1. A clear renewal price. Know what you will pay in year two, not just the first month.
2. UK data centres. Servers close to your customers make pages load faster for them.
3. Daily backups you can restore. Mistakes happen, and a backup turns a disaster into a five-minute fix.
4. Help from real people. Check when support is open and how quickly someone replies.
5. Free help moving. A good host will move your website and email for you, with no downtime.

Popular guides to start with

• Choosing a domain name: .co.uk, .uk or .com?
• Why hosting renewal prices jump, and how to check before you buy
• How to move your WordPress site to a new host without downtime

Questions about the HostDingo blog

Do I need to be a HostDingo customer to use the guides?

No. The guides work wherever your website is hosted. Where something is specific to HostDingo, we say so.

Can I suggest a topic?

Yes, please do. Send us your question through the contact page. If it helps other small businesses too, we will write it up and let you know when it is live.

How often do you publish new guides?

We add new guides as customers ask new questions, and we review older ones regularly so prices and steps stay correct.