Hosting included: what a done-for-you website takes care of
Hosting, security, backups and updates are the work your visitors never see. Here is what a done-for-you website takes care of, and what stays with you.
When a studio builds your website for you, you are not only buying a design. You are also handing over a list of technical jobs that keep the site online: hosting, security, backups and updates. This lesson explains what a done-for-you website takes care of, what stays with you, which questions to ask any studio before you sign, and what is included with a Good Sites Only site.
What done-for-you means
A done-for-you website is one that a studio designs, writes, builds and launches for you. You describe your business, you approve what you see and the studio does the work in between. The opposite is a do-it-yourself site, made with a website builder or a template, where you make every decision and do every task.
It is also different from hiring someone for a single job. A done-for-you studio takes responsibility for the whole result, and that includes the technical side that your visitors never see but would notice immediately if it failed.
Owners usually choose this route for three reasons. It saves their time, the result looks professional from the first day, and there is one team to call instead of five companies to chase: a designer, a copywriter, a host, a security tool and a developer.
The technical jobs behind a website
Earlier lessons in this series showed the pieces one by one. Here is how each one looks when someone else takes care of it.
Hosting
Your site needs a server that is always on, as the lessons on hosting explained. In a done-for-you site, the studio arranges the hosting, and you do not compare plans or manage a server. Hosting is included with every Good Sites Only site.
Security
A site has to be protected from attacks: a secure connection, protection for the login, a firewall and scans for problems. With a DIY site, those are your tasks. With us, security is covered by the Care maintenance plan, a monthly service you can add.
Backups
A backup is a copy of your site that can be restored when something goes wrong. Backups are also covered by the Care maintenance plan, so a mistake or an attack does not have to mean starting over.
Updates
Software ages. Themes, plugins and the platform itself need updates to stay compatible and safe. Updates are a regular chore, easy to forget, and the Care maintenance plan covers them too.
Content changes
Your business changes: new services, new hours, new photos. Someone has to make those edits. Before you sign with any studio, ask who changes the content, how you request a change and how long it usually takes.
What a Good Sites Only site includes
We are a US studio that designs and builds custom websites for small businesses, and each site is online in 7 days. Sites come in three sizes, according to how many pages you need.
- Basic: up to 15 pages.
- Pro: 15 to 30 pages.
- Large: more than 30 pages.
Every site includes the following:
- Hosting. Your site is hosted for you.
- A design made for your industry. It is custom, not a template that fits any business.
- Texts written for you. You do not have to write your pages from scratch.
- A mobile version. The site works on phones as well as on computers.
- SEO setup. The search engine basics are set up for you.
- Contact forms. Visitors can write to you from the site.
You can add monthly services when you need them:
- Care maintenance, the ongoing work of keeping your site updated, secure and backed up.
- Google Business management.
- Email marketing.
- A chat assistant, available 24 hours a day.
- Review requests.
- A landing page of the month.
Hosting is included with every site, and the Care maintenance plan covers security, backups and updates. That is the heart of the done-for-you idea: the technical work does not land on your desk.
What stays with you
A studio can take care of the technology, and some decisions and accounts still belong to you and your business.
- Your domain. It should be registered in your name, in an account you can log in to. The lessons on domains explain why.
- Your business email. The mailboxes are yours, and so are the passwords.
- Your information. Your services, your hours, your photos and your approval of what goes live.
- Your customers. Answering the people who write to you, and asking for reviews.
- A list of your accounts. Keep a short list of every account, such as domain, hosting, email, analytics and social media, and who holds each login.
Studio, freelancer or website builder
There are three common ways to get a site, and each one shifts the technical work to a different place.
- A website builder. You make every decision and do every task. Hosting is usually included in the monthly price, and you depend on that platform for the design, the tools and the way out.
- A freelancer. One person designs and builds, often with a lot of flexibility. Ask what happens when that person is busy, sick or gone, because you may be the only backup for hosting, updates and security.
- A studio. A team handles design, writing, building and the technical side. You trade some control over every detail for a finished site and a team that answers for it.
None of these is wrong. The point is to know, before you start, who will look after hosting, security, backups and updates, and to have the answer in writing.
Signs a studio takes the technical side seriously
- It tells you who holds the domain and the hosting account, before you ask.
- It explains where backups are kept and what a restore involves.
- It says what is included and what is a separate service, in plain words.
- It can describe who updates the software and how often.
- It gives you the terms in writing, including what happens if you leave.
If the answers are vague, or if they change when you ask a second time, treat that as information about the studio.
Questions to ask any studio before you sign
These questions apply to every studio, ours included. Get the answers in writing.
- Who is the registrant of my domain, and whose account is it in?
- Whose name is on the hosting account?
- What is included in the price, and what is a monthly service?
- Who updates the software, and how often?
- Where are backups kept, how often are they made and how long do you keep them?
- What happens if the site goes down, and who do I contact?
- How do I request a change to my texts or my photos?
- Can I get a copy of my site, my texts and my photos?
- What happens to my site if I stop paying or end the service?
- Is there a mobile version, and will I see it before launch?
- Which extra services are available, and how are they billed?
- Is there anything I would have to pay for later that is not in the first quote?
Your launch-day checklist
Whoever builds your site, check these things when it goes live.
- Your domain opens the new site, with and without www.
- The address starts with https and the browser shows no warning.
- Every page looks right on a phone and on a computer.
- Your contact forms deliver messages to an address you read.
- Your business email works, and your signature shows the new website.
- Your Google Business Profile and social profiles link to the new site.
- You know where the backups are, and who is responsible for them.
- You have a written list of accounts and logins.
Done-for-you or do-it-yourself
Both are reasonable choices, and the right one depends on you. Ask yourself three questions.
- Do I have the time? Writing pages, choosing a design, setting up hosting and keeping it all safe adds up to many hours, and then the work repeats every month.
- Do I want to learn this? Some owners enjoy it. Many would rather spend that time with customers.
- What is the cost of a mistake? A site that is down, hacked or poorly found loses business. A professional job lowers that risk.
If you decide to do it yourself, the lessons in this series give you the checklist. If you decide to hand it over, you now know which questions to ask.
How this series fits together
The lessons in this series follow the order in which the pieces appear when a site goes online.
- The domain is the address, and it should be registered in your name.
- The ending, the registrar and the price are decisions you make once and renew every year.
- Hosting keeps the site online, and the right type of plan depends on what the site does.
- https protects the connection, and its renewal has to be automatic.
- Email on your own domain makes you look like the business you are.
- Backups and security keep one bad day from becoming a disaster.
With a done-for-you site, the studio carries much of that technical weight. You still need to understand it, because you are the owner, and you decide whom you trust with it.
Your next step
If you want a site that is online in 7 days, with hosting included and the technical work taken care of, you can start your site. The next series in Start From Zero is about planning your website: what it needs, what it costs and who should build it.
Questions people ask
What does a done-for-you website include?
It includes the design, the texts, the build and the launch, and it should also cover the technical side: hosting, security, backups and updates. With Good Sites Only, each site includes hosting, a design for your industry, texts written for you, a mobile version, SEO setup and contact forms.
Is hosting included when a company builds my website?
It depends on the company, so ask. With Good Sites Only, hosting is included with every site.
Who owns the website when a studio builds it?
It depends on the agreement, so ask for the terms in writing before you pay. Your domain should be registered in your name, and you should know what happens to your site, your texts and your photos if you stop working with the studio. Ask us the same questions when you start your site.
What is website maintenance, and what does it include?
Maintenance is the ongoing work that keeps a site healthy: updates, security and backups. With Good Sites Only, it is the Care maintenance plan, a monthly service you can add, which covers backups, updates, security and up to 2 hours of small changes a month.
Do I need a maintenance plan?
A site needs that work either way. The question is who does it: you, a studio or your host. A plan makes sense when you would rather not do it yourself, or when no one on your team can.
What happens if my website goes down?
Someone has to find the cause, which may be the host, an expired domain or a problem with the site, and fix it. Before you sign, ask who you would contact and how they respond.
Can I move my website to another host later?
Often yes, but it depends on how the site was built and on the agreement. Ask the studio how a move works, and keep your own copy of your texts, photos and logins.
How long does it take to build a website?
Each Good Sites Only site is online in 7 days. Other studios and builders vary a lot, so ask for a clear date before you start.
How many pages can my website have?
With Good Sites Only, a Basic site has up to 15 pages, a Pro site 15 to 30 pages and a Large site more than 30 pages.
What should I ask before hiring a web designer?
Ask who owns the domain and the hosting account, what is included, who handles updates, security and backups, what happens if the site goes down and how you can leave. The list in this lesson gives you twelve questions to start with.
Want a website that does all of this? Start your site