Since launching my first website in 2006 I’ve been with 1and1.com (affiliate link).  I’ve loved their customer service (not that I’ve needed it much) and have just never had any major issues with them.

But lately I’ve been referring my clients to Bluehost (affiliate link) even though I’m still with 1and1.  If you’re jumping into your first website I’ll try to lay out a few things you should be aware of when signing up for a hosting service.

Domain Price

First of all, it’s very helpful to purchase your domains directly through whichever service hosts your site for you.  As of this writing, the purchase price for domains is about $10 at Bluehost and GoDaddy (affiliate link) while they’re a couple bucks cheaper at 1and1.

Dog Years

The important part here though is usability.  I’ve loved 1and1 for years as I’ve mentioned.  But a few years in the online world is like dog years.  Your teenager is really a senior citizen because technology grows and evolves at a rapid rate.  So my advice today is different than what I did years ago.

The Best Web Hosting

The Lukas Coaching website is custom designed and I manage it through a software program called Dreamweaver.  Years ago that was a great option, especially for someone familiar with website design and layout.  Today, WordPress is the best fit for most of the clients I work with, from the beginning solo-preneur, all the way up to the blog for a multi-million dollar company.

WordPress makes it easy to design and manage your website, even if it’s new to you.  The 5-minute installation is what they’ve become famous for.

1and1 however, does not make it easy.  Almost everything, including software updates, should be be easy with one-click.  But to make that work I had to add this line of code to my .htaccessfile:

AddType x-mapp-php5 .php

That’s not something you’re likely to discover on your own unless you’re familiar with HTML and PHP code.  It was fairly difficult for me to make it work.

Bluehost Makes it Easy

With Bluehost, it’s one click across the board.  You don’t have to add any code to make it work…it just does.  If it wasn’t so much work to port over eight individual websites, I’d probably join you there.

Learn from me though.  If you’re just starting out, Bluehost is a great place to be.

Do you have any suggestions or lessons we can learn from?

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038 Coach Radio – How to Create Business

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Derek Sisterhen, host of Past Due Radio, joins me on the show today.  He’s also the Lead Financial Coach at Lukas Coaching.

Avoid working with the wrong clients.

Derek shared a story about a client who paid and then could not be reached.  It was an interesting situation that Derek had to tiptoe through.

I referenced Derek’s Dark Side of Dave Ramsey’s Baby Steps video.

Tip: print on both sides of your business card.

Working on your business tip: You can’t bill for 40 hours per week.

Derek talks about his group coaching; how he sets it up, markets it, fills it, charges for it, etc.

Top Three Reasons to Love Group Coaching

1. Accountability, encouragement, and ideas from group members
2. Saves the group leader time by working with more than one person at a time
3. It’s less of an investment for clients

Chapter covered from Become a Coach – How I Charge Clients, Especially Those who Think They’re Broke (For Financial Coaches)?

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Chris Brogan got me thinking about stories.  I love hearing other people’s stories.  They’re fascinating to me.  I haven’t yet met anyone who doesn’t have an interesting story to tell.

Stories are how you got to where you are. Mine involved flying around the country as an airline captain before starting my business.  It was getting mad enough about a few things and channeling that anger to help some people.

I’m learning to better tell my story.  It’s who I am and I think I can use it to help others.

What’s your story?  How can you use it to help others? Can you turn it into a business that supports you and your family?

(Photo credit: v.max1978)