Reading cheap web hosting reviews might seem like a good idea and they can help you with your decision, but you need to understand what you will run into. Most review sites and even many customer reviews are simply not honest. There are some games played between these sites and the top hosting companies that is all considered marketing.
I am about to reveal some things to you that you may not be aware of. I don’t want to turn your world upside down, as you search for hosting, but I believe you should know the truth. Other sites won’t tell you this because they think that by revealing these secrets, their sites won’t look as good and they won’t be able to make as much money.
The Secrets of Hosting Reviews for Cheap Providers
1. Money Accepted for Top Spots
If you have read any of my other posts, you may already know that some review sites accept cash payments or a percentage of company profits for the top spot on their list. This, to me, is unethical, but they consider it good marketing. I look at it this way; they already pay a commission for every sale generated, so why not honestly review every single company on the list?
I don’t have a problem with the commissions paid because that is the entire incentive to put up a cheap web hosting review site. If there weren’t some type of income there, nobody would do it. In addition, it doesn’t cost the customer anything extra and sometimes review sites get special discounts to offer their visitors.
2. Owned by Hosting Companies
Another secret of the hosting industry is that some of the review sites are owned by one of the hosting companies. This is a tactic that has been used for a very long time and they will start a review site, list themselves as the best, of course and list a few competitors that really don’t offer a good product. This is how they drive up their own sales, and really, it’s pretty smart. However, it misleads the consumer.
3. Moderated Customer Reviews
I understand why you have to moderate customer reviews. Sometimes people say vulgar things you cannot allow onto your website, but some sites take this a few steps further. When a real customer posts a negative review of a company at the top of their list, it will never end up on the site. They want the top company to look like its perfect, so they don’t allow any negative reviews.
This causes you, the consumer, to get only one side of the story. EVERY hosting company has someone out there they couldn’t please and someone has posted, or at least tried to post, a negative review of them. This is normal, as businesses cannot please everybody and sometimes they do make mistakes.
4. Bought and Fake Customer Reviews
I worked for a site for nearly 6 months that used this tactic. They would pay people to create and place fake reviews, either positive or negative, on their site about the hosting companies they listed. This is just downright lying and it shouldn’t be used as a way to convince someone to either choose the hosting or not.
What is the Truth About Cheap Web Hosting Reviews?
The truth is, you will struggle to find real reviews. It’s hard to sift through all the super positive reviews and the negative ones to find real customer reviews. However, as I promised from the beginning, I will always give you my honest opinion about each company I review. The reason I only feature a top 5 instead of a top ten, most of the companies are nearly the same.
Did you know that half or more of the “so-called” hosting companies out there are just reselling hosting from one of the top choices that offers reseller hosting. HostGator offers reseller hosting and many smaller companies use them or another one as their way of selling hosting. The top five companies I feature are actual hosting companies and you will work directly with them when you get hosting from one of them.
The truth about cheap web hosting reviews is simple, you can’t trust them. You have to look at the features yourself, compare a few companies and choose one that can provide you with the tools you need for success. One of the reasons I put iPage website hosting at the top of my list, honestly. They are very much a, what you see is what you get; company and they don’t beat around the bush.
You can read the iPage review, here, and find out my full opinion about this cheap web hosting company.
