One thing I hate about most Domain Name registrars and Web Hosting companies is that the auto renewal options is turned on by default unless you have turned it off manually. And hence the first thing I do whenever I register a domain name or a web hosting is set the “Auto Renewal” to off.

Recently I changed my mind and I chose to auto renew all the *important* domain names. Why? Because as Go Daddy says “Activate Auto Renew and never worry about expiration dates again”.

If you choose not to renew the domains automatically then you need to renew them manually. And if you don’t renew the domain name after its expiration then you may even incur a $80 fee if it’s done after the grace period which is 12 days (for Go Daddy).

Now, Why Did I Change My Mind?

The primary reason for choosing manual renewal is that I thought we won’t get a chance to review the automatic renewal before it happens. So I asked the GoDaddy customer support for a confirmation as I never noticed the following part in their Domain Manager.

“Auto Renew will send you email reminders prior to your domain’s expiration date so you can verify and/or update your billing information. We will then attempt to automatically renew your domain name on its expiration date, using your payment method on file.”

And here’s the response from their customer support team:

Thank you for contacting Online Support. If you set your products to automatically renew you will still receive renewal notifications alerting you when the products will automatically renew. The products will automatically renew on their expiration date, therefore you can manually renew them before this time.

So as they say we’ll STILL get renewal notifications when our domain names are about to expire and they will be auto renewed only on their expiration date and not before 30 – 60 days like most web hosting companies do.

It means that we can STILL apply coupons and renew the products manually. Just make sure that you do it before they do. If they auto renews then it’s most likely that it happens at the regular rate which could be $15+ for a .COM domain name when it’s only $8.67 if you use the Go Daddy coupon code CJC795DOM. If you’re not sure about how to change the automatic renewal option for your domain names at GoDaddy then you can refer this page (eNom customers, refer this page).

You can do the same for your web hosting too if you plan to stay with your existing web hosting company for a long time. I’m using HostGator Reseller Web Hosting and I chose to auto renew it as my account is almost 6 years old and I don’t plan to switch to another host anytime soon.

In case your domain name was auto renewed and you didn’t want it to, then you can ask for a refund. A member at Warrior Forum thread confirms that he managed to get the refund from GoDaddy when his domain name was auto renewed. He says if we call or e-mail the support team quickly then they issue a full refund.

Image Credit: Free Digital Photos

Here’s Why You Should Auto Renew Your Domain Names (And Maybe Web Hosting Too) is a post by Minterest

Before I start, let me remind you something. I’m NOT going to promote iPage, FatCow, PowWeb, iPower or a StartLogic by writing what is written on their website. I just want to point out some facts and something which you need to know about those web hosting companies.

So, I just want to give you an unbiased review, some unknown facts and a simple hack to get an Unlimited Web Hosting Plan + Free Domain Name for just $30 – $39 when compared to the promotional price of $42 – $60 (for a 12-month term plan).

If you’re into web hosting and if someone were to ask you to name top 10 web hosting companies then I’m pretty sure that you’ll mention some of the following names – BlueHost, HostGator, iPage, FatCow, JustHost, EasyCGI, Dotster, Dot5Hosting, HostMonster, iPower, and PowWeb.

What You Need To Know: iPage, FatCow, PowWeb, iPower & StartLogic

Just one thing! They’re all different brands of the same web hosting company! All the above brands (and so many others) belong to the same group Endurance International Group, Inc. (EIG), formerly BizLand.

EIG is perhaps the world’s largest web hosting company as they manage over 3 million customers & 10 million domain names and they own the proprietary vDeck  Web Hosting Control Panel. Of course, almost all of the above web hosting companies were independent but EIG acquired all of them and now they have over 40 different web hosting brands. (Check out Endurance International Group  [Wiki])

Out of the above mentioned brands I guess HostGator, BlueHost, iPage, JustHost and FatCow are the most popular. Now, why do they have so much brands? Well, I guess it’s most probably because they want to dominate the whole web hosting industry by acquiring each and every hosting brand on the Internet (their latest big acquisition is HostGator).

What’s The Difference – iPage, FatCow, PowWeb, iPower & StartLogic

Well, I have already created a comprehensive Web Hosting Comparison Chart of around Top 25+ Web Hosting Companies. So, if you compare iPage, FatCow, PowWeb, iPower, and StartLogic then you’ll see that they’re all just the same with exactly the same web hosting platform, control panel, hosting features, add-ons, freebies and share the same data center. And, all of those hosting companies (brands I would say) offer Unlimited Disk Space, Bandwidth, Websites, E-mail accounts, and a Free Domain Name. So, what’s the difference then? Well, it’s just the brand and only the brand! The EIG group branded the same service under different brands to get more exposure and customers too. And yeah, they may have succeeded!

What Control Panel & Which Platform

As I said earlier all the five hosting companies have Unix/Linux servers and the proprietary vDeck Control Panel by EIG. vDeck is a simple control panel with an easy-to-use interface and one-click application installations (just like Fantastico for cPanel). But that said, cPanel still remains my favorite control panel.

Anytime Money Back Guarantee: Busted!

All the 5 hosting companies (iPage, FatCow, PowWeb, iPower, & StartLogic) offer a 30-day money back guarantee period. If you cancel the web hosting account within this period then you’ll get 100% money back after which you’re not entitled for a full refund as they will deduct an early cancellation fees of $35 (doesn’t matter if it’s 12-month, 24-month or even a 36-month term plan) and refund the unused hosting amount to your credit card. Also, the money-back guarantee is valid for credit-card payments only but they do accept PayPal payments too.

There’s NO such thing as “Anytime Money-back Guarantee”. iPage advertises by offering Anytime Money-Back Guarantee. But it’s still a 30-day money back guarantee as they issue the refund for the remainder of your current payment term unless you cancel the hosting account during the first 30 days.

Note: If you registered a domain name as well with the above hosting plans then there is a non-refundable $15 domain fee.

What Customer Support

• Instant Account Activation
• 24×7 Toll-Free Technical Support
• 24×7 Live Chat Support
• 24×7 E-mail Support
• @iPage Offers Limited Support via Twitter

Tip: Use Skype To Call Toll-Free Numbers In The U.S. For Free

Freebies: What Extras?

• Google AdWords $100 Credit
• Yahoo!/Bing $25 Credits
• Facebook Ads $50 Credit
• Free YellowPages.com Listing
• Free Toll-Free Phone Number (US Only)
• HubSpot’s Website Grader (for FatCow only)
• 1 year Carbonite Online Backup (for iPower only)

Black Hat Hint: Once you completed registration contact their live support and tell them that you want to cancel your web hosting plan. They’ll offer you even more freebies that includes Free Domain Privacy (worth $10), Free Premium Support, Free Directory Listing for Life, Free Site Backups and Restore for 1 year, etc. ;)

The iPage, FatCow, PowWeb, iPower & StartLogic Web Hosting Comparison Chart

Coupon Codes & Promotional Offers

None of the above web hosting companies support coupon codes or promo codes but they DO have special offers and promotions all the time. So, you can save up to 60% for the first hosting bill. If you don’t see any promotion then you can check again after few days as these companies offer special discounts every week apart from their regular 1st year special price.

The Promotional Price Comparison (1st Hosting Bill)

Almost all web hosting companies offer massive discounts by way of promotions and coupon codes. iPage, FatCow, PowWeb, iPower, & StartLogic offer promotional price for your first hosting bill and it can save up to 60% of your first hosting bill.

Get Unlimited Web Hosting + Domain Name For Just $30

You can take advantage of these web hosting companies’ ‘EXIT PAGE’ offer by using a simple hack.  How? Just visit any of the above web hosting companies and proceed with sign up (by entering the domain name to register or transfer) and then try to EXIT the website from the checkout page. Voila! You’ll get the following special offers (as a pop-up window).

(Disclosure: The following special offers are NOT affiliate offers and I’m not compensated for promoting the same in anyway unless you decided to buy me a beer by signing up for a regular plan as my referral!)

FatCow Final Offer – Pop-up

PowWeb Final Offer – Pop-up

iPower Final Offer – Pop-up

StartLogic Final Offer – Pop-up

But Why It Makes Sense To Sign Up For Multi-year Plans

As you can see, the special exit page pop-up offers you a Free Domain Name + Unlimited Web Hosting for just $30 (for the first year only). So, you can save up to 70% of the first hosting bill but renewals still cost $107.88, $191.76 and $251.64 for the 12-month, 24-month and 36-month term plan respectively.

But if you sign up for multi-year plans when you first sign up then you’re effectively paying only $35.40 per year (assuming that you signed up for 36-month iPage plan). Note: The free domain is applicable for the 12-month term plan only and not for multi-year plans. They offer a lifetime free domain only for regular renewals. So, it’s a better idea to register your domain name from GoDaddy. [Tip: Use GoDaddy Coupon “CJC495WD2” to register the domain name for $4.95]

Renewal Price Comparison (Regular Prices)

As you probably know the promotional prices of all web hosting companies is for the first hosting bill only and is for the new customers. All the web hosting plans are renewed at the regular rate and offer a free domain name for lifetime (except for the 1-month term plan by iPower).

Wait, Do You Want To Buy Me A Beer?

If you want to buy me a beer then you can sign up as my referral and still get their regular promotional prices (not the ‘exit page’ offer). Okay, but why would anyone sign up as my referral when he/she can sign up using those special offers? Well, I offer limited e-mail support – for all those who sign up as my referral which I believe is priceless. For example, you can contact me for a comprehensive keyword research or a competitive analysis or request a free setup of your WordPress blog with all the essential plugins. So, feel free to contact me if you’re interested before signing up so that I can push a plan tailored for you! Or else sign up directly or using the ‘EXIT PAGE’ offer.

Final Verdict: Who Should & Shouldn’t Sign Up

So now you know, all the above hosting companies are virtually the same, right? But who should sign up and why? Okay, I would recommend iPage Hosting as they’re the cheapest and most feature rich among the five brands. And, you get a free domain name for lifetime as long as you renew your plan. (Tip: That saves $8 – $15 annually)

Warning: All the 5 hosts don’t offer dedicated hosting. It means that if your website is overloaded due to a huge spike in traffic then they may suspend your account as there’s no option to upgrade to a better plan (dedicated).

That said, iPage’s first year promotion is something which no one wants to miss and is an excellent choice for all the newbies who are getting started as they don’t need huge resources. So, the possibility for an upgradation can be ruled out.

Image Credit: Christer Edvartsen, Free Digital Photos

iPage, FatCow, PowWeb, iPower & StartLogic: An Unbiased Review is a post by Minterest

Get A Free WordPress Blog Today!

Want to start a blog? I offer a complete WordPress Blog with your own Domain Name, WordPress Web Hosting, WordPress Installation, Setup and Premium Themes. – It’s all for FREE! Why WordPress? It’s super easy to manage a WordPress blog and absolutely no coding skills are required.

How It Works?

Just sign up for a Domain Name and Web Hosting Plan (as my referral). Once you’re done I’ll install and setup your Free WordPress Blog with a  Premium Theme. And, guess what? You get 100% Cashback on your Web Hosting Plan when the money-back guarantee period is over. That’s right! So you get a complete WordPress Blog with a Domain Name, Blog Hosting, Installation, Setup and a Premium Theme. – All for FREE!

What’s Included?

Free Domain Name & WordPress Web Hosting (Valued $50)

Free WordPress Installation & Blog Setup

Free Premium WordPress Themes (Worth $70)

Over 10 Best WordPress Plugins To Customize Your Blog

Free Pay Per Click Advertising Credits (Worth $250)

Learn more about Free WordPress Blog Or Get Started, It’s FREE!

Free WordPress Blog Installation, Setup And Customization Service is a post by Minterest

HostGator is a world leading provider of shared, reseller and dedicated web hosting and is one of the top 10 web hosting companies in the world with more than 5,000,000 hosted domains. All the HostGator shared hosting plans offer Unlimited Disk Space and Unlimited Bandwidth.

HostGator Coupon Code 2012

How To Apply The Coupon Code?

Visit the official HostGator Website here and click "Web Hosting" or the "VIEW WEB HOSTING PLANS" button. Choose your preferred web hosting plan and click "ORDER NOW".

Now enter the domain name to be registered or use your existing domain name (if you already have one). Enter the coupon code and click "CONTINUE TO STEP 2".

Enter your Billing Information and click “CREATE ACCOUNT”.  Congratulations, you’re done. Your account will be created within 15 minutes.

Sign Up for HostGator Web Hosting

HostGator Coupon Code is a post by Minterest