Freelance Newbie with some questions??

[Pure_5aban]

Hi all,

I've just started out doing some freelance design/development work for a few clients but words seems to be getting around and i appear to be getting alot more interest for my skills.

When I initially bought my domain and hosting about 2 years ago I was recommended to use 1&1 by a friend who also used them to support his own commercial site.

But after recent research I'm noticing that I'm not getting much for my money (i think)

My current business package gives me roughly 4gig of web space and 40gig of traffic per month and costs about £9 a month, so £108 a year. I'm moved up to this package because I wanted to have the option of using mySQL and databases etc. Currently I am using this to host my own site and sites for 2 other clients.

With the recent interest from potential clients I think its time to consider the hosting solutions I can provide as most of my clients are not very computer literate and want a full solution where they just need to pay for a full package with the website, hosting and maintenance.

So, my big question is what type of hosting should I be looking at? I know many people use reseller accounts but since I'm just dealing with small sites and local small businesses does this exceed my requirements?

I was recommended "powweb" as they offer alot for their package at a reasonable price and also Bluehost. I noticed "A Small Orange" was recommended by Whispers. Does anyone have an opinions on these?

And one other thing, I'm located in the UK as are my clients so do I need to choose a UK host?

Sorry for the lengthy post and numerous questions but I just wanted to provide as much info as possible and after reading SO many threads and looking at so many packages I just seem to have more questions than answers!

Thanks in advance

[MyFriendIsATaco]

It really depends on what kind of control you want to give you clients.

If you want to be able to give them a full cPanel, then you'll need a reseller account. Most cases, if you're developing them a CMS, they couldn't care less about who is actually administrating the server, especially since they aren't as tech savvy.

You can always just stay on your host, and when clients want the full control themselves, just refer them to a company you trust and let them take care of their own hosting. That's normally what I do.

When it comes down to it, do you really want the hassle of dealing with people's hosting as well being a web developer? I know I don't. If a server is down, they're going to come to you. When they need some tech support, they're going to come to you. I don't want to bother. Just direct them to a host that you trust and let them make their own decisions regarding hosting.

[Pure_5aban]

That's true aswell.

Most of my clients are going to be non-techy people so I assume they won't want the hassle so I guess it makes sense just to keep it on my own hosting and then refer them if required.

But is it advisable to keep your clients hosting on the same account as your own?

[MyFriendIsATaco]

Just from my personal experience, I don't deal with ANY hosting for my clients. I only suggest places. I hate dealing with hosting companies for my own sites let alone dealing with them for a client. If the server goes down, who are they going to go to? Not me.

I can recommend a place to go, and I will get everything set up on there for them, but if they have problems with the host, they can deal with their tech support.

[Napalm]

The only way to deal with hosting for clients is to setup yourself as a reseller, make a profit on their prices, and have your clients sign a debit order. If you get a dependable host your inquiries should be minimal. Unless you have hundreds of sites and a dedicated staff member that you can hit with a shovel when something is down, it's not worth it to get your own server.