How to Purchase Web Hosting and Domain in 3 Easy Steps

1. Purchase your domain for your Online Presence

My favorite way to purchase and register a domain is through a Namecheap, my favorite registrar. I have purchased so many domains through Namecheap before I’ve even been interested in starting a website. And, when I do start a website and inevitably change hosts, it is SUPER way for how to purchase web hosting and domain, which is operated by a third party registrar.

(Read my tips here for .com vs .org types of domains!)

Namecheap domain registration for top-level domains starts at under $10/year, and they offer email addresses, and domain privacy. They also offer hosting, WordPress installation and DNS services, but I have never used those resources.

Here are some pros of using a domain registrar:

1. It is easier to migrate a domain to different hosts from a registrar, instead of transfering a domain from an old host to a new host.
2. It is more secure to have your domain and host managed by separate companies.
3. It is better to make sure your domain is completely owned by you (via a registrar) rather than having a host attach their name to the domain.
4. It is convenient to purchase your domain separate from your host, and have it ready for whenever you interested in starting your hosting plan.

Ready to purchase your domain through Namecheap? LET’S GO.

1. Find the right domain name on Namecheap for the price you are willing to pay.
2. Click “Add to Cart” to start the checkout process.
3. In your cart, toggle on “Domain Privacy” for domain privacy protection, and include that in your purchase. (Ready why here so you can protect yourself from contact information showing on the WhoIs lookup tool.)
4. (There is no need to add any other additional services. But, they are up to you!)
5. Verify your domain renewal pricing, create an account, and pay!

If you are interested in purchasing a domain through your host, read my thoughts about that here!

2. Purchase your hosting plan

If you are looking to start a new website and hosting plan, I recommend Bigscoots as a hosting provider 100%. If you are comfortably hosted by another service, I recommend you compare your current plan to a comparable one with Bigscoots. When I transferred to Bigscoots from a larger host, I saved a lot of money with a similar plan.

Bigscoots hosting offers Managed WordPress hosting, Managed Servers, Shared hosting, and WordPress Speed Optimization. I have worked with them with both their shared web hosting and their managed internet hosting. And I have been equally impressed by both – despite the range of offerings.

Which Plan Should You Get?

If you are a new site with minimal traffic and storage needs, I totally recommend their Shared Web Hosting. This starts at $6.95/mo. and rivals (and is far better than) the basic plan over at Bluehost. Yes, it’s a few dollars more per month than Bluehost, but you will get faster speed, better customer support, and a MUCH better plan for beginners for scaling and moving up to their managed hosting later.

If your website is established, and you need lots of storage and bandwidth, I totally recommend their Managed WordPress Hosting to have a dedicated server. I have received undivided attention with this plan, and have been able to use sandbox sites on this plan, and add an additional WordPress site for only an additional $10/mo. Their free migrations and CDN are worth their weight in gold.

To see a complete breakdown comparing the two plans, click here.

Purchasing your Bigscoots Hosting Plan

To get started, click here to find your Bigscoots plan. Click “Products” in the top right menu and choose your preferred plan.

Use the code MODERNWAHMMONTHLY to get 10% off any Shared or Managed hosting plan with a monthly payment plan.

Shared Web Hosting

1. Choose your desired type of web hosting
2. Choose “I already own a domain”
3. Choose payment method and pay
4. Get the nameservers provided by BigScoots from your hosting account details and follow the instructions below under #3 – Redirecting Nameservers

Managed WordPress Hosting (WPO Plans)

1. Purchase your desired WPO plan
2. Look out for an email about your new WPO portal. Click the blue Get Started link to create your password to access the WPO portal.
3. Create a new login for the WPO Portal (this is different than the Bigscoots Billing portal).
4. Login!
5. To install WordPress on your already purchased domain, click the Fresh WP Install option
6. Choose Add a new domain to existing plan since this is a new plan with no domains yet
7. Enter in your domain name into the New domain name box
8. Choose your WPO plan in the dropdown box
9. Choose a Fresh WordPress Install
10. Click Proceed

3. Redirecting Nameservers

When Bigscoots gives you your new nameservers, these will need to be added to Namecheap (where you purchased your domain). This is how you do that:

• Login to Namecheap and click Domain List > the “Manage” to the right of the correct domain.
• Click the first tab “Domain”
• View the 3rd section called “Nameservers”
• Choose the dropdown “Custom DNS” and replace the two nameservers there with the two you copied from Bigscoots.
• Save

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4. Logging into WordPress

Shared Web Hosting

Shared Web Hosting users get a “CPanel” (Control Panel) to manage your WordPress login.

• Click “Dashboard” in the left blue sidebar menu
• Click on your hosting service
• Click “Access Control Panel” button
• Click to access Control Panel
• Scroll to the bottom to see this WordPress logo:

• Scroll to the bottom to see “Current Installations”
• Click the user image to “login as admin”
• This will log you into your WordPress dashboard!
• *This is really important* Once you are inside of the WordPress backend, click “Users” on the left and set up an admin user for yourself. If there isn’t one created, add your username and pw as a new admin user. SAVE THIS INFO for future logins.

Managed WordPress Hosting (WPO Plans)

Managed Website Hosting owners get a Managed “WPO Portal” that will show in the bottom of your blue sidebar. You can also find it here: https://wpo.bigscoots.com/

The login for this will be sent to you as an email.

Login to this WPO Portal (and save the login! It’s different from your BigScoots login).

Once you login to the WPO Portal, click here:

• My Sites (left blue sidebar menu)
• Click on the domain name
• “WordPress” tab
• Your user names and passwords will be listed here.
• Your WordPress URL will be: www.yourdomain.com/wp-login.php OR www.yourdomain.com/wp-admin
• If these logins don’t work, submit a ticket to BigScoots.