hostgator is a known company and a big one, you can also opt out to small web hosting companies that has an office near you or atleast a real 24x7 support
For three years now of using Hostgator I have never have any worry using their hosting service. They are very good when it comes to customer services. I'll advice you go for them.
You will not determine much from this question. Do a Google search for "best hosting company" and you will get a smorgasbord of opinions and every one will be different. I for one have used numerous hosting companies over the years; Godaddy, HostGator, DreamHost, Volusion, iPage, 1&1, and many others. They all have their good points and bad points, opponents and adherents. Some people will swear by them, others will swear at you for mentioning them. When it's all said and done, you will have to decide for yourself which company is best for you. Everyone's experience is different and every company has its jerk employees. Someone get's one of these jerk employees and suddenly it's the worst company ever, despite millions claiming they have awesome services. In my opinion, HostGator is excellent for small to medium sized websites; GoDaddy is good for people who are not tech savy; Volusion absolutely sucks; 1&1 is scandalous and iPage is pretty cheap and decent. But of course, these are my opinions, based on my personal experiences; someone else may not have the same opinions...
Hi John Nats, Very well said: "The one thing that stands out is their customer service they always have someone you can talk to if you have any issues." And it does not really matter where one is, on this globe, or, what time of the night or day it is, there is always someone at the end of that click into the support center. I have never known of any other hosting service to be so precise, in taking care of its customer base needs. And, over the years, I have been with several other hosting companies, many of which are now defunct. Yes. sometime you may get an agent, at the end of the click through to the support center, who might be a bit tired, and probably sleepy, and is therefore a little bit cranky. But that's not the fault of the hostgator management. Some "poor' tired man or woman, who has to pay the bills in a couple of day, might have taken on much more opportunities, than he or she can handle at any one time, and therefore "turned up" at work, at Hostgator, very tired and worn down. In addition, some times when some of those support staff are having to deal with some of us, unreasonable, and sometimes disrespectful, and rude customers, they do respond with a little terse attitude. But other than that, there is only one Hostgator. And it provides terrific customer service. So yes, John Nats, I am with you there 100%. Once again, solid observation. Alodie
Hi Jameyson MacDonald, Well said: "..., others will swear at you for mentioning them." ) Yes, indeed. But it's all good. Really, really good. And in fact, it is always good to have a high level of competition, especially with these types of services. It forces the providers to make sure that they are being "good" to their customers, at all time. So yes, a good measure of competition is quite healthy for all concern. Great point, Jameyson. Have a terrific day. Alodie
I tend to slightly disagree here. "Tired" employees is rarely the excuse for poor support. Especially if you are a company as big as HostGator. Lack of training, low knowledgeability, poor problem deduction, wrong assumptions - those are the things that really stand behind such an issue. You cannot be excused with tiredness, nor with grumpy clients. Taking the job of Customer Support you have to be well aware and expecting that. Hell, this is what you get paid for! You cannot just mess someones business and then say - "Sorry, I was a bit tired". A respectable company with good supports warns and subsequently fires such employees. As they say - If you can't take the heat, stay out of the kitchen. I've been working as a Customer Support for 5+ years, had people yelled at me, swear at me and call me names, shout, cry, threaten. You gotta keep smiling, try to calm them down and to understand and help with their problem. After such customer you can go out, take a breather for 10 minutes and its back online with the next customer. That's it! And the real problem is that the biggest companies have the financial resources but they rarely invest in staff training. This is why they believe their level of support is acceptable where in reality its questionable to say the least. As long as they get their money in the bank they think its all good. But its not...
Hi John Nats, ) Don't be too harsh on them: "And the real problem is that the biggest companies have the financial resources but they rarely invest in staff training. This is why they believe their level of support is acceptable where in reality its questionable to say the least. As long as they get their money in the bank they think its all good. But its not..." And do understand that I was not tying to present a an all rosy fairy tale picture regarding Hostgator. Not at all. And by the way, your analysis of the situation is well taken. I just believe that since those occasions are, in my opinion, probably seldom, and far between, I have to take it that management is indeed doing at good job at training their staff. But you are right: most times it is money that does the talking. And that in between those "talks," we, the customers are sometimes left to the mercy of who know what. I still believe that Hostgator is among some of the very best in customer service. )) Thank you for your reply, John Nats. It has forced me to think more deeply about these issues. Alodie
Hi and5dp, Yes, it does. ) Especially for someone like myself, who has lost bundles in internet scams... ...As you have already guess, I will take any little bit of semblance to honesty that I can get. ) And Hostgator is for me, right now, that point of hope, that everything is not all bad about the internet, and about doing business on the internet. Today, Thursday, is a very good day for me... So much for which to be grateful. Cheers, and5dp ) Alodie