We hear the same story every few months: a business wants to change its website and discovers that the domain is registered to a developer who has moved on, the hosting is on someone's personal account, and nobody has a copy of anything. Here is how to make sure that is not you.
The domain
Your domain (the yourbusiness.com part) should be registered in your business's name, with your email as the contact, at a registrar you have the login for. Check it today: search for "whois" and your domain. If the name on the record is not yours, ask whoever set it up to transfer it, now, while they are still answering email.
The hosting
The hosting account, where the site actually runs, should be in your name too, with billing on your card. Your developer can be given access; they should not be the owner. If you do not know where your site is hosted, ask, and ask for the login.
The backups
Ask one question: "if the site disappeared tonight, how would we get it back, and when was that last tested?" If the answer is a pause, you do not have backups. Daily backups kept for 30 days, with a restore tested every few months, is the standard we work to on the care plan.
What we do at launch
Every site we build is handed over with the domain, hosting and backup logins in your name and a one page document saying where everything is. If you take the care plan we look after it; if you do not, you have everything you need to.
Not sure what you have? Send us a message and we will help you check, no charge.
