We live in a digital age . Everything we do is connected to technology in some way. We use social media channels, we send emails and we communicate with comments, tweets and by blogging. Living a digital life means websites became a necessity of sorts for serious professionals. The number of websites is rapidly growing and if you want to be considered an authority in your field you almost have to have a website.
Ok, so you decided you need a website. Good for you. How do you start? By first picking a reliable host. And this is where things get interesting.
There are tons of different hosting companies available on the net. Some are good, some only claim to be good and reliable. This is where people usually turn to reviews to weed out the bad ones. The problem is that the internet is filled with fake web hosting reviews.
Why is that you might ask? Because web hosts have affiliate programs and some affiliates like to hype up services in exchange for a small commission.
Because of that, it’s crucial you know how to tell a genuine review apart from fake one.
That’s why we prepared this short guide that will help you quickly determine whether the review you’re reading is real or fake.
So, how do you recognize fake web hosting reviews?
There is no specific information
When shady affiliates can’t give you any specific data they usually turn to emotions. Have you ever read a web hosting review that said something in a line of “Oh my god, this is the coolest web host I’ve ever tried. And I had like 6 of them in the past years”. Have you? I’m willing to bet you have. There’s a huge chance that this review is a fake one. Or written by a 14-year old girl.
You’re choosing a web host. You need something reliable, fast and tasted. You don’t need a cool web host, or anything similar. You need specific data that will help you decide on the best option for your needs. Just make sure you avoid all hyped up reviews that emphasize emotions instead of useful information.
Lack of important details
This goes hand in hand with our first point. Most fake reviewers have very little technical knowledge about web hosting. They’ll often point out how great a certain web hosting customer support is by stating they fixed all their problems in a bit. What they won’t mention are specific technical problems that customer support helped solve.
If I was writing a review I’d say something like “They helped me improve my website uptime percentage by upgrading my hosting plan to unlimited bandwidth”. Notice all the details in this review. And the lack of them in generic reviews? And my review isn’t even all that technical. It’s something everyone who’s dealt with website uptimes would know about.
Watch out for insincere language
How exactly do you spot insincere language? Unfortunately, there are no hard rules here. My best advice would be to make note of reviews that sound like infomercials. Whenever I see a review on a review website that seems to be promoting a service with phrases like “highly-recommended”, “5-star solution”, “the best there is” and similar, I get very cautious. This sounds more like a promotion opposed to a review.
Keep in mind that once in a while you’ll find a sincere review written by someone who’s impressed by their hosting company. They might even try to convince you that you should give the same host a try. As I said, there are no hard rules when it comes to spotting phony language. You’ll get better at this the more you read reviews.
Watch out for affiliate links
Did the review end with a bitly link? There’s a good chance you just read a fake review. Most fake marketers try to hype a certain service and then, in their call to action, invite you to check the thing yourself. They’ll often use link shortening services like bitly to hide the affiliate link.
Again, keep in mind that an affiliate link doesn’t automatically mean the review is fake. There are trusted review sites that make money by promoting good services. These are trustworthy and genuine. But if you find an affiliate link in a random comment or if the whole website looks suspicious, you’re better off going for advice elsewhere.
What have we learned?
The internet is filled with fake web hosting reviews. It’s up to each individual to weed out the best from the rest. By keeping our advice in your mind you’ll improve your chances of passing the fake reviews. And if all goes by the plan you’ll end up with a web hosting company that will take care of your interests.
I hope this article helped shine a light on the problem that is fake reviews. I want to finish this piece by stating that not all web hosts are bad. Or that all reviews are fake. There are both genuine companies and genuine reviews online. You just have to be smart to notice them.
