It happens more often than you’d think. Your web developer stops replying, the phone goes to voicemail, and you realise you’re not sure who holds the logins to your own website. Maybe something needs changing urgently. Maybe the site has simply stopped working.
It’s almost always fixable. Here’s how to work out where you stand and get back in control, calmly and in the right order.
First, work out what you actually have
A website is really four separate things, and they’re often in different places:
- The domain name: your web address, registered with a domain provider.
- The hosting: the server where the website files live.
- The website itself: the WordPress login, content and settings.
- Your email: often set up on the same domain, sometimes with a different provider again.
Go through your emails and invoices for anything from a domain provider or hosting company. Renewal notices are a good clue, because they show who’s paying for what.
Check who controls your domain
The domain matters most, because it’s how people find your website and often your email. Find out which provider it’s registered with and whose name is on it. If it’s registered to your business, you can contact that provider directly, prove who you are and get access. If it’s registered to your developer, contact the provider anyway and explain the situation. Providers deal with this more often than you’d think.
Find out where the website is hosted
Your domain provider can usually tell you where the domain points, which is where the site is hosted. If the hosting account is in your name, the hosting company can help you back in. If it’s in your developer’s name, you’ll need a copy of the website moved somewhere you control.
Get back into WordPress
If you have any login at all, even an old one, try the “Lost your password?” link. It sends a reset to the email address on that account, which is why it’s worth making sure that address is one you still use. If nobody in the business has a login, whoever controls the hosting can create one.
Take a backup before anything else
Once you’re in, take a full copy of the website, including the files and the database, before changing anything. If something goes wrong during the move, that copy is your safety net.
We untangle these every month. Send us your web address and we’ll tell you what you have and how to take back control. The first assessment is free.
How to stop it happening again
- Register the domain in your business’s name, with an email address you’ll always have.
- Keep your own admin login to the website, and at least one spare.
- Store every login in a password manager, not in one person’s inbox.
- Choose hosting where one team is responsible for updates, backups and support, so you’re never relying on one person’s goodwill.
The bottom line
A developer going quiet is stressful, but it’s rarely the end of your website. Work out who holds the domain, the hosting and the logins, take a backup as soon as you’re in, and then move the site somewhere it’ll be looked after properly.
