Starting an online business or personal website requires a secure and reliable host. If you are new to the industry, it may be confusing to determine what to look for in a hosting company. What’s important? What are the key differences? Below are a few tips to keep in mind when choosing a host for your site.
Some of the key elements when selecting a host are: support, down time, backup options, plugins or widgets, whether you can upload using FTP, whether you have access to a control panel, what other sites would share your IP address, where their servers are located, price by bandwidth and site.
1. Ask your Social Networks
Ask your Facebook friends or Twitter followers who they use, and their experiences with their hosts. Your friends are a valuable resource for referrals. They can tell you what hosts are reliable, how good their support is, what features they offer, etc.
2. Shop Around
Search online for hosting companies and see what is available. Look for companies that are popular or are highly recommended. Review the features and options that are available. You also need to compare the prices of various plans before making your decision. Use a service like WhoIsHostingThis to help you compare plans and pricing.
3. Hosting Reviews
Go to reviewer websites that discuss the pros and cons for various hosting companies. Read the review posted for each hosting company you may want to consider. You will learn if there are extra benefits or problems that you will want to avoid.
4. Identify Requirements
Make a list of the requirements that you need for your site. This includes how you plan to have a home page for your business or for personal use. Rank your requirements and compare them to various hosting companies to see which ones will meet your needs. Do you need to host on a Linux or Windows box? Is bandwidth more important than space? Read this Technically Easy article to compare different types of hosts and requirements.
5. Customer Support
Review various hosting companies to determine the integrity and reliability provided by their customer support team. A hosting provider should provide customer support 24 hours a day 7 days a week. A live chat option, email or phone should be available.
6. Up-Time Guarantee
One big factor to choosing a web hosting company is an up-time guarantee for the server. Severs of the web hosting company need to have an up-time of 99.7 percent to 100 percent. This is a requirement for a web hosting company to be competitive.
7. Scalability Options
The amount of data and services that you require may change over time. This means that you should be able to increase and decrease options based on your needs. The hosting company needs to be flexible to respond to changing requirements. You may require extended services or an upgrade to your plan.
8. Hidden Costs
Web hosting companies use a variety of marketing strategies to attract customers. This includes the use of a teaser rate or introductory price. Make sure that you find out the standard price for the hosting plan after the introductory period ends.
9. Flexibility
This is the availability of features that are available to customers based on their needs. You should have an option of platform features, languages and templates for your use. Determine if you plan on a future upgrade that requires certain functions that may be provided by a specific hosting company.
10. Control Panel
The control panel provided by a hosting company is also called the dashboard. This is where you make all types of changes to your website.
As a bonus, here is an eleventh tip:
11. Company History
Research the history of a hosting company to see if their business record is good. You may find that the hosting company has changed names and is trying to re-brand itself.
Choosing a reliable host is essential for your online success, so take your time, do your research, and make sure you are an informed consumer!