How To Choose A Web Hosting Provider
If you own a business, web hosting is a vital part of marketing is and no longer an optional luxury. To connect your business to more people, you need to have an online presence as well as social media engagement. Even brick and mortar stores have been shifting their marketing efforts online simply because that’s where the majority of people are these days.
Looking for web hosting is like looking for a home for your website, and the initial effort can be daunting. If you are planning to create a personal or business website and want to find affordable web hosts, we’ve broken it down into three simple but essential categories: speed, support, and security. Aside from these three S’s, another vital factor of web hosting is scalability. You should be able to scale your website immediately to grow your audience and cater to the sudden increase in traffic.
Finding a useful web hosting service can take a lot of time and money. The following are the things you have to consider in choosing a web hosting provider.
1. Decide How Much Hand-Holding You’ll Need.
The services that basic providers offer include access to email and 24-hour phone support. For non-managed service, there is a limitation in the systems management of your site’s basic configuration. However, if you want complete access to your site management, you may consider a managed service where the providers ensure the system is configured correctly, there is high regard on security issues, the software is patched as needed, and backups are managed.
2. Estimate The Amount Of Traffic.
Hosting providers charge their clients depending on storage and bandwidth use for a given period. If your site has fewer visits, then you can expect that the bandwidth is low. However, if you are featured at the top of Google or if your product becomes popular, you can expect an increase in your bandwidth. If your site is expected to serve a large number of visitors, make sure to pick a dedicated or cloud-based web host.
3. Understand Server Types
A shared server is the cheapest hosting since, in a box, it may run hundreds of websites. The efficiency of your site’s performance may vary on a load of other sites connected to the server. You can expect limitations on your access to the server’s full functions like uploading files via FTP, shell access, restrictions on what programs you can run, and constraints on the amount of database access.
VPS (for virtual private server) is like a machine running in a box. Although many host servers run many VPS in one box, it still performs better than the shared servers.
If you don’t want a shared server, you can go for a dedicated server wherein you have your own server, but it is just that, it is only located in the server provider’s data. Alternatively, you can choose a cloud server, which is commonly utilized by public clouds such as Amazon Web Services or Microsoft Azure.
4. Be Wary Of Unlimited Offers.
Some providers offer unlimited storage and bandwidth for a month for a few dollars, which can be unusual. So you have to be wary since this might cost you more if you have reached a certain level of usage and they might restrain your performance or shut you down.
5. Choose A Portable Content Management System.
As time passes, your provider may change your web hosting plans due to management changes and technological advancements. Make sure your site is not locked to any provider so you will always have the option to change.
5. Own Your Domain Name.
As a business, you have to ensure that you own the domain so you can change providers anytime and even earn SEO benefits without the hassle.
Now that you know how to get your site up online, you are ready to get started and build something awesome. The hosting service prices vary differently. It starts at AU$15 to AU$130 per month depending on the above-mentioned factors.
Be open to upgrades and add ons. You don’t know what kind of technology or service will pop up in the next few months or years. You have to keep up with what is available to remain competitive.
