It holds true that the selection of a CMS and a good designer is important. It is even outlined in almost all technology blogs or sites, especially since it is among the many things to consider when putting up a digital project. However, hardly anyone these days are talking about the huge importance of having a good web host.
If you are planning to put a website – be it an e-commerce or blog – then you have come to the right place. This is a quick guide to selecting the right web hosting company and is specifically designed for beginners like you. Remember that a good web host is not only important but also indispensable. Besides, would you want your website to go offline every now and then? Of course, not!
Here are some of the many important factors that you need to consider before selecting a web hosting provider:
#1. Reviews From Users
There is a reason why this is the first one on the list. In a nutshell, reviews can give you a general idea of how good or bad the product or service of a company. After all, these reviews are written by the customers themselves – people who had direct experience with a company. This is reason enough why you need to respect what they have written and, more importantly, consider it.
For example, your friend told you that A2 Hosting provides the best hosting service at an affordable price. In most cases, it is likely for you to jump in, especially after hearing the term “affordable.” But no, you should not. Your best course of action here is to look for A2 Hosting reviews online and read them. Check out what the company’s clients or customers are saying. If most of them are clamoring positive stuff, then this could reinforce your decision to move forward with the provider.
#2. Know Your Web Host
Think of hosting a website as something that is similar to purchasing a home. You do not just purchase it from an unknown vendor. You want to know a couple of things about him first and the property he is selling. The same thing can be said for a web host. You need to find out if it has a good reputation and that people are actually happy with the services it provides.
A factor that you can take into account here is having a decent amount of noteworthy clients. If a web host has these clients on its resume, then you can rest assured knowing that it is doing a great job at providing hosting services. Another good way to assess your hosting provider’s skills is to drop a support ticket. If its customer support team takes hours to respond, then you might want to find a different one.
#3. Bandwidth (News - Alert) vs. Disk Space
Let’s say your main site runs on Drupal. Your blog, on the other hand, is using WordPress and it is on a sub-domain. On another sub-domain, it says that your site space is within the 300 MB range. Now, add another media like photos or videos for around 1.5 GB. From there, you should have a decent sized site within the 2 GB of space. Of course, if you plan to run a huge site, the latter space is not going to be enough. However, despite being in this case, it is imperative to know that bandwidth is – and always will be – of huge importance. To put it simply, the less bandwidth your website has, the less traffic it is capable of handling.
#4. Do Not Go Unlimited
Believe it or not, a lot of new web owners these days are fond of going unlimited right away. When a company says it can give users unlimited web space, it really sounds like an interesting deal. In reality, it is the other way around. First and foremost, there is no such thing as “unlimited” in the world of web hosting. Because seriously, a hard disk with unlimited bandwidth does not exist!
These unlimited promises are based on the assumption that you are not going to use more than the stipulated percentage of the server’s resources. What happens, however, is that if you go beyond it, your site will be taken offline immediately!
#5. Customer Support
Time and again, customer support is the heart of any company. And the same thing can be said for web hosts. Their customer support plays an important role in providing efficient customer service. Your goal here is to make sure that the hosting provider offers reliable customer support. This means that it should be available whenever you are in need of help. Go with a company that provides 24/7 customer support. Remember: No one can tell when you are going to face hosting issues. So it is essential that someone will be there to help you if these issues arise.
