what is web hosting ?

Websites need to go somewhere, and web hosting services are where they settle.

Think of it as the virtual neighborhoods. And just like the real ones, the infrastructure these hosts offer can have a profound impact on the ultimate success of your website. Speed, space and live support are just a few of the things you should look for when selecting the most desirable ‘online zip code’ for your website. To be sure you are on the right track, here are the main boxes you should tick when you go shopping.

First define your needs 

Decide what it is you hope to achieve with your web presence. Is it just an auxiliary marketing tool or do you want to sell online? What will go on your website? Simple product information or complex downloads? These answers will pretty much determine what hosting features you’ll need. If unsure, the best is to go with a flexible web host that can grow with your web presence.

Also, if you plan on doing it yourself, select a host that offers step-by-step services and software. If you choose to work with a web professional, definitely include him/her in the process.

Check for the following:

Speed: Consistent and reliable speed is what you need. Web customers are fickle and impatient: They want near instant page downloads, or they pick up and leave. With today’s technology and high-speed bandwidth availability, nobody likes a site that slows them down.

Space: You must have enough room to grow. More often than not, a website expands over its lifetime. Most web hosts feature unlimited disk space, and those who don’t, will tell you when you get close to your limit.

Tech support: You need live support, meaning an actual person that you can call any time without being put on hold for hours. Problems need to be sorted out quickly and competently so you don’t lose customers.

Security: If you are planning on doing online sales, this is a crucial feature. Generally there is a choice between getting access to a secure portion of the host’s server or having a secure area on your own site.

 Bandwidth: Bandwidth is not the problem it used to be, but nevertheless, make sure that your host will be able to accommodate a lot of people at the same time because you don’t want your clients getting stuck in a web traffic jam. Check the bandwidth allowance - some give unlimited usage, while others allocates a certain amount each month, and charge extra if you exceed that.
Email: You need at least one email account, but you should ask for more – you want enough email boxes for when your company grows and staff increases. Also check for such features as auto-response and email forwarding.

 

The little things that count

If you plan on editing and updating your site yourself then you have to have FTP access. Check that you can create more than one FTP account, so you can have a always have a back-up web editor when you are not there.

You want a web host that offers a good control panel. This tool allows you to update, change, set-up, upgrade, downgrade or whatever else you need to do with your account. And a good one will make managing your web hosting account much easier and will cut down on your need for tech support.

You want a service provider with at least 99% up time. Unfortunately you won’t know how good a host is, until you join. A good resource is reviews by other users. This can give you a good idea of the performance history of the company, and it is simple - if there are too many bad reviews, don’t pick that hosting company.

 

There is no such thing as a free lunch.

 

Free web hosting services are tempting, but are generally not suited for growing businesses. Besides, you can pick a good web host without breaking the bank, and that little extra every month can save you many headaches. 

 

Taking the leap.

 

Things change rapidly in the virtual world, and if you are in doubt, get professional advice. If you go it alone, research web terms such as Perl, CGI, MySQL, PHP and cPanel. It might mean nothing to you now, but it could be crucial for growing you website. Also visit review sites such as www.hosting-review.com and www.top10webhosting.com to read more about the who’s who of web hosting before you take the leap.