Most people do not believe you can make a mistake when picking a web hosting company, but that is definitely not the right way to think. As with all industries, there are positive and negative aspects of individual web host providers. This article has a lot of information to help you avoid mistakes many make when picking a web host.
When looking at web hosting packages with unlimited services, proceed with caution. For example, unlimited space plans often include fine print on the kinds of files that that space will support. Unlimited bandwidth will usually mean that you can get all the bandwidth you need, but there will be additional fees for overages at the end of the month. Be sure to understand all of the terms and conditions of these unlimited deals so that you can make a very educated decision.
See what your potential host’s website looks like. If the web host has a horribly designed website, then that should immediately throw up some red flags. Will yours likely be any better? A site that is designed well indicates that the business has a good eye for detail and that they have lots of experience in regards to web design.
See how long a potential web host has been serving customers. Companies that have been in business for longer periods of time tend to provide superior support. They’ve already seen problems come and go, and have experience in handling them. Long-standing companies also tend to have specific procedures for dealing with problems that arise frequently. This means you save time, money and stress working with customer support personnel who are unfamiliar with the issue at hand just because their company is new to the game.
Even though you may like the domain service and website design that a certain company can offer you, this does not mean that you must use them for hosting services. Many sites let you mix and match what you want, but you can’t fix issues as easily.
Don’t register a domain name with the hosting company if there are plans to own the name long term. While convenient, registering it with the company you host can prevent you from owning it if something happens in the future. Use a site like GoDaddy.com for the best prices and service.
Find out if your web host offers Windows or Linux hosting platforms. This can mean that you get access to various features and need to get comfortable with these features. Linux, generally less costly to run than Windows, may lower your site’s monthly bills.
Begin thinking about alternate hosting possibilities when you start having issues with your current one. This makes it much easier to change from a poorly performing host to one that can better fulfill the needs of your website. After all, anything beats losing everything in a server crash or total failure.
Figure out how large your website will be within the next year and choose a hosting plan that gives you enough hard drive space. While HTML doesn’t take up many kilobytes, videos and photographs can. For hosting files alone, around 100MB – 1 GB should offer a good starting platform for your domain.
If you are able to terminate service without jumping through hoops, you know that you have found a good hosting service. Even signing a monthly or yearly contract, you should be able to cancel at any time and be returned the money for your unused time on the contract. Any company that has cornered you into doing business with them is to be avoided.
Find out what the security precautions are of the web host. Today, numerous threats are present and websites are targets for attacks. Ideally, your hosting service should have established protocols and contingency plans to address DDosS attacks and other threats. Ask what sort of safeguards are in place against attacks such as DDoS events and how they will be dealt with if they occur.
Look at the forums of a hosting site. A lot of healthy companies have satisfied members that are always chatting and passing along information. An empty forum or one filled with complaint threads are both red flags that you should steer clear of a company.
Don’t rely on your website’s host in backing up your information. You must be sure to backup all of your information on a regular basis, to be sure that nothing is lost, if there should be technical problems. You especially need to take precautions if you have performed a significant amount of SEO work on your site.
You should be aware of the amount of disk space and bandwidth you will require. Both these factors will depend solely on the site you’ve designed. There are many web hosting companies that offer unlimited disk space along with unlimited bandwidth. The danger is that the website will cease to function if you exceed your allowed allocation.
Do your homework and research online and don’t just choose a web host based on what their promotional advertising tells you. Search for customer reviews of the host offered by independent websites to get a better idea of how good the host actually is. When you find outside reviews, you get opinions of people that have experienced the service before which can help shed light onto whether or not this is the right type of service for you.
Many web hosts rely on another host themselves. These types of companies purchase a bulk quantity and then resell it. Make sure you know exactly who is your end host and that you are getting a good price.
Find out what kind of server access a potential web host provides. While some hosts provide simple, web-based controls, others offer more FTP-based access, which is more complex. The more complex your website is, the better the access you will need. However, a simple website will work with the control panel access.
There are many things you can do in order to assure you choose the best host for your website. By knowing what you are looking for, you can avoid critical errors in choosing your provider. If you are looking for a great hosting provider, then use the advice in this article to your advantage.
