An important part of setting up a website is finding a reliable web hosting service. There are many different services out there, and it can be difficult knowing which one to choose, since different websites will have different needs.
The following advice should make the selection process a little bit easier.
Make sure the advertisements for a web hosting company matches the actual terms of service. A web hoisting company may guarantee 99.9% uptime, for instance, but this is found nowhere in their terms of service. Read the fine print. Also, see what your compensation is if they do not meet their terms of service. A guarantee without some kind of compensation is worthless.
Make sure that the host that you are planning to use has good customer service. You are bound to have some kind of an issue even with the best host out there. The thing that makes a difference is a host who can be easily contacted and will jump at the moment that an issue is reported.
When choosing a web hosting service, always check their record for down time. If you are conducting business through your website, you will almost certainly lose customers if they cannot access your website at all times, day or night. Check not only how many times they have outages weekly, but what the duration of these outages are.
Prior to reaching an agreement with a web host, look into its return policy. There are times that, even when you have done your best to research the company beforehand, things just don’t work out. Know what your options could be in this situation before you purchase. You don’t want to be stuck with improper service with no way out.
Make sure that you have backups for your website! You can find a hosting company that will backup all of your files every night, and you really need to have this. You want your website files, databases, e-mails, and your home directory backed up on a consistent basis just in case something goes wrong.
When looking at prices for web hosting, make sure you are looking at packages that correspond to e-commerce websites. If you want to use your site to sell products, you will need a host that supports certain features such as databases or shopping carts, perhaps at an extra costs not included in basic packages.
Look for a company that offers an “uptime guarantee.” Uptime is also known as the amount of time that a server is online for, as opposed to down, for service or maintenance. A reliable web host should be able to offer some sort of guarantee that your site will be available at least 98 percent of the time, with superior web hosts able to offer 99.9 percent uptime.
Don’t forget, when you decided to go with a specific hosting service, you are often inheriting their customer support standards as well. It’s a good idea to aim for a hosting server with a record of helping its customers and assisting consumers in reaching their solutions, with or without proprietary interest.
A good site host should also offer good support for if and when you need help with something. This means that maybe they offer professionals that can offer advice to new site owners, or support simply for errors and general questions about how to make your site look its best using the tools the host offers. Some sites are more “hands on” with lots of templates and things to help their users, whereas others are more of a “do your own thing” type hosting site. Make sure you keep in mind whether you are a novice or a professional at designing and owning a website.
Research the refund policies prior to signing on with a web host. You do not want to wait until something goes wrong before finding out that you are not going to get any of the money that you have invested into your site back when the host falls short of your expectations.
Call the customer service number and ask about SSL certification and shopping carts. If the technicians are helpful, you have found a web host that understands e-commerce and will be able to meet your needs. On the other hand, if no one is able to answer your technical questions, look for a different host.
Avoid long-term contracts unless you are already familiar with the host. Many web hosts will offer a discounted rate if you sign a long-term contract, but this can be a risky way to save money. If you end up unhappy with your service or amount of down-time, you will face hefty termination fees or be forced to remain with the service. Always start out with a short-term contract. If you are happy with your hosting, you can always change to a long-term contract when it is time to renew.
If you currently have more than one website, you may want to use a web host that allows an account to contain multiple domains. This will save you money and allow you to only have to worry about dealing with one account rather than multiple accounts. Dealing with one account is a lot less stressful.
Ensure your web hosting provides adequate security. Security should always be a primary concern, but it is even more crucial if your site is going to be involved in any e-commerce. Look for a multi-layered security approach that will protect both you and your potential customers from hackers and identity thieves.
Register your domain name through a separate service than the web host you choose. This will protect your domain name if something should go wrong with the relationship you have with your web host. You do not want to lose the name of your site because of less than stellar hosting performance.
As you have seen, choosing the right web hosting service can mean the difference between success and failure for your website. Before you make this important choice, you need to do your research and know more about web hosting.
Remember what you have learned in this article, and the process should go more smoothly.