If you want to create a site for your business you need to find a reliable business web hosting provider. For people who are new to building websites it can be hard to know what exactly they need to be aware of when choosing a host. In this article I will mention some of the key points you should look at.
- Shared, Private Server or Dedicated?
The first thing you need to consider is if you want a shared, private or dedicated server for your hosting account. If you use a shared hosting account you will be sharing a server with several other websites. This usually means that you will have slightly less bandwidth available and not as much custom control over your account. A private or a dedicated server gives you more power and performance and is best for sites that expect a lot of traffic or need to run complex programs. In most cases, if you want to create a fairly simple site, shared hosting is more than sufficient.
- Customer Service
A good business host should provide great customer service. It is inevitable that you will need help with your hosting account at some point and when you do you need to be able to get it as soon as possible. To find out if a particular hosting company has good customer support, it is a good idea to look for reviews on the internet. If a company has good customer service you will usually find lots of positive comments.
- Easy to Use Interface
Your hosting account interface should be easy and intuitive to use. Most hosting companies use the popular Cpanel interface, which enables you to easily access all of your hosting features.
- Bandwidth and Disk Space
Bandwidth is the amount of traffic that your site is allowed to receive over a period of time (usually a month). Disk space refers to the amount of space you get to store your site’s files. For small sites, both bandwidth and disk space requirements are usually limited. In most cases a basic hosting package will provide more than enough of both.
- Availability and Reliability
Another very important thing to look at is a host’s “uptime”. This refers to how often the host’s servers will be working normally and available to visitors. This is extremely important, because anytime the servers are down, so will your website. While no web host can guarantee 100% uptime, most reliable hosts will have an uptime percentage of at least 99%.
- Ecommerce Support
If you want to build an online store and sell your own products, your web host will need to provide ecommerce support. See if the company you are considering supports popular shopping carts like Magento, Zen Cart or Open Cart.
- Multiple Domains and Subdomains
Something else to consider is the amount of add-on domains the hosting company allows. If you plan to host several different sites on one hosting account or want to use various domain names for your site, you need the ability to add extra domains to your account. Subdomains (yourname.yourdomain.com) can also be great to divide a large site into sub-sections.
- Site Building Tools
Finally, you should look at what kind of site building tools the host offers. Most hosting providers will have an option to easily install programs like WordPress or Joomla. Many also offer easy site builders that enable you to quickly set up a simple site.
Recommended Business Web Hosts:
- Siteground – A well known, reputable hosting company specializing in WordPress hosting. Basic plan starts at just $2.99 per month and come with a domain name included.
- Hostmonster – A very reliable, affordable host that offers all the features your need. Their basic plan also comes with a free domain name.
