When it comes to personal or company websites, many people and companies tend to focus on the design and content. However, the success of the website is also dependent on another crucial factor: the hosting. If you have poor hosting, then you might find that your visitors have difficulty accessing and navigating your website. And when that happens, you’ll run into a big problem: you’ll have fewer – or no! – visitors! So, taking the time to choose the right hosting is really important. But how should you decide which option is right for you? We take a look at a few key details below. Incorporate them into your search, and you’ll end up with a great hosting package that helps make your website a success.
Understand What’s Important
If you are going to choose the right hosting, then you’ll need to be aware of what’s important. What makes great hosting? While there are many factors, perhaps the most crucial elements are speed and security. If you’re going to have a website that people like spending time on, then the ability to access it must be quick; no one will stick around if the site is too slow. So, speed is important. Security is an increasingly fundamental factor, too, because of the risk of cybercrime. It’s vital that you’re keeping your sensitive information — and your customer’s sensitive information — safe and secure.
How Much Can You Do Yourself?
It’s important to know the level of your needs. It’s possible to work with companies that can be a one stop shop for you, and who will be available when you have even the slightest of problems. But for some people, this won’t be necessary. When you’re looking for a host, think about what you’ll need them to do, and how much you can do yourself. If you have some experience with networks and can figure out things on your own, then a package that offers basic support may be fine. There will also be options if you don’t know the first thing about hosting and want someone else to take care of the job entirely.
How Many Visitors Will You Have ?
Before you can choose a hosting package, you’ll need to think about how many visitors you’re going to have. There will be different packages available depending on the amount of traffic that you have. Of course, a website that receives a million hits each month will need a different package than a site that will only receive around one thousand hits. If you don’t know how much traffic you’re going to have, then it’s not the end of the world — it’s best to play things safe, but also to work with a company that makes it easy to scale up to more bandwidth (or scale down in some cases).
Different Types of Server
It’s important to understand the different types of server before making your decision. You can choose from cloud servers, shared servers, virtual private servers, and a private, dedicated server. The right one for you will depend on what you’ll be using your site for.
Read the Fine Print
Where are many hosting options out there. To get people on the hook, some companies will offer deals that sound too good to be true; they usually are. Whenever you’re thinking about choosing a hosting plan, it’s important to look at the small print to determine what is and what is not included. You could find that the host is allowed to throttle your speeds, for example. So, dig a little deeper before making a decision; it’ll help to avoid any nasty surprises occurring later on down the line.
Keep Your Options Available
You may be happy with your host for a while, but what if things change in the future? At that point, you’ll want to have the option of changing. Yet this isn’t always possible, for example, if your domain name is tied to the host (more on that below). Your content manager system, too, may be linked with the host. For this reason, it’s best to work with a content manager system that can be moved to a new host, should it be required.
Is There Support Available?
For the most part, you’ll find that your hosting and website run smoothly. But the key part of that sentence is ‘for the most part.’ No matter which hosting package you choose, it’s likely that you’ll run into a problem sooner or later. And when that happens, you’ll be thankful that you chose a hosting company that can help you to get your website back on track. Don’t forget that one of the most important aspects when it comes to developing customer trust is having a stable and reliable website. If it’s down and you can’t get the support you need to bring it back online, then your website will suffer.
Check That It’s Secure
Another key element to look for is security. If your site is vulnerable, then it could have devastating effects on your website, as it’ll make it an easy target for would-be criminals. Cybercrime is one of the fastest growing crimes, so it’s important to check the hosting’s security credentials before making a decision. You’ll also want an SSL Certificate for your site, to ensure safety — many hosts charge extra for this, but some include it as part of the package.
Own Your Domain Name
You don’t want your entire website to be tied to the hosting company that you choose. At one stage or another, you may wish to mix things up and go with a different provider, but this will be difficult (or even impossible) if your domain name is lumped in with the package that you’ve bought. Instead, be sure to own your domain name outright, so that you can take it with you if you want to switch.
Not all Hosting is Created Equal
It really is worthwhile taking the time to find the right hosting package, rather than just accepting the first one that you come across. They’re not all created equal; some will hold your website back, while others will push your website forward. Make sure you’re buying a hosting package that does the latter!