Many people these days decide the legitimacy of your business by identifying if your business has a website. To help your website run smoothly you need to host your site on a reliable web hosting server. Selecting the best web hosting provider can be puzzling as there are so many web hosting companies available on today’s date. There are lots of factors that one must consider before choosing their web hosting provider. Whether you are a newbie or planning to change your existing host, you must take enough time to choose a reliable hosting provider to make sure your website remains up and safe all the time.
- Server Reliability and Uptime
Your website uptime is one of the most important metrics. If your website is unavailable, it can create a huge impact on your business including your revenue, reputation and rankings. To ensure the continuous availability of your website, your web server is required to be up all the time. You must have heard of 99% uptime that a web hosting company commits. It means that the connection between the network connection provider and their server will always be up by 99%. This is the guaranteed network uptime that they assure. An uptime guarantee is a good sign for a good web hosting company that promises to keep running your site smoothly. It is highly recommended that you choose a web host that commits 99% uptime. Anything below 99% uptime, it is not a reliable web host. Daily backups, customer support and bandwidth are some other factors that play a crucial role in deciding the reliability of a web host.
- Tech support
Imagine, due to some reason your website becomes inaccessible. Whom can you rely on? You need a technician who can identify and fix the problem. The more the medium of contacts the more reliable they become. Choose a web host that has maximum point of contacts available. Say you are not able to reach them over the phone; they should be having an alternative to contact through an email or chat support. Also, prefer a hosting provider that has their support department in-house (not outsourced). Another important factor is the availability of their support staff. Most of the web hosts will provide you 24/7 support. Consider them on the top priority while choosing your service provider.
- Price
Choosing the cheapest available option for your hosting needs isn’t always the best idea. Analyze the need of your website first to make the best choice. For example, if you are an SME, basic shared hosting will be suitable for your website, but if you have an e-commerce website then you must go for a dedicated server or cloud hosting provider. You will find lots of cheap options on the web. Make a list of features that they provide within their plans and choose the one that suits your needs. Selecting one of the hosting services from shared, dedicated, VPS depends on the type of website you want to host. Some of the companies also give money back guarantee, if you are not satisfied with their service.
- Security
If your website collects some information from your customer, it is necessary that all the information that is exchanged between you and your customer should not be compromised. Web servers are one of the most targeted mediums for attackers. To prevent this, the server has to be on protected with SSH keys, Firewalls, Intrusion detection systems etc. If a web hosting company offers you backup option then it is an additional advantage.
- Customer Reviews
Customer reviews of web hosts are another source of reliable information. They work like a personal recommendation. One can completely rely on these reviews, as you completely get to know the real story behind a brand and the quality of service they provide. Research before buying the services helps you choose the best one. The customers of that company know the level of services more than anybody else. Review websites such as Hostadvice, Hostsearch and Web Hosting Geeks has plenty of customer feedback, which will make your web hosting choice easier.
Conclusion:
Your web hosting provider is a virtual storefront of your business. One should deliberately choose the storefront as this defines the reputation of your business. Now that you know the criteria for choosing a web hosting provider, you are all set to get started.
