Which Web Hosting Company To Use? Here's How To Choose


by Peter Cutforth - Date: 2007-01-01 - Word Count: 484 Share This!

When you first start out with a website, it seems like the choice of web hosting is probably not important - you just want to spend the minimum you can. But once you experienced what happens when you have a few problems, you might have a different perspective!

Not to mention that cheap hosting is no good. Not at all.

But you have to be careful which web hosting company you go with to avoid potential ongoing problems and grief, to say nothing of lost income, if your site is a business website.

Here are some important criteria to consider before you purchase web hosting.

Criteria #1 Make sure you understand what your disc space and bandwidth requirements are. Disc space refers to the capacity of storage space on the web hosting company's server. How much space you need obviously depends on the combined size of the files you intend to host. For the most part, the standard space available on the cheapest plan will suffice to get you started. But it's a good idea to check that you can easily upgrade if you run out of space.

Similarly with "Bandwidth". This term refers to how easily and quickly your hosting will handle traffic, and what volume of traffic it will tolerate before it slows down significantly, or eventually crashes. You can liken it to "how big the pipe is" that feeds your site. If you have only a tiny pipe, you may find your site can't handle the amount of traffic it receives (which is a good problem to have!)

Again, unless you are planning a site that you know will receive larges amounts of traffic, it's fine to start small, but make sure you can easily upgrade if you need to.

Criteria #2 Service. You need at least 24/7 email support, and preferably some form of more immediate live contact than email. Options can be Live Chat, Phone, or Instant Message.

Assuming you have the required specification, service is the next most important aspect of choosing the right web hosting company for your situation.

Criteria #3 Price. Because web hosting fees are usually charged monthly, it's important not to pay any more than necessary. You can typically pay between $2 per month to $40 per month for basic hosting. Dedicated, and specialized hosting services will be much more.

Be careful if you are considering choosing a web hosting company that charges less then $5 per month. Whilst we're not saying you can't get a good deal for this sort of money, you need to bear in mind that it is still generally true that "you get what you pay for". Generally speaking you should be able to get a perfectly good solution for $5 to $10 month.

These are just three basic criteria you should be aware of. You can view a full eight important "buying criteria" to assist you in making the best choice of web hosting company, on my Blog, see below.


Related Tags: web hosting, web hosting company

Peter Cutforth is an internet marketer and consultant in Brisbane Australia. You can receive free pdf ebooks, and audio-visual lessons about profiting from article marketing from his free article marketing course: http://www.articlemarketingmadeeasy.com

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