We are all entangled in a web, and we love it. Yes, I’m talking about the great WWW (World Wide Web). Over the years, the internet has made a significant impact on our lives. Ever since its introduction in the late 90s, it spread like wildfire in many nations. And today, we cannot imagine our daily life without it. It has become an indispensable part of our lives similar to electricity, telephone, and water supply.
In recent years, it has served as a great platform for brand promotion. Yes, you’ve heard that right. Giving visiting cards to your potential clients is a decade-old marketing strategy. Nowadays, it is important for every company to have their own websites. A website is an excellent medium to inform the people about your business as well your expectations from the business. See, creating a website is easy but, what is more important is the hosting of that site on the World Wide Web. To cater to this need, we have web hosting services.
Web hosting is a type of internet hosting service. It allows the companies as well as individuals to make their website available on the WWW. The job of web hosts or web hosting service providers is to provide their clients a specific space on the server that is owned or leased for use by the client. You can host a complete website or a single web page as per your requirements.
How to Choose the Best Web Hosting Providers?
Most of the companies opt for low-cost web hosting. The best example for such cost-effective web hosting is the shared web hosting service where you share the same server with other users. For users who don’t have any plans to opt for shared web hosting, there are thousands of service providers in the market today. To pick the best web hosting service, we rely on web hosting reviews by the experts.
To make the task of choosing the right web hosting provider easier, here are the 17 tips you must follow:
1- What are your hosting needs?
It is the question that you should ask yourself before opting for the services of the web host. One should be fully aware of his/her hosting needs. Once you have the complete list of what all you need then the task of finding the perfect service provider becomes easier.
2- Track the Uptime Score
It is important for us to obtain the web host uptime information. At present, the uptime score below 99.5% is not acceptable. So, please check the uptime score of your web host’s server.
3- Multiple Domain Compatibility
We all know that domain names are quite cheap. And that is the main reason most of the people own hundreds of domain names. But here’s the catch! Not all hosting companies provide multiple domain compatibility for a single account. Few years back, you could use only one domain name from a single account.
4- Upgrade Options
For a website to grow in coming years, the web hosting should grow. The word ‘grow’ here indirectly refers to the upgradation of the web host. Always look for server upgrade options.
5- Check the Renewal Prices
If you are willing to be in contract with the same web host for years, then check the renewal prices. Usually, hosting deals are cheap but the ‘elephant in the room’ is the monthly renewal price. It is absolutely necessary to check the terms of service (TOS) before opting for the service.
6- Check the Refund Policy
Sometimes, it is very important to ask basic questions regarding the company’s refund policy. If you decide to opt no longer for the services of a specific web host, you should be aware of the cancelation charges.
7- Look for Basic Features
Most of the web hosting companies do not offer basic features. Yes, it may come to you as a surprise but it’s a fact. You need basic features like auto script installer, Cron, .htaccess, etc.
8- Good Tech Support
It is extremely important for your web hosting provider to provide you with 24/7 assistance. You should check whether they have a good tech support or not.
9- E-commerce Websites
What if you want to host an e-commerce website? You have to check whether your web host provides e-commerce features or not.
10- Unlimited Web Hosting is a Myth!
Yes, there is no such thing as ‘unlimited web hosting’. It is just a marketing strategy that most of the companies use. Your account will be suspended the moment you are using too much of CPU power. As mentioned before, it is important to read the company’s TOS.
11- Look for Eco-friendly Web Hosts
According to a study, a web server produces 630 kg of carbon dioxide annually. God bless our ozone layer! Don’t worry, there is an alternative. In recent years, eco-friendly web hosts or green hosts have been introduced. They produce almost zero carbon dioxide.
12- Is there an E-mail Feature?
For those who want to host e-mail accounts with their website, there is an e-mail feature available. Please check for this feature before signing up for the deal.
13- Avoid Long Contracts
Many web hosts indirectly force their clients to sign up for long contracts. Never fall into their trap. You should avoid getting into the long-term agreements.
14- Backup Options
Some things in life and internet are really unpredictable. What will happen if your website crashes? Simple, you’ll look for backup. If your web host does regular site backups then your website can be easily restored.
15- User-friendly Control Panel
A complex control panel is always a turnoff for clients. Therefore, it is important to have a user-friendly hosting control panel. Otherwise, you’ll always be calling tech support.
16- 24/7 Live Chat
In this age of 24/7 services, it is obvious to expect more from our web host. We should check whether our web host provides 24/7 live chat support or not.
17- Don’t Worry About the Disk Space
With a broad range of applications and software available for storing multimedia files (Dropbox, Youtube, etc.), you should not worry about data storage capacity.