Are you looking to register a new domain and great web hosting? Can’t decide which hosting service to use? Need to know which features to get and not to get? In this article I will detail 5 points on how to find a great web host for your small business. These points are extremely important because not observing them could cost you dearly in terms of money and time well after the fact.
The website host you choose should be able to provide not only domain registration but also 2 kinds of hosting at a minimum. You need web space hosting for your website and email hosting for your email. There are thousands of providers that can adequately do the job for you, each that offers their own services and price points. With all the choices out there, how do you choose which service is best for your business?
Here is one thing you should definitely rule out right away – shared hosting. This is the least expensive kind of hosting and is called shared hosting because your domain ‘shares’ an IP address with at least one and usually 5-20 other businesses, depending on how it was set up and how ‘full’ the hosting stack is for that IP.
Why is shared hosting a bad thing? There are two major issues:
1) Shared Hosting is Crowded
This is not crowd-funding and you don’t want a crowded server! But with a shared server there are potentially many other businesses hosting their website all at the same place. There are only so many resources available on each server, including computer memory and CPU resource. If the other businesses you are shared with take all of the memory and CPU time, there is little left for yours. Your website will then slow down considerably.
2) Shared Hosting Has Negative Email Consequences
When you share an IP address with other businesses, your email trust rating will be affected by the other’s use of their email. This means that if they are sending out a bunch of spam and they are blacklisted with some of the blacklist rating companies, you will not be able to send email to the companies whose email is filtered through those rating companies. That could mean you will not be able to send email to much of anyone without clearing your (their!) IP out of the blacklist.
Now that we have determined why shared hosting is probably not going to be beneficial to your business, let’s talk about what else matters when you are looking for a hosting company.
3) Your Hosting Service’s Service Level Matters
You pretty much need near-immediate service as many hours of the day as possible. If you have a problem with your hosting, especially your email, you need assistance fast. You need to know that the email will be back up and working properly as soon as humanly possible, and that a workaround is available if necessary.
4) Your Hosting Service’s Helpfulness Matters
Does the hosting service just run through the motions like a robot? Or, do they genuinely care that your business has everything it needs, and no more, to run your business as efficiently and effectively as possible? Do they care to alert you that you need an SSL certificate? This protects your visitors and your business. Some browsers (and this is increasing) will not even allow you to browse websites that don’t have an SSL certificate installed. Not to mention the fact that Google now penalizes any website in their search results that does not have one installed.
Not only that, but it can’t be just any SSL certificate. There are different security layers available in the different SSL certificates. The lowest level ones do not offer adequate protection to your visitors and will not be trusted by web browsers or Google. You need an SSL certificate that is completely trusted by Google and web browsers. Make sure that the one you get through your host offers what you need it to in terms of security.
5) Cost Matters
You should not be paying $35, $49, $75, or even $99 a month for a service that is much less expensive from another company that is just as good, or better. But many companies charge these phenomenal amounts! Why? Because they bundle a ton of other services in their packages that many small businesses don’t or will never need, or they are just overpriced. Of course you get what you pay for. But, as long as you have what you need to run your business you should not overpay for a hosting service – you could use the money saved to pay other bills, right?
SUMMARY
What should you look for in your hosting? The basics include a domain name, an SSL certificate, adequate space with future expansion needs included, plenty of email accounts, great service, and enough bandwidth and speed so your visitors don’t get frustrated and leave before they even see what you have to offer. Additional extras that should be included for no additional charge in their basic hosting packages but many times are not would be privacy protection (anonymous domain registration) and automatic backups of your website.
If you are looking for a great hosting service that offers all the benefits I pointed out here at the lowest possible cost, that provides great service and really cares about your needs, give G6 Web Hosting a look, or call us today at 800-590-2085. We are nationwide, but we really are a small business that tends to and cares for your needs!