Choosing a web hosting service for your site can be very excruciating. A bad web host will be a nightmare to your business. Lost files, downtime and poor customer services will affect your business negatively.
As such, you shouldn’t rush the decision to when looking for the suitable web hosting service. You’ll need to ask yourself these questions when selecting a web host. Be genuine to yourself. That’s the only way to meet your objectives.
These are some questions to ask yourself when selecting a web host
- What’s Your Budget?
Before choosing a web host, you need to understand the resources at your disposal. Have a budget that dictates the amount of money to spend on this exercise. Abide by these provisions at all times.
As you will note, different companies will offer different features at various prices. Some will be cheaper others will be fair and others are expensive.
However, don’t deceive yourself. What you pay your web host is definitely what you get. Also, some companies with the cheaper rates may have some hidden charges. Others will have some limited features that may not be of any help to you.
Ensure you get a provider that offers the services and support you seek.
- What Type of Hosting Server Do You Need?
You’ll need to make a determination on the hosting servers you need. Such include dedicated servers, cloud hosting or VPS hosting.
Each of these hosting servers will have different features and functionalities. Remember, what suites your website may not necessarily suit another website. So, do your research well before choosing your website hosting server.
- How Many Server Resources Do You Need?
You’ll need to know the type of server resources your site will need. As such, you need to weigh in on the needs of your server to choose the type of resources it needs.
As you will note, there are no hosting plans with unlimited resources. As such, you need to limit your server hosting plan to what your site needs.
Some factors to help you make the determination include the bandwidth and disk space you need. If you don’t know where to begin, start by purchasing a lower hosting plan.
In this way, you’ll be able to upgrade your hosting needs and your needs increase. Ensure the hosting plan is able to support upgrades.
- Domains
You’ll need to know that web hosting and domains are different. It’s possible to have a domain name even before choosing your hosting service.
It’s possible to purchase the web hosting and domain servers differently. Some web hosts will offer a free domain name.
However, if your web host offers a free domain, you’ll have to use their hosting services. Further, some web hosts will only offer a free domain service which will be valid for a maximum period of one year.
- Is the Web Host Reliable?
If you don’t want any downtime on your server, then engage the services of a reliable web host provider. You don’t want a server that slows down your website.