How many times have you thought about having an email address with your business or website name in it for more marketing exposure? This is one of the basic extras that you can get with a good web hosting company.
Read on for some of the other features you should look for, and how you can get the best hosting for a rock bottom price.
You can almost always save money on your web hosting by paying in advance. Discounts for multi-month and yearly packages are common. However, you don't want to lock in with an unreliable host. Try out a new host for a month or two before you lock in a long-term commitment, and check out the cancellation and refund policy beforehand.
Many web hosting companies offer add-ons to their services, but the number and type of features varies from one company to another. When comparing web hosting companies, be sure the packages you're looking at have similar features. You might like the price of one host, but then discover that the features you need require further funds to acquire.
Be sure to back up your website and information to your computer as often as you can. Your host may not back up your site so if they experience extensive technical difficulties or are even shut down for good, your site will practically be gone forever and you will have to start anew.
When choosing a web host, pick a company that is located within your niche's country. If you're targeting folks in the UK, your hosting plan's data center should also be there.
When transferring your site between hosts, have a copy of your website at both your old and new hosts for a few days. It's important to do this because it takes 6-48 hours for the DNS to propagate. During this time, some visitors will be sent to your old website, while others whose ISPs have updated their DNS info will be sent to your new site.
Even if you are offered a discount for doing so, resist the temptation to pay in advance for years of web hosting service. In the event that your host server goes out of business, you could be stuck with no compensation. In addition, you may just be unhappy with their service, or you may find that you need to go out of business yourself. You will likely have trouble getting a refund if you pay too far in advance.
Not only do you need to select a good web hosting company, but you need to select the right package. Usually the more expensive the package, the more bandwidth you receive as well as disk space.
secure hosting is important because it is where all of your pages and site information is stored. You need a large amount of disk space in order to have an advanced site.
Research each potential web host's customer support before deciding on a host. The easier it is to get in touch with the hosting service, the more likely you are to be satisfied. If you're having problems with your web hosting account, you'll need to be able to easily reach customer service by email or phone.
Not only do you have to select a reputable hosting company and choose a package, you must also decide between hosting types such as Windows, Unix, etc. You need to know what your options are and look into all available choices to see what is best for you and your business.
Take email needs into account when choosing a web hosting plan. Most plans will include some basic email services, but if you need additional mailboxes or storage, you may have to purchase an extra package or select another tier of service. Some inexpensive plans may also limit the number of emails you can send in a day.
Aside from selecting web hosting companies based on fewest outages, you should also make sure the web hosting company you choose automates your payments as well. If a company does not offer this, then that company is not worth using. Make sure you know what you are getting into, and choose wisely.
As you can see, there are tons of web hosting companies out there. However, they are not all the same, and with the tips above, you are better-equipped to evaluate them and choose the one that offers what you need to make your online business more successful. How's that for getting your money's worth?