Building a website is like building a home and you can only have your dream home when it is in the right environment. The right kind of property, neighborhood, and a friendly community collectively make for the perfect place to set up your home. So is the case with your website. To give your dream website the right environment, you need a web host. And finding the right one can be as good as finding the best location for your new house. A good hosting partner can go a long way in your site expansion and business growth.
Here’s a comprehensive guide to help you find your first web host and the right one-
Step 1- Hosting platform
Before you start, determine the kind of hosting service you needs- Shared, Dedicated, VPS, or Cloud Hosting. Depending on the size of your business, and of course your tech budget, you can seek hosting options in the above four categories. This will eventually guide you to the next step.
Step 2- Type of website
If you are building a blogging site for business, then you might need a WordPress hosting service. Or if you are into e-commerce retail, then VPS hosting might be the ideal one. Similarly, if your site is expected to have unexpected traffic (peaking or dropping randomly), then you might look for flexible hosting options with cloud solutions.
Step 3- Type of resources
This is the most important part of your decision to find the right host. Depending on what kind of resources you need and expect in your web host, you can narrow down on available options. Do you need more storage or more bandwidth? The type of website you are building will help you determine the resources you will be using on the hosting platform. For highly dynamic sites like e-commerce, social media, etc. you might need scalable resources which a Cloud Hosting solution can easily provide. If high-end security is your priority need, then VPS Hosting might be the right solution for you.
Step 4 – Hosting budget
Cost is often the most important deciding factor for any business operation. And hosting is no different. It is definitely not advisable to trade tech support, site performance, and other features against the cost factor. When budgeting for web hosting, don’t forget to include the cost for domain name registration, any plugins or other add-ons that you might need.
Step 5 – The Hosting Service Provider
After you have assessed all the above points, it is time to find your perfect hosting partner. An efficient hosting solution is as good as the service provider. Look beyond the basic parameters in each of them and see if any of them are ready to go that extra mile by providing you with advanced security systems, round-the-clock support, and high-end resources. While each of them might have the best pricing models, it is more prudent to not get allured by cheaper costs and end up with below-par services, which can affect your site performance in the long run. Go for a hosting provider who guarantees 99.99{69d371dc3a7215af1cf70e657e96c7414241106804c5daaddb02eee3606ab22c} uptime and provides a secure experience so that you don’t lose customers.
Summing up…
Choosing a good hosting service is all about support, security, scale, and speed. A hosting solution which offers you all four of these key features at a budget that suits you is the perfect web host for you. Do let us know in case you have any questions regarding choosing your perfect web host in the comments section below.