How to Choose a Web Host

So many web hosting service providers are in the market today, but each one offers a different set of services for different costs. That's the reason you have to know what to look for so you can tell which one is most suitable for you.

 

Bandwidth

 

Your bandwidth requirements depend on what you want to get from your site. Would you be updating a blog daily? Do you have to put in video and audio files for streaming? How many email addresses do you need? If you want an advanced website, get a hosting service firm that supports PHP, MySQL, Perl, Ruby, etc. Additional information about this are explained at http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/web+hosting. If you have no idea what those are, just be sure that the company you select will aid you in constructing your website with a program that is friendly to non-technical users.

Technical Support

 

Many company promise 24/7 support. If they say they offer phone support, call and try to see how long it takes for them to pick up or hold callers on the line. Also important is how long they are able to resolve issues. Do you get to have an FAQ page or a community page? Where is the firm of their support team located?

Uptime

 

Several companies that offer the best web hosting for business claim to have a minimum uptime of 99 percent. Uptime is the amount of time when the server is functioning optimally. Fortunately, there are websites that you can use to verify if their uptime claims are true.

 

Traffic and Speed of Connection

 

As a user, you would always want traffic to your website to increase, so make sure that your host is technically ready to handle spikes. You must get advanced notification if you are close to going over your bandwidth. Also, you need to be able to upgrade easily to more space. Web hosts usually publish on their websites some names of their existing clients. If your prospect company does, you can just ask them. Then you can log on and observe how the sites load and operate. Also ask them how many sites they host with each server and check if other hosts' numbers are smaller.

 

Backup

 

If they tell you that they backup rarely or not at all, find yourself another prospect. See if they have their own data center or if they are a reseller. And, considering your needs, determine if what you will need is a shared or a dedicated host. Losing your information is the last thing you want to happen.

 

Security and Operating System 

 

You have to be ready against spamming or virus attacks, so make sure your web host from the site at blazarhosting.com offers the right defenses. And ask about their operating system. Of course, the OS you require relies on your system's needs.

 

Finally, make sure you know all of the terms. You have to know if you can cancel your contract or transfer your website with zero administrative fees, if they offer a money-back guarantee and if they can shut your site down without notice.