One thing is to be ready to be a website owner, another thing is to make good choice of necessary infrastructure and items to build your website.
Topping the list of what to consider is web hosting, which serves as one basic requirement that powers your website.
A choice of right website hosting provider is crucial for the success and performance of your website, as it will determine amongst others the speed and security.Â
See below some factors to consider when selecting a hosting provider:
1. Type of Hosting
First thing is to determine the type of hosting that best suits your needs. Common options include shared hosting, which is cost-effective but has limited resources; VPS (Virtual Private Server) hosting, which has more control and resources; Dedicated Hosting (entire server dedicated to your website), and cloud hosting (scalable resources and high reliability).
Each of these hosting package has different sizes, speed and level of independence, and their cost of maintenance is different as well.
The type or size of your business for which your need the website for, or the reason for the website will determine the option to select.Â
A blog with less 1,000,000 pageviews definitely does not need a VPS nor dedicated server, as shared hosting will power such website. Conversely, an online store with about 5 million monthly pageviews will have to choose from a bigger hosting option.
2. Performance and Reliability
Ensure to look for a hosting provider with a strong track record of uptime (ideally 99.9% or higher) and fast server response times.Â
Do due diligence to read reviews and testimonials from other users to gauge the reliability of the hosting provider.
You won't want to regret a choice of hosting provider whose server crashers intermittently and gives your bounces rates with regular Error 404 pages.
3. Scalability
Consider whether the hosting provider offers scalability options to accommodate the growth of your website.Â
As your website grows, you might need to upscale to a larger hosting package to allow for smoothness of page loading.
This is particularly important if you expect your website traffic to increase over time.
4. Server Location
Choose a hosting provider with servers located in close proximity to your target audience. This can help improve website loading times and overall performance for your visitors.Â
Again, making due diligence is crucial at this point by asking customer support for their server locations.
5. Features and Resources
Evaluate the features and resources offered by the hosting provider, such as disk space, bandwidth, SSL certificates, email accounts, database support, and security features like regular backups and DDoS protection.
Some hosting providers offer free migration services of website, which is added advantage; while some also offers free virus scan.
6. Customer Support
Check the quality and responsiveness of the hosting provider's customer support. Look for providers that offer 24/7 support via multiple channels (such as live chat, phone, and email) and have a reputation for providing helpful and timely assistance.Â
7. Security Measures
Ensure that the hosting provider you plan to choose implements robust security measures to protect your website from threats such as malware, hacking attempts, and DDoS attacks.Â
This may include features like firewalls, malware scanning, SSL encryption, and regular security updates.
8. Ease of Use
Consider the user-friendliness of the hosting provider's control panel and interface.Â
Look for providers that offer intuitive control panels (such as cPanel or Plesk) that make it easy to manage your website, domains, and other hosting settings. For beginners, Cpanel is most common because of its flexibility and one-click installation features.
9. Backup and Restore Options
Make sure to verify that the hosting provider offers regular backups of your website data and has a reliable system in place for restoring backups in case of data loss or corruption.Â
Sometimes, you might have to contact them to execute backup task for your website.
10. Price and Value
Compare the pricing plans and packages offered by different hosting providers, taking into account the features, resources, and level of service included. Be wary of providers offering extremely low prices, as they may sacrifice quality and reliability.
By carefully considering these factors and researching different hosting providers, you can choose the best option for your website's needs and ensure a reliable and high-performance hosting environment.
By carefully considering these factors and researching different hosting providers, you can choose the best option for your website's needs and ensure a reliable and high-performance hosting environment.
