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Deciding the perfect Web hosting service provider for your company or organization can be a tedious task. You might be spoilt with a wide choice of options or just confused before making the purchase. Remember your purchase is like a commitment for a given period, and the entire electronic correspondence of your company would depend on the efficiency of your hosting service provider. Not only the plans have to suit your pocket and the annual renewal amounts have to be reasonable, it has to ensure that you have a smooth running of your emails, but your social media campaigns and other marketing campaigns should also run flawlessly, that the server does not get overloaded or crash due to more traffic, your mailbox does not get exhausted too soon, your websites don’t lag and most important your company data remains safe, your intellectual assets are secure and your customers/users don’t hesitate to visit your site or are fearful to open your emails due to spam issue or another security issue. Many times we have seen warning signs while attempting to open a website or a clicked link that leads to a website. Email marketing campaigns are always popular, but spam emails spoil the entire effort and drive your customers away from you. This kind of scenario can be very harmful for the reputation of your company or enterprise if not tackled at the source. The security feature provided by the web hosting service provider has to be certified, robust, and glitch-free.
Getting online is a great experience but the success you achieve after getting online is even more remarkable. You are required to be smart in your decision making and understand your requirements right.
There are some FAQs – Frequently asked questions that you should keep in mind before finalizing a web hosting service provider
What price do I have to pay for the web hosting of a small business?
The price of hosting you online depends on factors like what is the nature of your business. Does it involve social media campaigns, email campaigns, or involved a high volume of user traffic, the volume of email correspondence, etc. The cost also depends on the duration/tenure of commitment to the hosting service provider. Usually, the commitment for service is annual and the packages are built accordingly. There are a few instances where the customers opt for monthly installment plans. For a small start-up business with normal web activity, the cost can be as low as only One USD per month. There are also shared hosting packages available that offer very cheap special offers for startup companies and renewal costs ranging from five to forty dollars.
Checking on important features before deciding the hosting provider, and what are they?
The uptime rates % are vital alright but the subscriber has to be vigilant about the support system that the host offers. In today’s world of customer support and customer satisfaction mechanism, the hosting companies are leading from the front. There has to be a 24×7 customer support system via toll-free numbers and email. The technical team should be hands-on and display friendly behavior in answering questions and sorting out issues.
The level of security that your web host offers is a matter of great significance for the success of your business. The security risks should not mar your efforts to increase your customer base. Security threats like malware, spyware, and spam mails should not harm your reputation towards your customers/users.
If you need to host for a certain CMS, the one-click installation mechanism is a very important feature that you must check if offered by your web hosting service provider.
You must know the functions of shared, VPS, and dedicated hosting
Your service provider might have packages and proposals based on the above thermology and it is expected that you have a clear understanding of the same.
Shared hosting is the one that uses a server to host multiple web sites that might not be yours. You are on a sharing basis hence the costs are low. A dedicated space in the server is allocated for you, where all your web content and emails are hosted.
Dedicated hosting uses a server that is exclusive for your company only and no other website is hosted in it apart from yours. The upkeep and maintenance of the server are also exclusive for you. This is far more expensive than the other options. These plans are opted by large organizations and enterprises that require exclusivity due to the very high volume of traffic.
VPS stands for a virtualized server, which is not like the real server, but it offers all the values of having a dedicated server but in a shared environment. It is a balance between having a dedicated server and a shared server. It is a great option for companies who don’t have a budget to afford a dedicated server yet need the criteria for the efficient functioning of the business.
The payment terms of a web hosting service provider
The payment terms are simple without any complications. You may opt for a monthly plan or an annual plan (which is more popular). Your annual plan is more cost-effective than the monthly plan and the hosting company aims at long term commitment with your company. It is also seen in terms of feasibility to opt for an annual plan because you don’t keep changing your hosting service provider too often. You won’t like to disrupt your business emails and smooth functioning of your website at short intervals.
The payment terms being simple, yet the customers have to be vigilant before making the purchase and read it terms and conditions carefully and make sure if there are no hidden costs involved after making the purchase. Several service provider companies get into the practice of upselling by offering extra services at additional costs.
