06 Feb 09 Things to Do to Choose the Right Web Hosting plan for you

Written by: IT List

Guidelines for the Things You Have to Look at when Choosing a Web Hosting Plan

In today’s world, more and more, the internet is playing a larger role in our lives. People use it to express themselves. Companies use the internet to sell their products to wide range of people. This is where we get our news and ideas. The internet has become so important that it now dominates our lives.

How do they do it? You may ask. Well, the answer lies in websites. As you go through the World Wide Web, you can view thousand upon thousands of websites. There are websites for keeping in touch. There are websites used in commerce. There websites that lead to other websites. The diversity and activity just makes you want to jump in on the fun by creating a website of your own.

If you are a person of humble means with little to no technological inclinations, building a website for the World Wide Web can be a daunting task. This is where a web hosting service can help. The web host service provider can get you web presence for what ever purpose it may serve you. Whether it is for fun or for business, a web hosting service will set your website up on the internet.

However there are hundreds of web hosting services out there that are claiming to be the best, making it hard to choose from all of them. This guide will show you what to look for. Follow these simple steps and you will be able to find the best possible web hosting service that will fit your need and budget.

Action Steps

What are your needs?

List down all the things you will need in your web hosting. Do you need more space? Or, is a higher bandwidth a greater concern? If you are a total newbie and you do not know what to do, then you should be looking at the plan that offers add-ons that will help you develop your website the way you need it to. Then you must look at your budget. How much will budget allow you to spend? The more features you add on the more expensive it will likely get.

I recommend: You could learn more about web hosting by going www.wikipedia.com and typing in web hosting. They have a very informative article about web hosting. You can also learn more about the history in this article.

What is your skill level?

Have you been working in the internet for long? How much do you know about setting up your website? These are some of the questions you need to ask before you choose the web hosting package for your website. If you have below average knowledge and you do not have enough free money to pay a consultant to handle this it would be best to sign up with a hosting package that will help you set up your site for free.

I recommend: Try the free features of the web hosting packages from www.gossimer.biz, where you can get free software for forums, blogs, shopping carts and image galleries. For an additional fee you can also take advantage of their plans for site building software.

Look at your budget

You do not want to pay to the teeth for a web hosting package, so you have better shop around. Get a second, third and fourth option. Don’t be fooled by the lower prices though. Some plans might offer a lower rate but could offer fewer features. Review the rate carefully and look at what each company offers before making a decision.

I recommend: Use review sites like www.hosting-review.com to compare rates and review their features. If you do not have the budget to buy web hosting, check out this article about free web hosting and how it can work for you or against you.

List down everything and compares

With all the information you have collected so far, choosing the right web hosting plan for you can get a bit confusing. Start by listing down all things you need for your website. The next thing you need to list down the plans that you can actually afford. Then, list down the features that you really need. A lot the unnecessary expenditures come from buying features you don’t really need.

I recommend: docs.Google.com has a set of tools that are totally free. You can use this to collaborate with other members of your team to see what works for you and your entire organization.

Try it out and then make a decision

There are some web hosting companies that offer free trials on their web hosting services. Give these a try first before committing to a contract. If you like their services and it fits your needs, then, by all means, go for the one that you have seen work. In case your free trial does not work out keep one of the plans you like as insurance. Remember to take note of the expiration date of the free trials. Read through the fine print as well. You don’t want to go back and return the product only to find out that you are no longer qualified.

I recommend: There are a lot of web hosting companies out there that offers free trial periods. One such company is www.homestead.com which is a company owned and operated by Intuit.

Tips and Tactics

• Choose phone over email support. When choosing a company to host your website it would be best to have phone support. Email is an effective means of communication most of the time but it can fall through the cracks. For really urgent issues, it would be best to go directly to a phone support personnel.
• Leave room for growth. Murphy’s Law states that all empty space will eventually be filled. The same goes for a website. As you start slow you will eventually grow your business. As your business grows your need for greater bandwidth and server space will grow. Leave room for growth without breaking your budget.
• Do it right the first time. If you are working on a website for the first time and you have no experience with computers, you would be best served getting someone to build your website for you. Try to find affordable web services in the internet. If your budget does not allow for an outside hire, try finding a hosting company with easy to use tools for web development

Recommended Solutions Providers

• If you are looking for the most bang for your buck then www.gossimer.biz and their many free features should be perfect for your needs.
• Comparing web hosting rates is a long and tedious process. The review site www.hosting-review.com compares the rates for you while reviewing all the features.
• Intuit’s free web hosting service http://www.homestead.com/ provides free web hosting service by one of the largest business software company in the world
• Google Docs is a surprisingly powerful free online service that allows you to create presentations, documents and spreadsheets while collaborating with other people on the internet.

Best Sites to Learn More

• YouTube has some informative videos like this one: www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9nie_l9sKc.
• There is a detailed explanation of web hosting and what it does in www.Wikipedia.com
• Joining forums like www.webhostingtalk.com can be a great way to communicate with web hosting professionals. It is better to get the information straight from the horse’s mouth.

Best Blogs and Forums

• http://blog.lunarpages.com/2008/12/19/look-back-at-wordpresss-past/ – This blog has interesting insight on web hosting and the origins of the popular Word-Press.
• www.bytesforall.com – This blog is jam-packed with useful information about web hosting
• www.webhostingtalk.com – This one of the largest forums about web hosting in the internet with over a million posts and thousands of threads.

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