Choosing a Web Host  

How To Choose a Web Host

If you’re using a site builder to build your website, then you won’t have to worry about finding an additional web host as your site builder will host the website for you. Your pages will automatically be uploaded to their hosting program and available for all to view on the net.

If you choose a site building program or other form of web design, then you will have to find a hosting service to host your website.   When you build your pages you will upload them to your hosting server for all to view on the net. 

What to Look For in a Hosting Service

The most important thing to look for is that they are a reliable and reputable company.   If a hosting server goes down for some time because of glitches or other reasons so will your website. 

A good hosting company will list a history of their uptime.   Do keep in mind all companies will have some downtime for maintenance and so on, but a good company will inform you of any planned downtime and will work hard to keep it to a minimum. 

They will also need a data backup system in place for system failures.   You should also have a back up of all your data.

Important Considerations When Choosing a Web Host

Disk Space

Disk space is the amount of space available for your files (your pages, graphics, etc.) Most standard web pages are about 50K in size.  If you simply have a website promoting your MT services, you won't require a lot of MB.  Unless you’re going for a full blown website including articles, directories, etc. you should have more than enough space with 25 to 50 MB.

Bandwidth

Bandwidth refers to the amount of activity on your site.   The more visitors you have the more bandwidth you’ll need.   To start you’ll probably only need 2GB.   Many hosting packages now provide unlimited bandwidth so you may not have to worry about this.   If you do go for a set bandwidth make sure you can upgrade as necessary.   Most reputable web hosts will offer this feature.

Email Account

Once you have a professional website you’ll also need a professional looking email account.   It’s always surprising to see a web site that uses email at mysite@aol.com  or mysite@yahoo.com  .   This doesn’t look very professional.

So along with your hosting you’ll want to make sure to include at least one or more email addresses.   One can be yourname@yoursite.com  or info@yoursite.com  , etc.

If you’ll have more than one person helping you with your website you may want to give them their own email address as well. 

The hosting package you choose will include pop3 email options.

Free Hosting

You may be also tempted to go for free hosting service, but I would strongly advise against this.   Free hosting is managed by advertisements which you don’t control.   Your customers will also get bombarded with annoying popups and this won’t make a good impression for your business.   Paid hosting is definitely the way to go and for a few dollars a month you’ll have a professional business presence.

Next à Designing Your Website