Factors in Choosing a Commercial Web Host: Part 1

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If you intend to use a commercial web host, you have a different set of criteria that you can use to guide you different from the criteria that you use in choosing a free web host. Before anything else, one thing that you have to keep in mind is there is no such thing as a perfect web host. No matter how much you pay, you will still experience some set backs. However, one thing is sure though, paying less than ten dollars a month would yield very different results from paying more than that. You will always still get your money’s worth.

These are the things that you have to consider:

a.       With free web host, speed is unlimited. That is why you opted for commercial web host because you have a dire need for speed. If they promised you this kind of speed, then you should get it. If you don’t, then you should always ask for a refund. Do not go for 99 percent uptime – go for 99.5 percent.

b.      Do not be surprised when even with an unlimited bandwidth offer, you would get an additional bill because you exceeded the bandwidth. There is no such thing as unlimited and once you exhausted more than what the host actually expected, they will pay for the price, and since they are not running a charity, they would remind you the hard way. To be sure, just be frank and ask them directly the real score with bandwidths.

c.       In this time when size seems to become bigger and bigger every year, being offered a 500 MB disk space is not rare. Note, however, that you will not be able to consume everything. The average space consumption is just about 10 MB. SO before you go for this package, think first about what you need. It will save you from paying extra for nothing.

d.      Since you are paying for services that they render, you should also have easy access to the web hosting company round the clock. The advantage of the online community is its accessibility any time, any day, and in any place. If you experience problems, you would lose this valuable advantage. Thus, the technical support should offer round the clock and responsive support.

e.       Since you are paying for your website, then there is no excuse not to have your own FTP, Perl, SSI, PHP, MysQL, crontabs, telnet and .htacccess. You should be able to use them with ease, without having to ask for any permission. The idea is you paid for them and you should have them.

f.        If your site is business related, then it would be suicide if you do not have an SSL and a Shopping Cart. Make sure that you have this in the package. Though they may come with an additional charge, it would surely help you get money from customers so it’s a good deal.