Web host shopping can be a tedious job especially if you are doing it for the first time and don’t know what to look for.
To help you get started, here are ten things to look into when you are considering a web host.


1. Knowing your hosting needs
You can never get the right web host without knowing what you need.
What kind of website are you building? Do you need Windows application? Do you need an older (or newer) PHP version? Is RubyOnRails a must for your web apps? Do you need multiple databases for your website? Do you need cart software for your website? Are you planning to start a WordPress blog with your web host? How big (or small) can the web traffic volume go?

These are some of the basic questions to be answered. Have a plan with your website and try figure out what will happens next for the next 12 months.

Do yourself a favour – forget about top 10 hosting list and all the best hosting awards in this early stage. You need a web hosting that’s best for you;. What’s right for others might not be the best for you. Trust me; you don’t want to go with the best Linux hosting in the world when all you need is a Windows hosting that support ASP application. The list of your hosting needs is your ultimate guide to your web host shopping.


2. User reviews

You should have a shortlist of reputable web host when you get step 1 done. Now it’s time to crunch in some user reviews. Go search for trustworthy reviews by real hosting users and read them as much as you can.

User review is important as it tells you the real picture behind the web host. There’s no need to freak out for one or two negative comments; but if you are seeing three full pages of Google results condemning a web host, then you should be aware that something is not right.


3. Web server reliability

No one wants to host their website with a faulty web host. Go search for uptime record and experts’ comment on the shortlisted web hosts. There are various free services available online for this purpose and BestHostRating.com for example, runs a huge database of web host uptime record.


4. Future growth potential with the web host

I knew it’s hard to estimate but if you are planning big for your website, you better look for a web host that allow you to grow. By saying the word growth, I meant upgrading your web host – from shared hosting to VPS to dedicated server – more processing power, memory capacity, disk storage, and better security features.

For example, FatCow and Bluehost are two of my top rated web host. But I wouldn’t recommend them to you if you are planning to launch a gigantic e-commerce website. This is because although they are great web host, they only provide shared hosting and you’ll need to switch host (which might cause a little hassles) if you wish to upgrade to dedicated server in the future.


5. Technical support

I do think that the importance of the technical support department is often over-valued. However to be safe, it’s always recommended to operate your website with a web host that provide good technical support.
One good way to test the support is by asking technical; (but not presale) questions. Ask about the inodes thing, ask about SSH access, ask about server specs – just to test if the support staff is knowledgeable.


6. Pricing

Price is always an issue. Some want it cheap, some want it reasonable, and some don’t mind paying extra as long as the quality is good.
The best thing to do is always go with a web host that is right for you and in the same time, affordable. Don’t go with cheap hosting just because it’s cheap. Sometimes cheap just isn’t the best and there’s often a good reason why a web host is charging more.

For example InMotion looks relative expensive when compare to other shared hosting services but they are offering premium class hosting with loads of advance features. To me, they are charging more for a good reason.

Anyway, in case you are looking for the cheapest hosting, check out this summary about cheap and reliable web host.


7. Commitment period

Do not be surprise to discover some web hosts force their customers to take up long period of commitment contract. Lunarpages, for example, changed their pricing structure recently and customers can only enjoy the low rates hosting by taking up a 5-year hosting plan.

So here’s another money issue besides pricing: Can you afford to pay long term hosting fees in advance? Would you be comfortable commit to a web host for long term? My suggestion to you is never signup web host with more than 2 years upfront unless they provide clear pro-rated refund policy after the trial period.




8. E-mail features

Most (but not all) web hosts support POP3 e-mail features along with auto responder, mail forwarding, and webmail access.
If any one of these features is important to your daily website operations, be very sure that your shortlisted hosting service has them.


9. Capacity for addon domain

Are you planning to host multiple domain names on a same hosting account? The smart way to host multiple websites is go with web host that allows unlimited addon domain – save you both money and time.


10. Backup policy
Last but not least, check with the web host’s backup policy before purchase. Not all web hosts provide daily backup services and even if they do, they might not keep the backup data for a long period. This is the time to test the technical support – ask about their backup policy (questions like how often they do backup, do they stop backup after your account goes more than certain inodes usage, what backupmethod they are using… etc).




Author: Jerry
Source: Web Hosting Secret Revealed