7 Things You Must Remember When Choosing a Web Host

Everybody knows that a house is as good as its foundation. The stronger the foundation, the better the house you are building.

This principle is as true in the online world as in the offline medium. Because the foundation of your Internet presence is the web host you are working with.

But how do you choose the right web host when there are so many options available?

We'll show you here seven things you should keep in mind when shopping for a web hosting company. Let's start...

1) Choose a hosting account based on your real needs.

There is no point to pay for 300 MB disk space when all you need is 20 MB. This is true for data transfer (also called traffic or bandwidth) as well. A new website usually needs only 1-3 GB of monthly data transfer.

On the other hand, if you plan to build a big website and expect a growing number of visitors in a short period of time, then you should choose more disk space and a larger bandwidth.

Besides disk space and data transfer, based on what you plan to do with your website, you may need many other features. So take the time and write down what are your real needs.

2) Choose a web host that is fast and reliable.

The company should have a track record of at least 99% uptime (more is better) and a solid guarantee for this figure.

You really don't want your website to be offline in the middle of a large advertising campaign.

Fast access to your website is also essential. If your pages are not loading fast enough, you will lose your visitors. Internet surfers are impatient and they will just close that slow loading page and move to another website.

3. Choose a hosting company with a very good customer service.

Their support should function 24 hours a day, during all year, including weekends and holidays. You never know when things go wrong and you need someone to help you quickly.

Look for live chat and phone support. Test them. Send questions at various hours, even in the middle of the night, and see how fast they respond and how helpful are their responses.

4) Always read the fine print.

Do you know how much you should pay if you are exceeding the resources allocated for your account? If you are not happy with their services and you have paid for a full year, they will refund your money or not?

Unfortunately, not all of the companies we are dealing with are honest. So be sure to carefully read the fine print, like privacy details, legal pages or policy statements.

This will save you many headaches.

5) A reasonable price.

Although usually you get what you pay for, in this case the most expensive hosting companies are not always the best.

Again, you should pay only for what you need and use. And see if a higher price justifies the features you are being offered.

As always, a good price/quality rapport is what you should be looking for.

6) Do you have multiple domains?

Related with price is the possibility to host multiple domains on the same account and today there are hosting companies that offer this option.

This will not only save you money in the long run but it will also save you time. You don't have to switch between control panels for different domains and generally everything is much easier to manage.

7) Do your own research.

Don't choose a web host just because what they say on their website sounds good. Do your own research and see if they really walk their talk.

Find hosting review websites and read what they have to say. Although some of these websites are affiliates for the companies they review, you should still figure it out if something is wrong.

Ask questions in a few popular forums. Find people that are customers of the company you are inclined to use and listen to them. They will probably tell you if they had any problems.

Always keep in mind these ideas when choosing your web hosting company. This way you will be sure that you build your online business on a strong foundation.