Web hosting is probably the most tech heavy subject any business owner or blogger will ever deal with in their web endeavors. Think of the term itself. Web hosting. Sounds a little intimidating, doesn’t it? Even people with a technology background may find this a little overwhelming.
But fear not my fine blogging friends, for I shall throw some Harry Potter magic at this and attempt to make this complex subject easy to understand. I hope, I hope, I hope.
Let’s start with the basics. What is web hosting?
In its most basic form, web hosting is the act of buying or “renting” space on a computer or “server” to place your web site files so they can be viewed on the Internet. It’s like renting an office or an apartment. You pay a company a fee for using a computer that is connected to the Internet. For that fee, they will provide you with disk space, bandwidth, email services and an array of tools you will need to take care of your blog or web site.
Simple right?
Now, I’m not going to get into the real techy stuff in this post. I run the risk of putting you into a mid-day nap and in the end, it really won’t mean that much to you anyway. But there are a few things you should know so you don’t get stranded along the Information Super Highway.
Pricing: Cheap web hosting is scattered all over the Internet. But is this the only element to consider when picking a company to host your blog or web site? In my humble opinion, price is one of the last things you should consider. Reliability, great customer support and easy-to-use tools are a few key areas you should look at before pricing. Companies like Hostgator, Blue Host and Dream Host offer very reasonable prices for their hosting packages. Plus they back up those prices with great support and reliable service. Most companies are unable to provide that level of support.
If you’re someone who is fortunate enough to have boatloads of traffic and are beginning to earn a sizable income from your blog or web site, I suggest that you consider a VPS (Virtual Private Server) or dedicated server. These options cost more than shared hosting, but they give you more flexibility, stability and control. Something you definitely need as your blog or web site grows.
Customer Service: Time to do some web hosting recon. Head on over to the web hosting company’s web site you’re considering using. Check out if they have the following: a toll free number,24/7 chat, and a forum.
Now we all know that a company can say anything on their site to get you sucked in, but let’s put it to the test, shall we?
First, fire up the chat and see how responsive they are to a question. Need a question? Ask the chat operator this: “How frequently do you back up your servers and how long does it take to restore if a server crashes?”
You’re looking for two things here. First, how long it takes for the rep to come up with the answer and two, how long does it take to get the server back up!!! The question demonstrates to the rep that you’re not just some average web hosting shopper, so the rep may be more responsive. If it takes an unreasonable amount of time to get an answer, it may be an indication of the overall service you’ll get when you are a customer.
Your next test is to call the company’s toll free number and ask the same questions. You’ll learn how long it takes for a live operator to get to your call and if the operator knows his (or her) stuff. If you have to wait forever on the phone and the rep gives you the, “um, well, uuuuu, let me look that up” bull-speak, take note and think hard before signing up with that company.
Next, dig though the company’s forum. Don’t spend a ton of time on this, but do take a few minutes to see what customers are saying. If there is trouble in River City, you will see it here!
Hosting Control Panels: Make sure the company uses cPanel for the client side hosting management. You can ask about this when you are on chat or on the phone, but most likely it will be posted somewhere on their web site.
cPanel is hosting software that allows a client to manage email, ftp, files and numerous other tasks related to your website or blog. It’s a point and click interface designed for the most novice user. If they don’t offer it, you might want to look away. Why? cPanel is a widely used hosting panel that many web masters and IT professionals use. So if you ever need help, an expert is not far away. There are also dozens of tutorials available online if you ever get stuck and just need a little help.
Some companies, like 1&1 and GoDaddy, have developed their own in-house hosting control panels. I recommend staying away from companies that offer their own best of breed control panels. Or maybe I should say…RUN FOREST RUN!!! Reason? I find them clunky, slow and difficult to use, especially for a novice user. And they seem to be set up more as an up-sell portal than a web hosting control panel. But hey, that’s my two cents worth.
No matter what company you go with, you will always have issues. Period. For $5.00-$10.00 per month you are not going to get the Amazon.com up-time and lightning fast responses. You are sharing server space with other web site owners and bloggers that may upload something to the server. That high volume activity will bring up-time to a screeching halt. That’s a risk you take. Unless you pony up the big dollars for a massive server farm, it is what it is.
Back up: Here are my last babbling words of infinite wisdom. No matter what, I mean no matter what, you and you alone are responsible for your web site files and backing them up. I’m not going to get into the details of how to back up your web site in this article. Just trust me when I say, you need to do it yourself. If you are using WordPress however, I do recommend Backup Buddy as a fool proof back up.
If the hosting company has a server crash the day you are going to be featured on 60 Minutes, you best have Plan B in place!!
In conclusion, web hosting is something all businesses need if they are going to have a site or blog on the web. And in most cases, you won’t give it two seconds of thought. It’s the days when crap hits the fan that you hope you have picked the best company to help get you back up and running.
Til next time kiddies, rock on!
0 comments:
Post a Comment