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Do’s and dont’s of choosing a web hosting provider

Do’s and dont’s of choosing a web hosting provider

Choosing a web hosting provider to put your business or talent online is as important as your talent itself, for a good website hosting platform will offer all and everything necessary for you to create a great online home that rakes in the moolah. These are the top do’s and don’ts of choosing a hosting provider.

Do: Thorough research
Don’t: Simply choose the cheapest plan
Is more always better? Nope. The problem with this philosophy, in terms of web hosting providers, is that one shouldn’t have to pay for features that will never be used. What’s more, cluttering up the dashboard with lesser used widgets and apps will drain resources than make the website resourceful. So, one should research thoroughly the features of various web hosting apps and not simply settle for the cheapest plan that’s available to them. One must make sure that the platform is easy to use, has a free site-building facility, is aesthetically pleasing, has great customer support, etc.

DO: Read the fine print
DON’T: Make assumptions
We like great deals, yes website hosting platforms, for instance, offer free domains as part of their initial sign-up plan for new users. While that’s awfully tempting, read the fine print always. Users should always choose providers that offer a solid and lengthy moneyback guarantee (eHost for instance has a 45-day moneyback guarantee) and also check for the price of the domain after the first year of subscription chances are it will spike handsomely. Try and look for a web host separate from your domain registrar, make sure you own the domain, ensure you read all features in your chosen plan (site security and the likes) and read their terms of agreement.

DO: Read reviews
DON’T: Read and analyze them all, rather taking them at face value
One needs to read thoroughly the user reviews of web hosting companies and look for the top-listed ones they can be very valuable when it comes to choosing a website hosting platform. However, one needs to understand how to sift through the information and data found to extract valuable, usable information. For instance, if a discussion forum was never going to be on the site anyway, then how does it matter if some dissatisfied customers rated it poorly because of its design? Secondly, one should carefully analyze the one-star reviews and look for patterns, rather than basing your opinion on a few negative reports. For instance, if multiple users have reported page lags, then it is worth considering, but if one or two talk about control panel issues, they could be isolated incidents. Last but not the least, take the number of reviewers and the size of the company into account, before making an opinion for yourself after all, it’s a percentages game.