Be Aware of Costs
Be fully aware of what you will be paying for upfront in the plan you choose making sure there are no “hidden fees”.
Evaluate Customer Support
Check out the customer support that is offered; you may need help at all hours of the day or night. Having the ability to talk to a “real” person with technical ability to solve your problem is of top priority to your business.
Uptime Guarantee
99% Uptime Service Agreement – Nothing is worse than not having your site available to your customers. Be sure that the web host guarantees this uptime availability.
Learning Resources
Determine if the web host provides easy to understand tutorials to follow as you start your venture.
Hosting and Domain Ownership
Do not buy the hosting or Domain name from the freelance. Always check the host physical address.
Domain Portability
Can you transfer the domain to another hosting.
Domain Record Management
Can you change the record of your domain anytime without additional charges
Marketing Promises vs. Reality
When looking around for web hosting services you will come across websites that pump up the fact that
“We are ready to help you” and “We are ready to provide you with the best, most awesome support ever!” This sounds appealing, wonderful and heck it promises your website everything it could ever want! The sad truth is that most of these businesses that say We mean I.
Staffing and Service Quality
A web hosting company that oversells itself to the point of making no profits is unable to hire adequate staff. Therefore, they are unable to provide you with “We” and most likely have one individual doing both sales, billing and support. This could result in slow service, unresolved issues or support delays. It also means that if this individual is ill or takes a vacation, there is no one to keep an eye on your website or respond to any support questions.
Do Your Research
Web hosting is a tough business, that requires a lot of time and maintenance. Before purchasing a domain and hosting for your new website, ask necessary questions by e-mailing or contacting a company you may be interested in. Do not be afraid to ask questions about that business, look for the satisfied customers that raise flags about the ways that web hosting business is run. Also, always keep a copy of your website and make updated backups.
