From small "mom and pop"
home-based businesses to mega- stores, people ask this question
in business every single day. Even if you only operate a
small,local business, if you don't have a website (or at
least email) people honestly look at you funny.
A few years ago, website hosting was one of the largest
expenses connected with setting up a website. Now, with
dramatic drops in pricing, website hosting can actually
present the least costly component of operating a website.
However, before you run out and sign up for $2-a-month
website hostingand wake up tomorrow filled with regret,
take 5 minutes right now and learn the main points to consider
when evaluating any website host.
Total Storage
How much space do you get to store your website files?
If you operate a small website with a handful of pages and
only a couple of pictures per page, you can get by with
5-10 MB (megabytes) of disk space or less. However, if your
site contains dozens of pages and hundreds of pictures,
you may need a hosting plan with 10- 25 MB of space.
Data Transfer / Bandwidth
Here's where many people fall down and get run over by
the Internet bus! Bandwidth represents the total amount
of traffic the website host allows you to receive.
Successful sites that get a lot of traffic eat up more
bandwidth than sites without many visitors. Honestly, bargain
website hosting companies don't want you to get much traffic
because your bandwidth costs them money.
If you plan to do any business online, make sure you get
a bare minimum of at least 1 GB (gigabyte) of data transfer
per month.
Email "Aliases"
Most web hosts allow you to set up email addresses connected
with your domain, such as jim@thenetreporter.com, and have
them forward to your email account, like yourname@aol.com.
The ability to set up email aliases forms an integral part
of any online business. Make sure your hosting company allows
you to set up at least 5 email aliases.
Website Tools
If you want to do anything more than let people look at
static web pages, you will need to have certain tools available.
The two most important tools are CGI and website statistics.
These allow you to run scripts and see who came to your
site and when.
Tech Support
Make sure you understand any company's technical support
policies and hours of operation. Don't wait until Saturday
afternoon to discover your only help option is to wait and
email them Monday morning. |