If you want to do well in the world of business these days, it is important to have a website in place. But just having an attractive and well-designed website cannot guarantee you all the success. What you need is a fully functional and operational website that offers an excellent user experience to your visitors. You need to understand that design and functionality are two aspects that you should never ignore if you want to succeed in the online landscape. While the design aspect is easy to manage, the functionality front is a bit tricky because it is wholly dependent on the web host you choose for your business.
It is for this reason that you need to weigh your options carefully when it comes to selecting the web hosting company for your business. It is a decision that can make or break your online journey.
Therefore, it is important to select a web hosting service provider with a lot of caution. You need to do some research before finalizing a web hosting company. Here are some common mistakes that you need to avoid when choosing a web hosting company. But before getting into the mistakes, let us try to understand what web hosting means.
What is web hosting?
It (web hosting) is a service that allows businesses and individuals to post a website or web page on the internet. A web host often called a web hosting service provider is an organization that provides all the infrastructure, technology, and services needed for the website to survive and be viewed on the internet. Websites are stored or hosted on computers which are called servers. When people want to view your website, what they need to do is type your website address in their browser, and this is how it gets accessed.
5 common mistakes you need to avoid when choosing a web hosting company
As mentioned earlier, it is in your interest to select the best web hosting service provider. It can be difficult to deal with problems like slow load speed, security breakdowns, poor customer service, and other unforeseen restrictions. Any or all of these problems can negatively impact the performance of your website.
Hence, you need to ensure that you don’t commit these common mistakes when you set out to choose a web hosting company. Here are five common mistakes you need to avoid when selecting a web hosting company:
- Don’t fall for the free web hosting services – Nothing in this world comes for free. Companies are not doing business for charity; they are there in the market to make money. Hence, never fall for the ‘free’ trap. It is better to know the cost upfront rather than keep paying the hidden cost for a long time.
When it comes to web-hosting providers, you only get what you give. For amateur bloggers and those who want to pursue their hobbies, free web hosting might be a suitable option, but it can never be a viable option for organizations that want to make it big in the business world.This is why you need to avoid free web hosting services for your business:I. The service they offer is mostly slow and often unavailable.
II. They display a lot of third-party advertisements.
III. You don’t get the option to scale your business.
IV. It is difficult for you to improve your search engine ranking.Hence, it is amply clear that all these problems can hamper the functioning of your website which will only drive away your visitors. That is the reason why you should always opt for a paid hosting service and avoid free hosting services.
- Don’t just base your decision on prices – You should not rush into buying web hosting based exclusively on the price because prices alone don’t give you the complete picture about its performance.
What you need to factor in with the price are the features that the service provider is ready to offer.
Higher prices do not guarantee you everything; it can just be a smart marketing ploy to attract new customers. Similarly, if you find a service provider offering you cheap rates, it does not necessarily mean that they are underperformers. There is a chance that they are offering discounts to their first-time customers which means they want to attract new customers.
Hence, it is vital for businesses to know their priorities. You need to know the features you want for your business and do factor in the scalability issue as well. After you know what you want, you can make a list of companies, and then compare their prices. - Don’t fall for the ‘unlimited’ saga – Many a time you will see advertisements offering unlimited features to customers which is more common for service providers offering shared hosting. You need to be careful about such offers because it is mostly to attract new customers.
Unlimited bandwidth and storage don’t come for free. Service providers who offer shared hosting have a certain capacity, and they usually do not live up to the promises they make. The net result could be poor website performance, slow page load speed, and uptime issues. Some other problems that you can face are:
I. You don’t get additional POP accounts.
II. You don’t get website performance statistics.
III. You don’t get the option to install your software.
IV. You also don’t get SSH connectivity.
All these problems can hamper the functioning of your website. According to a report, if your site takes more than three seconds to load, 40% of the users will abandon the process.
What you need to do is read web hosting specifications in detail and jot down the restrictions so that you know what is in store for your business. - Not checking online reviews – Before taking the plunge, it is important for you to check the online reviews. A web hosting provider can best be judged by the reviews that are there on the internet. If you find that most of the customers are satisfied with the provider, you can go ahead and sign the deal. But if the reviews are not satisfactory, then you need to change your decision.
There are a lot many things that you can find out from online reviews. You can get to know about their overall performance, security issues, customer service, routine complaints, and various other things.
But you have to be careful with online reviews because service providers can manage testimonials and even buy positive comments to enhance their online reputation.
Hence, one way to know about the provider is to speak to their customers and take a first-hand report from them. Alternatively, you can explore and compare their cancellation rates. In case their cancellation rates are high, then you should understand that you are not dealing with a high-quality service provider. - Not paying adequate attention to customer service – Even the best web hosting service providers cannot guarantee you a glitch-free experience all the time. Hence, it is important for you to ensure that they have responsive customer care. You need them whenever you get stuck somewhere. And, if your problem is not resolved quickly, it can erode your online credibility to a great extent. What you need is round the clock customer service which most of the decent web hosting service providers should offer.
Most of the service providers offer customer service through live chat, email, and phone. Do test them on all these fronts to check whether they have responsive customer care or not.
If you have to climb the success ladder in the online arena, you need to make sure that you keep your customers satisfied and constantly strive to improve their overall experience. But if your web hosting provider is not up to the mark, it is difficult for you to impress your prospects. And, that is the reason why you need a reliable web hosting provider.
If you want to do well in the online landscape and are looking for a reliable web hosting service provider, you can get in touch with vStacks Infotech now. We have been in the business of web hosting for long, and we are fully equipped to deliver excellent service.
