You have decided to create a website to develop your business? You will have to choose a web host for your site.
To successfully pass this step, it is recommended to compare the different web hosting services between them, but especially to ask yourself the right questions in order to make the right choice.
What is web hosting?
In computer language, a web host is a company that owns servers. The servers are sort of big computers that will store all the information and files of your website (texts, images, design, etc.) in systems called « database ». And it is thanks to this hosting service that your website will be accessible 24/7 on the Internet.
Choosing a hosting company means building the foundations of your professional website. If it is efficient and solid, you will start on a healthy basis.
These hosting companies offer different services more or less efficient and expensive depending on your needs. For example, the quality of the bandwidth that influences the speed of loading the pages of a site will depend on the size of this site. If you have an e-commerce site with more than 1000 pages, it will be necessary to ensure that the loading speed is optimal to guarantee a fluid navigation to your visitors. To do this, you will need to choose a web host that offers a full service with excellent bandwidth.
Also, consider looking at the quality of customer service, because if the technical support team is quick to resolve a hosting-related issue, then there will be little to no impact on your site. This is a major asset for the credibility and reputation of your site.
5 criteria to choose your web hosting
It is essential to think about what you need to find the right solution for you. From a simple web page to a high traffic e-commerce site, hosting solutions have different characteristics and costs.
Nevertheless, pay attention to these criteria when you choose:
The amount of storage space you will be allocated corresponds to the current and future amount of data needed to run your site. We can’t give you a minimum, as it depends on the size of your site. However, we consider that you need an average of 500 MB for a showcase site of about ten pages, without counting the storage of backups.
The bandwidth. For this, you must have a good estimate of the number of visitors on the site. In any case, you must have enough bandwidth to ensure optimal accessibility to your website. Very often, web hosting companies offer unlimited bandwidth, but compensate with limited storage space.
Access to an email service. Some web hosts offer a messaging service that can be useful to you. For example, if you are creating your law firm’s website, you will certainly need a professional email address.
The SSL certificate. It guarantees the security of the hosted content, and fights against data piracy. Hosting companies tend to offer it automatically in all their subscriptions. Don’t ignore it, it is imperative to check it before choosing your host. The SSL certificate on your site is materialized by the mention HTTPS and a padlock located to the left of the name of your site in the URL bar of your web browser, as shown in the illustration below.