Studies have shown that almost half of all small businesses still have little to no online presence. With Americans’ increased dependence on technology and digital media, this approach to business is becoming much less sustainable.
But for companies looking to get on the web, having the wrong website and email hosting can be almost as bad as having no presence at all.
Choosing the wrong hosting service could give your customers an unpleasant user experience. If customers have difficulty interacting with your business online, they may opt for a competitor.
Here are some tips to help you make sure that your business’s website will bring customers in, rather than drive them away.
Know Your Website and Email Hosting Needs
With web hosting, there aren’t always clear-cut answers about what the best services are. Rather, the service that is right for your business will depend on your specific needs.
So, before you start looking at hosting services, ask yourself a few questions about your vision for your site.
How much traffic do you anticipate having? How much bandwidth and data will you need?
If you won’t have much traffic, then you will probably be fine with a shared server, where you will share your bandwidth with other sites. If your site will be busy, however, you might want to consider a dedicated server that is only available to you.
Also, what do you want your site to do? Will there be an online store, or will it direct users to a brick-and-mortar location? An e-commerce site will require a more secure hosting service than an informational one.
Pros and Cons of Free Hosting Services
To save money, a free hosting service can be an attractive option. If you’re a small, local business that doesn’t plan on handling transactions online, a free hosting service might provide everything you need.
There are a few drawbacks to free services, though. For one, they will include ads from the host, and the host’s name will appear in your URL. This makes your site look less professional.
Also, free hosting services usually offer limited bandwidth. Even if you don’t need much bandwidth now, you may want it later as your company grows.
Consider Signup and Renewal Costs
When you’re choosing a hosting service, it’s important to think long term. Switching to a new web host can be inconvenient for customers trying to access your site.
So, when you’re looking at paid services, make sure to consider both the initial cost of signing up and the yearly renewal costs. In many cases, the host services with the lowest sign-up fees have higher charges for renewing.
Customer Support
If you’re new to web hosting, you’ll want to make sure to choose a hosting service that has a reliable customer support service.
This way, you’ll be confident that your issues will be resolved if there is a problem with your site.
Finding the Right Service for Your Business
Bringing your company into the digital space is an important step. But in order to be successful, it’s important to do it right by choosing effective hosting services.
If you have more questions about website and email hosting, contact us. Our team of experts will work with you to help build your company’s online presence.
