While most smart business owners utilise websites and blogs to engage with existing clients and reach potential customers and see the value of creating excellent content, the importance of selecting a good web host often takes a back seat. Unfortunately, in our experience, many small businesses end up making the wrong choice in the beginning because they do not adequately evaluate their needs. At HITS, we are here to make sure you make the right choices to meet your hosting needs.
HITS first started as an IT-provider and then blossomed into a Creative Web Design Agency. Our team is made up of dedicated techies pushing the boundaries of website hosting. We always try to be ahead of the game utilising the latest server technologies such as cloud hosting, free SSL certificates and fast code optimisation such as Gzip & PHP 7.3. We strive to meet a guaranteed uptime of 99%; however, we are delighted to have exceeded this by achieving 100% uptime on our latest servers in the last two years.
What Happens When You Make The Wrong Hosting Choice?
As a business, one of your most important priorities is maximising profits. So if you think choosing the wrong web hosting can’t hurt your income, think again. Here are some terrible things that can happen when you don’t want the best hosting for your needs:
- Loss of revenue – If your site goes down, your potential customers will not be able to view your blog posts or learn about your products and services. Even worse, if you host an online store, you will lose out on potential sales and income. Amazon recently had a 40-minute outage which cost them about 5 million dollars. Your loss might not be as significant, but it’s still a loss of revenue.
- Negative effect on your SEO Ranking – Your goal with content marketing is to rank high in search results so customers can easily find you. If your site is down repeatedly when search engines are attempting to visit, then your ranking will be adversely affected. Aside from downtime, many SEO experts believe that slow websites can also hurt your rankings.
- Security & Malware Attacks – There is no perfect solution for keeping your website secure. However, a reputable web hosting company will back up your data to a remote server and make it easy to restore in case your site is hacked. They will also assist you with technical support, maintenance and security issue 24 hours a day.
How Do I Choose The Best Web Hosting Provider?
It’s crucial to choose a reliable web hosting company to ensure that your website remains safe and accessible all year round. However, if you are experiencing problems with your existing provider or have no idea what needs/features to consider, here are some tips that can help:
- Understand the different hosting options available – There are various web hosting options available such as Shared, VPS (Virtual Private Server), Dedicated and Managed Web hosting. It’s always good to make an educated discussion, so you choose the best option for your needs.
- Excellent customer support is a must – The internet never sleeps. Look for a provider that offers superior customer support. Hosting providers may claim they offer 24-7 support, but this will not guarantee you will receive fast knowledgeable service. Test the response of the customer support staff before committing to any long-term hosting contract.
- Choose a host with an excellent uptime track record – The hosting provider you choose should take every precaution to ensure maximum uptime. While no web host can guarantee 100 per cent uptime, it should offer at least 99 per cent uptime on average.
- Cost should not be your only consideration – As the saying goes, “you get what you pay for.” As a business, you cannot afford to experience extended downtime. Basic shared web hosting is great if your site is generating only a small amount of traffic. On the other hand, if you’re in the business of selling products or producing a large amount of traffic, then a dedicated or managed hosting provider is a far better choice. It will cost more upfront but will be more reliable in the long run. The level and quality of technical support will be better too.
- Ability to scale – As your business grows, your website will tend to generate more traffic. The ability to scale will be increasingly important. Your web hosting provider should be able to upgrade and scale to accommodate your traffic growth. Just remember that there is no such thing as “unlimited resources”.
- A good reputation is essential – Once you have narrowed the list of essential features you require, the next step is to find a host with a top-notch reputation.
- Do a background check. Find out how long the company has been in business.
- Can they provide you with testimonials and endorsements from current clients?
- Check maintenance schedules and average downtime statistics
Conclusion
There are a lot of web hosting companies out there. It’s crucial to select a hosting provider carefully since your business will depend on it. Do your homework.
Remember that choosing a hosting provider solely on price is not worth the hassle and headaches if your site goes down. Are you happy with your web hosting provider? What steps did you take the last time you experienced downtime? What essential features do you look for?
How Can HITS Help?
At HITS, we can create a bespoke hosting package for your needs tailored towards the resources and features you require as a growing company. We offer options for small businesses to medium and large corporations. So why not contact the HITS team today to discuss website hosting.
