So you’re getting ready to launch your first website or blog? This is an exciting time to create an online presence, as many of us are at home, practicing social distancing, or have been ready to start a side-hustle for a while. Whether you're transitioning your more traditional brick-and-mortar store to an online version or you're exploring a new way of building your brand, nothing will tank your website faster than a poor choice of a hosting provider. Here are several things to consider when you're choosing your first web hosting plan.
Storage and Bandwidth
Your website needs room to grow and to accommodate unexpected spikes in traffic. You need enough bandwidth to accommodate the extra traffic. Plus, your web hosting company needs to be able to keep everything stored on your website, and room to add more content. This means that you need unlimited resources when you’re looking for web hosting for the first time so that you have enough bandwidth and storage.
Customer Support From Your Area
Whatever are you’re from, when you run into issues with your site, you’d want to have a backup that you can understand. That’s why, and if there's trouble with your site, they'll want to speak to someone that they can understand easily. That’s why it’s a great idea to check if the customer support team works 24/7 and if they speak your language. This will make troubleshooting and maintaining your site far easier.
The Very Best Protection From Malware
Security is paramount when you choose a web hosting. If some of the biggest banks and Fortune 500 companies in the world can be susceptible to malware, your site can, too. Chose a site that's constantly updating against the latest threats and has 24-hour monitoring for hacking. You'll get more web traffic when your visitors know that they can trust your site.
Certified Secure Site
Making sure that your site is certified demonstrates your commitment to web security, and ensures that visitors can easily see that their data and connection are safe. When you opt for a certified secure site, your customers will see it and trust you. For that you’ll need an SSL certificate. Check if your chosen provider makes it easy to set one up, or better yet, offers SSL protection for free.
Get A Free Domain Name
Domain names aren’t free to register, but luckily most reputable web hosting sites offer special offers and allow you to register your unique site name for free for the first year. If you're being asked to pay lots of money for a site name that's not taken, you're being scammed. Be sure to check your options and look for the best deal available.
Website Builder That's Easy To Use
User-friendly site-building and lots of plugins can help you design a site that meets your needs and is customizable for what your users are looking for with a website. Easy to find information, intuitive contact forms and interactions, and little extras like an online store functionality are things that many users expect from your site. When yours has these, it only offers you more chances to build and grow.
The Best Selling Tools For Your Online Store
Ultimately, your site should be about building your brand and selling your products. Your online store should have great verbiage that describes your product, especially if you're trying to market your products online. You need to make sure that you have secure check-out so that your customers trust their personal data and payment options are secure from hackers. You also need to give your customers plenty of options for payment, including credit card, PayPal, and Apple Pay or Google Wallet. While this technically is up to you, since you’ll be choosing your CMS, a secure hosting provider is essential, so you and your customers feel safe with each transaction made.
Your online store needs clean, crisp pictures and intuitive ways to custom-order each product. Plenty of bandwidth shows your products to their best and instills trust with your customers.
Scalability
Being able to grow with increased user traffic is critical when choosing your web hosting company. Scalability means that you can keep your loading times and user experience consistent even if your visitors double or triple. Plus, as your online brand and website grow, you may wish to consider adding new features or expanding your online store. These things can't happen unless you have scalability with your site.
Go Green
Many companies are becoming more and more environmentally friendly and obtain most if not all of their power from wind and solar sources. When you are choosing the best web hosting provider, consider finding one that you know is on the leading edge to protect our planet and uses Green energy.
Takeaway
You can create a blog in less than 20 minutes, but if you don't pick the right web hosting then your blog may be shortlived, or you might have loading and connectivity problems that make users click away from your site. It's so important to pick a provider that can grow as you grow and gives consistent user experiences.