If you are looking to run an online clothing store, you are predominantly thinking about clothes, while health product resellers will have their minds preoccupied with thoughts of food blenders and meal prep containers. Whilst this is to be expected, there is one area of online business that should not be forgotten about, and that is web hosting.
If you run any sort of online business, your website is akin to the front door of a brick and mortar store. If your website does not make it as easy as possible for a potential customer to spend money with you, then you are going to put your business at an immediate disadvantage. The easiest way to make sure your digital door is wide open, is to choose the right web host, and when considering the options, there are a few things to weigh up before making your choice.
Help available when needed
The first consideration to make is something that many prospective customers gloss over and do so at their peril. When it comes to having a reliable host, it sometimes pays to avoid the giant names in the industry and go with a slightly smaller company. Why is this? Simply put, smaller companies often have far superior customer service than the big names in the industry. An example would be the likes of Verpex™ hosting. This company offers the same level of service as the larger names in the industry, but pride themselves on being able to provide a much higher level of personal assistance when needed. When you go with the giants of any industry, you are but a number to them. If you wish to feel like a valued customer, and receive a more personal service when things go awry, choose a company that knows the importance of good technical support.
Technical knowhow
In an era when so many people are trying their hand at starting an online venture, not everyone is going to be an expert in the technical side of website hosting. If you fall into this category, the last thing you want to do before getting your business off the ground is needing to learn the ‘ins and outs’ of this particular area of tech. Some hosts offer you a very basic package where all the ‘heavy lifting’ is done by the customer themselves, whereas others can offer deals that involve not only the hosting, but the website design and/or website migration thrown in. Make sure you find yourself the host that ticks the right boxes when it comes to your skills and needs.
The need for online speed
Speed is another hugely important factor when choosing your provider. A slow connection to your site will mean many customers will turn their back on you in search of a website that loads its pages promptly. You are most likely not the only company or service in the world selling your wares, and as such, you should make sure that your potential customers don’t have time to wonder whether your page is ever going to load up or not. With most hosting companies, you can choose a package to suit your needs and makes sure you provide a timely and efficient service. If you are expecting a huge volume of traffic, make sure your web hosting server has enough RAM to cope, along with an SSD (solid-state drive) if the options is available, along with making sure there is a server mirror physically near to your location and that of your customer base. Those perusing your site will thank you for it.
Does your host offer value for money?
Finally, value for money is something every new business needs to consider. If any aspect of your business is not good value for money, it is time for a rethink, and web hosting is no different. This can mean either end of the value spectrum too. you can either be paying for cheap, poorly performing hosting that is detrimental to your business performance, or you can be paying over the odds for a service that is far beyond what you will ever need. Web hosting is an area where this is easily rectifiable within many companies, in that you can scale your service up or down depending on how your business grows. You can start with a relatively small and inexpensive package, and as demand increases, you can move onto a more sustainable one. If the larger packages are extortionate, look at the competition and see how your current provider stacks up.
Finding a web host shouldn’t be a hassle so long as you know what you need from your provider. With so many options available out there, finding the right one is the least challenging aspect of making a success of your venture. Put in a little time, find the right foundation for your online presence, and get back to concentrating on the venture itself.
