How to Choose a Website Hosting Company
You’ve bought your domain name and need to choose a company to host your website. There are plenty of options—both in Australia and overseas—which may leave you feeling overwhelmed by choice. It can be tempting to choose cheap web hosting but price is just one thing to consider.
Here are 5 important things to consider when choosing a company to host your website… and just for fun, we’re going to relate these to cars.
Performance
You don’t see a ute racing around the track at the Grand Prix. This doesn’t mean utes are no good—in fact, they’re perfect for carrying tools, but not for racing. Like cars, there are different types of servers that give different levels of performance. Your web hosting company must have reliable, robust servers that are made to handle high volumes of web traffic. They must use the latest software and have a maintenance schedule that ensures equipment is checked, updated and replaced when needed.
A high performing server means that your website downloads quickly and is responsive and fast for your customers.
Security
Your car insurance premium is reduced if your car is housed in a locked garage because it’s safer than parking on the street. Like your car, your website needs to be ‘parked’ in a secure place to keep it safe. Your web hosting company must have the latest security software installed on their servers. This software must be continually updated and reviewed to ensure it is the most effective option available.
A secure server minimises the chance of your website being hacked.
Backups
Backups are like car insurance. If something goes wrong, you need to know you’re covered. Your web hosting company must perform daily backups to ensure minimal impact on your business if there is a problem.
Regular backups means your website can be easily restored with minimal downtime or impact to your customers.
Customer Service
If your car breaks down or needs a service, you call your mechanic. You talk about the issue and make plans to get it sorted. If you’re supposed to be going on holidays in two days and the radiator’s blown, you want your mechanic to understand the urgency. Your web hosting company must be easily contactable, just like your mechanic. You need a number you can call, that will be answered by a real person who can understand your needs.
Excellent customer service means you can speak to someone who can help with you, when you need help.
Trust
You don’t know how to service your car and you don’t need to—that’s why you go to a mechanic. They are the experts. Your web hosting company needs to know what they are doing—they are the experts and you need to trust them. Trust will be built over time, which means it can be difficult when first choosing a company to work with. Ask for recommendations from colleagues, read the company’s website and most importantly, give them a call. These are the people you are trusting to look after your website—talk to them first.
Trusting your website hosting company means one less thing for you to worry about so you can focus on your business.
Choosing a Website Hosting Company
While price will be a factor in the decision to choose a website hosting company, it shouldn’t be the only factor. Your website is the online presence of your business and you need to make sure the company hosting your website understands how important that is.
Melbourne Online offer reliable web hosting solutions on secure servers we manage and control. If you have any questions about website hosting, please give us a call - 1300 721 821
