| Choosing a web hosting service on which to | | | | When business is concerned, money is at stake |
| situate your business website is a decision which is | | | | as the bottom line. Couple this knowledge with the |
| not to be taken lightly. Unlike where hobby or | | | | apparent likelihood that if things go wrong, they |
| personal websites are concerned, having a host | | | | often will at the worst possible time. The last thing |
| which is not properly suited to your requirements, | | | | you need during a time of crisis is a web host |
| or isn't reliable, can not only affect the image and | | | | which is near impossible to contact or isn't |
| trust of your business, but can have a significant | | | | anywhere near rapid enough with their response |
| detrimental effect on your bottom line. | | | | times. |
| When deciding who to choose as your web host | | | | In order to ensure the best possible experience |
| you will obviously have to ensure they support | | | | you will need a web host which offers so-called |
| any and all of your websites software or script | | | | "24/7" support. That is support personnel who are |
| requirements. This may encompass such things as | | | | available to respond and take action on any of |
| PHP, CGI, ASP, MSSQL, MySQL, etc. In addition to | | | | your queries any time of the day or night, any |
| that however, you will usually need to ensure that | | | | day of the week. Many hosts offer an online |
| your hosts services offerings meet not only your | | | | ticket-based support system as their primary |
| websites needs, but that their business practices | | | | means of dealing with support queries. Whilst this |
| meet your needs as a customer who demands | | | | may be sufficient for the website hobbyist, the |
| and deserves rock-solid performance and reliability. | | | | delay involved in typing out the request coupled |
| The dilemma we face is this: how can we | | | | with the limitations of text-based communication |
| separate the non-contenders from those which | | | | means that being forced to deal with your web |
| are genuinely suited? Here are 3 tips for | | | | host online during a time of urgency can often |
| accomplishing exactly that. | | | | delay the resolution to your problem unnecessary. |
| 1. Check your hosts reliability and up-time | | | | You will usually want to ensure that your web |
| statistics. | | | | host also has a 24/7 phone number available for |
| Perhaps second only to losing your website data | | | | emergency issues, an immediate call-back service |
| is it being inaccessible either to yourself or your | | | | or in the very least a round-the-clock live chat |
| customers. A non-functioning website is as good | | | | system. |
| as having no website, and even if you're not | | | | 3. Your host should take the integrity of your |
| relying on your online presence to drive sales | | | | data as seriously as you do. |
| directly, your website being inaccessible for any | | | | With modern websites often having complex |
| length of time has the potential to be damaging of | | | | database-driven back-ends, the content of an |
| the trust and respect you could have or may | | | | average website changes more frequently today |
| already have built up - not only amongst potential | | | | than it used to. This is certainly the case when |
| customers but also the wider general public. | | | | e-commerce websites are concerned. |
| It's a given that every web host whose site you | | | | The worst possible thing that can happen is for |
| visit will make claims of being reliable and | | | | your data to be lost. Even if you keep relatively |
| trustworthy, but as the saying goes, "The proof | | | | frequent backups in the event of such a loss, the |
| is in the pudding". In this case, the pudding is your | | | | data you hold can be exceptionally outdated even |
| potential web hosts up-time statistics. Any web | | | | if only a few days or hours old. To avoid what |
| host with a reliable, honorable track-record will | | | | can often prove to be a major headache - or in a |
| often publish up-time statistics in order to illustrate | | | | worst case scenario, a monumental disaster - you |
| the level of reliability you can expect based on | | | | will want to ensure that your web host employs |
| their past service history. Now, things can and will | | | | redundancy in their data storage and takes |
| go wrong from time-to-time, and every web host | | | | frequent, periodic backups of your hosting |
| needs to perform occasional scheduled | | | | accounts entire data pool. |
| maintenance in order to ensure the security and | | | | In the event of a data loss, your host will then |
| integrity of their servers and their network. For | | | | have a backup (or series of backups) which are |
| this reason it's unlikely any web host can | | | | much more up-to-date than your personal |
| guarantee a 100% up-time. A more realistic level | | | | backups would be, and lot faster and easier to |
| would be along the lines of 99.5% to 99.9% | | | | restore. In some cases, this could be done by |
| up-time. Indeed, any less would be considered | | | | your web host without them having to liaise with |
| sub-par by modern standards, and a guarantee of | | | | you first, thus reducing the delay in getting your |
| any more is likely to be a lie. | | | | website back online and functioning normally. This |
| Statistics published by and as a result of a web | | | | is why it imperative that your web host takes |
| hosts self-monitoring is one thing, but statistics | | | | your data integrity very seriously and conducts |
| can and often are tampered with. In order to | | | | their own regular backups of your data instead of |
| eradicate this possibility, look for a web host who | | | | placing all responsibility on their customer. |
| instead (or in addition) outsource their up-time | | | | If you consider consider these 3 points when |
| monitoring and statistics generating to a | | | | searching for a web host for your business, you |
| third-party non-affiliated company. This ensures | | | | will increase your chances of steering clear of |
| your statistics are as unbiased and reliable as can | | | | many of the problems other less fortunate |
| be. | | | | business owners experience who may have been |
| 2. Ensure your host provides round-the-clock | | | | too hasty and not cautious enough when choosing |
| support through a multitude of different mediums. | | | | their web host. |