Before you decide on a hosting package based solely on price, you really need to think about the needs of your business, not just now, but in the near future.
For the most part, WAHM businesses are small operations, however, you don’t want to sell yourself short when it comes to choosing a hosting plan. Your budget should definitely be a consideration, but if getting the best plan for your website means stretching it a little, it could turn out to be a worthwhile investment in your business.
Before you choose a WAHM hosting package, here are 3 things you need to consider:
What does your website consist of?
A website with a few pages of text and pictures isn’t going to require a substantial amount of disk space, so a package offering 50 MB of disk space will be sufficient. However, if you have many graphics, pictures, text, scripts, and a database, then you will want to choose a package with 100 MB to 500 MB of disk space to accommodate your current needs.
Determining the size of your website is a big factor in choosing a hosting plan, so make sure you take the time to understand what your business consists of.
What are your short term business goals?
Even if you do not have a large website right now, you need to think about the short term goals that you want to accomplish. Are you planning on adding more products or services to your current line? Do you want to start a mailing list? Do you want to add scripts, such as a blog or project management program? Do you plan on increasing your traffic flow? All these things eventually add up to more disk space usage, and if you go ahead and pay for a year’s worth of hosting of a small package, you could find yourself in a jam when you run out of disk space.
Spend a few minutes jotting down your short term goals, so that you will have a better idea of how your business is going to progress in the next few months. Once that’s done, it will be easier to select a wahm hosting package that is suited to your goals.
What are your long term business goals?
A common occurrence with wahm businesses is that they tend to grow much more then anticipated, and plans quickly change. Understanding what your webhost offers in their hosting packages can save a lot of hassles in the long run, like having to switch hosting providers. Carefully review all the features and guarantees. If your future growth means adding a team of sales representatives; will you be able to do that with your hosting package?
Don’t make the mistake of jumping in with both feet just because the price is right, you have take into account the short and long term needs of your business, not to mention customer support and uptime. The last thing you want is a support team you can never get in touch with, a website that is always down, and a hosting package that doesn’t suit your business.
Review the hosting features and prices, reflect on your business goals, and make sure you ask questions if there is something you don’t know, or understand before you choose a package!

The definition of web hosting is when an organization provides a service where people can have their own online Internet Identity. If you want others to see your website you will need one of these and depending on whether it is a commercial site or not will dictate how much you pay but it is possible to have this at no charge (with restrictions). The hosting company has a number of servers, or data centers, where each person is provided with varying amounts of space to store their digital media, including websites; others can then access these files web pages for example by use of a Internet browser such as Internet Explorer, Firefox or Safari to name a few.
A large number of companies will supply free hosting to individuals, but not generally to business entities, where they are able to have websites and blogs without any charge. For more storage space, better email facilities, sub domains and more you really need to look at paid web hosting plans; this is particularly pertinent for businesses wanting their own online web presence. There is a huge range of services available and often comparison sites are the best place to search as prices do vary considerably and you must really know in advance what type of service you need.
Initially, a lot of users decide on paying for a shared server with their hosting company.This enables them to see if they have chosen a very good hosting company; then often they may upgrade to a reseller’s account, virtual private or dedicated server. Upgrading a hosting account to one of the aforementioned usually gives one more disk space and greater bandwidth along with other improved services. Often using shared hosting limits the amount of resources the hosting company would allow on the shared server. An example of this would be they might denie the ability to use certain resource intensive scripts.
However, all this is academic if one has not registered a domain name that can be used in conjunction with the web hosting account where one can upload their web files to. Web files is a generic term that can mean anything from basic HTML pages to video or audio tracks but be aware that free or basic paid packages do not give the most storage if you are intending to upload an extensive amount of large files. But rest assured that what ever amount of web space you need, you will be able to find a web hosting company that can meet your needs.
The good thing about having your own web hosting package attached to your own registered domain name means that you can create all of your desired email addresses to contain your domain name with in them. If you are a business this is much better than using a free service email provider you may have been using previously. Such e-mail addresses are very important, especially if you’re truly serious about your business as they provide you with a level of credibility that free email addresses never can.
The amount of data that is viewed on your website each time someone accesses it is called bandwidth; it is an extremely important aspect to consider and the main reason why buying the cheapest hosting package is not always best. If your hosting company can’t offer you better bandwidth, then it will be very hard for your users to view your web pages. This is extremely important if your website has many images, MP3 tracks or other large files like video clips. Even a single web page can contain a great deal of information, all of which is considered as bandwidth.
So in closing what ever you are wanting in a website to reflect your personal or business entity will be readily available, from free to expensive web hosting. It is all out there waiting for you to choose. And one of the great things about this modern day internet world is what ever you choose, if you are not happy with it, you can change. It might cost you though, so it behooves you to do some research in the beginning to decide what you are wanting in a website and then find the web hosting company that can meet those needs.

The web host is a provider of service that allows your website to be placed on their computers. These high-powered computers are connected to the internet. When people surf the internet, web hosting companies like Bluefish Web Hosting and Blue Host are the ones that allow others to access your website. The hosting computers are similar to the ones we have at home but are designed to serve up websites thus the term “server”.The web host with fast connections to the internet through their super computers will rent out space to get your site upon the World Wide Web with thousands of other websites.Web hosting companies will use Data Centers. Data Centers are special, secured 24/7 buildings that house hundreds of these server computers. They have backup systems to insure your website is always available to the World Wide Web.All website hosting have some common features such as the server type, this relates to the software the host will use to manage peoples websites, basic website like most of us have are fine but if your site has complex data crunching you will need a server using a more complex software like Linux and Unix. Disk space is the actual amount of space on their computer the host will dedicate to your site, Bluefish Web Hosting and Blue Host offer huge space for cheap! Bandwidth/Data transfer, the measure of how much and how fast website traffic and data information can pass through from your host through the World Wide Web to others accessing your website. Finally the last common feature you will find among hosts is Email Accounts and how many you can have with your web hosting.How your website gets a name and to assure its available is a service your host can provide. Your website is given an IP address, a set of numbers like your house address, but instead of trying to remember numbers and searching the World Wide Web for other sites by using numbers, we have website names like “yoursite.com” and the IP address is hidden but associated with your name. These are registered at a master location to prevent someone else from taking your name. This also makes it easier to find others by knowing the website names like we have today. Even if you have an existing name, hosts can upload your site into their computers.

The web host is a provider of service that allows your website to be placed on their computers. These high-powered computers are connected to the internet. When people surf the internet, web hosting companies like Bluefish Web Hosting and Blue Host are the ones that allow others to access your website. The hosting computers are similar to the ones we have at home but are designed to serve up websites thus the term “server”.The web host with fast connections to the internet through their super computers will rent out space to get your site upon the World Wide Web with thousands of other websites.Web hosting companies will use Data Centers. Data Centers are special, secured 24/7 buildings that house hundreds of these server computers. They have backup systems to insure your website is always available to the World Wide Web.All website hosting have some common features such as the server type, this relates to the software the host will use to manage peoples websites, basic website like most of us have are fine but if your site has complex data crunching you will need a server using a more complex software like Linux and Unix. Disk space is the actual amount of space on their computer the host will dedicate to your site, Bluefish Web Hosting and Blue Host offer huge space for cheap! Bandwidth/Data transfer, the measure of how much and how fast website traffic and data information can pass through from your host through the World Wide Web to others accessing your website. Finally the last common feature you will find among hosts is Email Accounts and how many you can have with your web hosting.How your website gets a name and to assure its available is a service your host can provide. Your website is given an IP address, a set of numbers like your house address, but instead of trying to remember numbers and searching the World Wide Web for other sites by using numbers, we have website names like “yoursite.com” and the IP address is hidden but associated with your name. These are registered at a master location to prevent someone else from taking your name. This also makes it easier to find others by knowing the website names like we have today. Even if you have an existing name, hosts can upload your site into their computers.

Whether you’re an entrepreneur thinking about starting a website business or a website developer who needs to find a good host, its a good idea to know how web hosting works to ensure that your website launch goes smoothly.

There are many website hosting companies on the internet, and each offers a different list of services for different types of websites. Here are some of the common features that you’ll see on most web hosts and how to decipher them.

Website Space: Website space is the physical location of where your website files and images reside. Your HTML web pages and also your web programming pages will be stored at this location. Some web hosts offer 100MB and others offer up to 10,000MB or more.

If your website only takes up five to seven pages then even 100mb might be too much space since most webpages take up very little space.

If your website is content based and requires lots of images, text, articles, videos, then you should make sure your host has more then 100mb of webspace. Often though webspace will not be a major factor when searching for a webhost. Most web hosting companies will provide more then enough space for the average website.

Bandwidth / Traffic / Monthly Transfer: Bandwidth is how much information can be transferred from your website.

Think of it this way. If you have 1 webpage that takes up 1mb and you’re monthly bandwidth limit is 100mb. This means that once 100 people visit your website, your bandwidth limit will be maxed out. You won’t have any bandwidth available until the next month. Usually webhosts offer monthly bandwidth limits of 3,000 MB or 10,000 MB. Don’t worry about bandwidth because none of you’re webpages will take up 1mb.

Once you start receiving thousands of visitors monthly and see your bandwidth increase then you may have to pay additional fee for that month for the extra bandwidth, and consider upgrading your services. As with website space bandwidth will not be a factor when searching for a webhost because most will provide you with more then enough bandwidth for your website.

Web Programming Language: If you have features such as Comments Form – to email comments from visitors to your email account, Newsletter Signup for your visitors or other dynamic features then you will need a web programming language. There are numerous web programming languages. To find out which one you need for your website ask your website development team or your webmaster. They’ll let you know which programming language they plan on using for your website. Common Web Programming languages include ASP.NET, PHP, and ColdFusion MX.

Web Programming language will be a big factor when searching for a webhost because each webhost will offer a different combination of support for web programming languages, so choose wisely.

Database: If you plan on storing your visitor’s email address, name and other information, or keep a catalog of your products then you will need to use a database. Some of the common databases that websites use include Microsoft SQL Server, MySQL, and Access. Most hosting plans will provide support for atleast one of these databases. As with web programming, you need to ask your website development team which database they plan to use.

Domain Hosting: Usually a website host will allow you to host one domain name such as a .com, or .net, but some website hosts support hosting for more then one website name. This is a great feature because it allows you to host multiple websites on one host, and manage everything from one convenient panel. The downside is that you’ll have to share your space, your bandwidth, and maybe even other features with your second website. If you plan on having more then one website then it’s a good idea to find out how many domains your web host allows on your hosting plan.

Email: Email should not be a factor when researching a webhost. Most webhosts support some type of email account which allows you to have an email address with your website name: sales@mywebsitename dot com or something like that. Keep in mind the amount of space you use in your email might be limited to your overall website space, so get rid of large and unwanted emails.

Customer Support: Customer Support isn’t a factor until it becomes one. That’s why its a good idea to talk with a hosting reprensentative and see how they respond. Good customer support will become a very important factor, and usually it will be your webmaster that will be working with them.

So how do you decide which website host is right for you?

A good method is to find out which of these features is important for your website. If your website provides business training videos that take up a lot of bandwidth then you will need a website host that can provide you with a lot of bandwidth before it turns into a bottleneck. Videos take up hundreds if not thousand times more bandwidth then your average webpage and in this case your first priority during your search will be to make sure that your host offers adequate bandwidth. Or if you find a host that you like, and if bandwidth does become an issue then make sure that they offer the ability to upgrade your hosting services. Be prepared and make sure to find out the prices for the upgraded plan.

Once you’ve found your host try hosting your website on a monthly basis instead of the yearly plan. Just as other businesses, web hosting companies offer lower price to entice you to sign up for long term contracts. There’s nothing wrong with having a long term contract, but it’s not worth it if you decide you don’t like this host, or if you find a better host.

If you’re still not sure which host to sign up with then talk to your website development team. They can recommend web hosts or offer to host your website with them. You’ll also see website hosts provide you with additional features such as shopping cart, website statistics, easy to use control panel software such as Plesk, and other features and software programs to help you manage and profit from your website.

Dedicated Server
If you don’t like any of the plans or if you plan on creating a huge website, with tons of content, images, videos, and if you want to be able to install your own custom software then there’s another option for you, a dedicated server. With a dedicated server you can install your own software, support for your own choice of programming languages, and as the name suggests it is dedicated for your website or websites depending on what you need. The cost is usually 8 to 10 times more then your average web host, but it will allow you more control and provide you more ways to customize it. And if you plan on hosting dozens of websites then you should consider using a dedicated server.

Review
“…Anyone considering a web business will find this book valuable reading.” — Michael Warren, President; USA4SALE Networks, Inc.”…Anyone considering a web business will find this book valuable reading.” –Michael Warren, President; USA4SALE Networks, Inc.

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