Tips for Choosing a Good Web...

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Posted by WebzPro, 06-24-2006, 04:43 PM
I have been coming to these forums now for a couple years now. There are a few common threads that you tend to see on a daily basis.

One is, Help me choose a good web host.
Two is, Dont use XYZ host.
Three is, ABC Host has disappeared and my site is gone.

After reading this time and time again I have decided to share some tips that I have used through trial and error since I purchased web hosting for the first time over twelve years ago. These tips really are nothing new; they have been posted here before. I thought it would be helpful to maybe to have them in one place for referral. A few tips and a little research can save you hours of headaches. So here we go.

1. Starts with you. Determine your needs. Space, bandwidth and budget.
a) Space Cover your needs and allow for expansion if needed.
b) Bandwidth- Same as above.
c) Budget Set a realistic budget for yourself. How much are you willing to spend? Lowest price too highest. Being a little flexible on your price will give more hosting choices.

2. Follow some basic guidelines for even considering a hosting provider.
a) Does the host have phone number? At the very least a web host should provide you with a contact phone number. This doesnt have to be a 24-hour a day number but your future host should be available during normal business hours in their respective time zone. A toll free shows a willingness to provide convenience for their customers.
b) Do they provide at least 24/7 Support Desk? Support is important, this is a must. You should have access to support 24 hours a day. Test the support desk. Choose anytime of the day or night and contact the support desk to test response times, ask any questions you might have. A response time under an hour is good; less than thirty minutes is considered excellent.
c) Take a good look at their web site. This sometimes can be over looked but I believe this says something very important about the hosting company. If they care about how they present themselves to the public, they are more apt to care about other things like service and maintaining a high reputation.
d) The hosting company should provide you with an Acceptable Use Policy, Terms of Service and a Privacy Policy as well. It is in your best interest that you read these policies and understand them before you pay for services.
e) Do they have an Uptime Guarantee? We wont set a number on this but a hosting provider should be willing to disclose what their commitment to service is. A professional company will have this included in their Terms of Service.
f) Do they provide a Money Back Guarantee? Again, this should listed in their Terms of Service.
g) Payment Options A host should provide their customers with more than one payment option. Credit cards and other payment option such as PayPal or something comparable.

3. Make a list of at least four to five possible hosting providers that fit your needs from the guidelines above and do some research.
a) Search these forums and others to see what type of information you can find on the host.
b) Compare features and price of the hosts on your list.
c) Contact the host either by phone, email or support desk and ask any questions you might have.
d) Check Testimonials If the host has a list of testimonials if possible send an email to one of those customers and ask for their feedback on the host. Most people are happy to give a recommendation. This can also help determine if the testimonial real or a fabrication.
e) Finally you might want to consider doing a ping test if you can, check some customers web sites if listed, see how fast they load.
f) Make your choice, sign up and good luck.

There are so many hosting companies out there today, and the choices are close to endless. These guidelines are not fool proof in anyway but if you follow them you will have a better chance finding a host that you can trust in delivering quality service and save you from moving from host to host. In twelve years of buying web hosting and dedicated servers I have never once had a provider suddenly disappear on me in the middle of the night. Good luck and good hunting.
Posted by mripguru, 06-24-2006, 04:46 PM
Very well said
Posted by crinner, 06-24-2006, 05:12 PM
Some cool tips over there... Kudos.
Posted by WebzPro, 06-24-2006, 10:28 PM
Thank you. Hope it helps some people out.
Posted by Konrad4, 06-24-2006, 10:31 PM
Thanks for the tips.
Posted by J-Crane, 06-24-2006, 10:56 PM
Great tips! I hope they can be of great use to someone here at WHT!
Posted by Amy-T, 06-24-2006, 11:10 PM
This should be pinned but its not my site.
Posted by techzone, 06-25-2006, 02:04 AM
Nice info for new users like me ... Good stuff
Posted by alemcherry, 06-25-2006, 07:55 AM
Great, thats a very good to do list for selecting a host!
Posted by f9-Alex, 06-25-2006, 07:58 AM
This really deserves a sticky in the tutorial section. Another good read:

http://webhostingtalk.com/showthread.php?t=372175
Posted by WebzPro, 06-26-2006, 11:47 AM
Request to move to Web Hosting Tutorials if Moderator thinks it should be.
Posted by IHSL, 06-26-2006, 01:09 PM

Quote:

b) Do they provide at least 24/7 Support Desk? Support is important, this is a must. You should have access to support 24 hours a day. Test the support desk. Choose anytime of the day or night and contact the support desk to test response times, ask any questions you might have. A response time under an hour is good; less than thirty minutes is considered excellent.

The vast majority of companies issue support behind closed doors and access to the technical support teams is very likely to be for existing customers only. That would mean that this section of your 'tutorial' would be impossible to execute.

Otherwise, your tutorial is relatively solid, based mainly on common sense decisions.

Quote:

This really deserves a sticky in the tutorial section.

I wouldn't agree there. If such a tutorial were to be offered it would need to be much more comprehensive. I see the topic as more or less a decent rough guideline.

Simon
Posted by WebzPro, 06-26-2006, 02:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by IHSL

The vast majority of companies issue support behind closed doors and access to the technical support teams is very likely to be for existing customers only. That would mean that this section of your 'tutorial' would be impossible to execute.

That is a good point. That part can be edited and added to that line could be

If a hosting providers support desk is only open to current customers you may want to contact the company and ask for temporary access to the support desk. Be honest, explain you are interested in their hosting service and wish to test the response times. If they do give temporary access, I would choose what might be off hours to test and see if support is truly 24/7.
Posted by writespeak, 06-26-2006, 04:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by crinner

Some cool tips over there... Kudos.

I agree.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WebzPro

Request to move to Web Hosting Tutorials if Moderator thinks it should be.

Moved to Tutorials.

Lois
Posted by MarbleHost.com, 07-06-2006, 07:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WebzPro

a) Space Cover your needs and allow for expansion if needed.
b) Bandwidth- Same as above.

That's right, if you plan expansion you should look to the future and ask yourself how much data transfer and disk space will you need. But keep in mind that most web hosting companies regularly increase their hosting plans (usually at least once a year). So consider how much disk space and data transfer will be necessary for your project to avoid paying too much for unused space/transfer.
Posted by David Doggett, 07-10-2006, 10:00 PM
I have a few issiue with these tips.

You list:
1. Determine your needs...
a) Space
b) Bandwidth
c) Budget

For starters, you don't mention burst bandwidth. A 56k modem will deliver 137 Gb/month of "bandwidth." I calculated that I need a line that can maintain 1 megbit/sec and burst to 3 megbit/sec.

How do you determine how many hops they are from the backbone. Do they have real data connect redundancy? How do you find out. You don't mention the "unlimited bandwidth" problem- or how to find out what the monthly bandwidth limit really is.

You don't mention main memory size or CPU speed. I found that I needed 1 GB of semiconductor memory. Is there an extra charge for more main memory? What about processor speed? Is the hosting company running your web site on a PentiumPro 200 Mhz processor. At one time I found out my web site was on such a machine.

You don't mention hard disk data transfer rate or any RAID configurations. And again there is the "unlimited space" problem. How do you find out just how much space you are allocated without penalty.

Under:
2. Follow some basic guidelines...
c) Take a good look at their web site.

What is the criteria for a "good" web site? What do you look for? What is bad?

e) Do they have an Uptime Guarantee? We wont set a number on this...

What is good - what is bad? You give no guidance here... Is 85% good? Is 99% bad?

3. Make a list of at least four to five possible hosting providers that fit your needs from the guidelines above and do some research.

How do you make that list? What are the steps... There are thousands of hosting companies out there that would fulfill about any criteria you would care to set except for some really low price. The number of hosting companies are staggering. I don't see an easy differentiation method. There is no "Duncan Hines Seal of Approval" (You have to be real old to know about that). To get to this "first list" seems to be a shot in the dark.

What about the issues of backups, rebooting, ease of use of the control panel, web site statistics, server software. etc... (fire control?)

I would like to see a way to get from point A to Point B without hand waving. Maybe we need a modern day Duncan Hines to visit the hosting places and verify how good they are.

Dave
Posted by Shock Hosts, 07-10-2006, 10:21 PM
Woah, This is great! I like it a lot. I'm not sure if new users will read it, because they usually tend to register then post like there's 5 seconds left 'till the end of the world.
Posted by David Doggett, 07-10-2006, 10:30 PM
[quote=joshcrick]"Woah, This is great! I like it a lot. "

Thanks- but this choosing a host is a real unresolved problem. I have to believe there are good hosting companies out there but I haven't a clue how to find them. I have had a web site since 1996 and I still can't seperate the wheat from the chaff. I have a number of web sites on GoDaddy becuse they are not "real" as yet. InstaPoems is about to go live and I want a robust home for it.

Any suggestions on how to go about it?

Dave
Posted by WebzPro, 07-11-2006, 11:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by David Doggett

I have a few issiue with these tips.

David Doggett - Welcome to WHT. Although you make very valid points you are certainly not new to web hosting we can see that from your comments. This guide was more intended to help a new comer choose a host that could possibly deliver good customer support and service.

We would rather take your comment "I have a few issues with these tips" and interpret it as, "I have some very useful information to add to this thread."

Comment and additions are very welcome to this thread, hopefully we will get enough impute that will warrant a rewrite of this tutorial so that it will be a very strong contribution to the WHT community.
Posted by David Doggett, 07-11-2006, 01:54 PM
[quote=WebzPro]We would rather take your comment "I have a few issues with these tips" and interpret it as, "I have some very useful information to add to this thread."

Thanks for your correction... Your interpretation is correct. My submission was to point out other considerations that would go into selection of a hosting company and, also, to point out that even knowing what you want doesn't get you there. There are so many unknowns and posted capabilities don't tell the story.

I am working with a web site designer who has been doing web sites for ten years and he has trouble choosing a good hosting company.

Dave
Posted by Nahlstedt, 07-13-2006, 01:58 PM
Great guide. Applauce!
Posted by David Doggett, 07-14-2006, 02:18 PM
I visited a hosting company yesterday that happens to be close to me. I ask to see their facilities. I was ushered into their server room. There was a gazillion servers and "stuff," all with hard drives humming and lights blinking. A lot of power was being used. I glanced at the ceiling and saw no sprinkler nozzles. I ask if they had any fire protection and the guy said, "no."

I wonder if the system backup for all of the hosting computers was in that room, too. A fire would wipe out the hosting company and could possibly take down hundreds of "companies" who have their entire data in that one room.

I thought of asking the guy is he played the Lotto... but I didn't.
Posted by nati, 07-27-2006, 02:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by joshcrick

Woah, This is great! I like it a lot. I'm not sure if new users will read it, because they usually tend to register then post like there's 5 seconds left 'till the end of the world.

It is not necessary to think so of everyone new at this forum.
I new and with the great pleasure have read through it also to me very much it was pleasant
Posted by julesagogo, 08-04-2006, 03:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by David Doggett

I am working with a web site designer who has been doing web sites for ten years and he has trouble choosing a good hosting company.

At first I was glad to hear this because I'm having trouble, too, but then I realized that a web designer's core competency is designing content, not necessarily taking care of the details surrounding the web.

I, too would like to find a list of hosts, their capabilities and problems compiled objectively so I could choose several that fit my goals, which are in line with WebzPro's guidelines. I would like to think when a customer contacts a provider to 'test' their service response time they could get a real test, but I doubt this is true - they'll likely be on their best behavior.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but your further requirements sound a bit like professionally-hosted site requirements; the offerings I've seen don't even mention them, but then my budget is under $20/mo and not $300/mo. I'm not arguing that it wouldn't be nice to see these figures as well. I also believe that for many of these lower-priced plans, backups are generally going to be the responsibility of the webmaster, and that's how I handle my site. I don't want someone else responsible for my data.

Thanks to you both for your comments and suggestions!
Posted by TrinityIce, 08-05-2006, 01:05 PM
G'day,

I might add my thoughts...well fast response times are good of course but some hosts have this (fast response) and yet they dont seem able to answer simple questions. Sometimes they just seem to miss what you mean altogether. Seems to me they just skim through emails.

This can be frustrating. No use having fast fast response when a simple question takes ages to be resolved and much back-and-forth exchanges.

Another thing is overselling, I see it alot now.....xxx Gb bandwidth, xxx Gb space.....for 8 bucks or less.

I wouldnt want 1 Tb bandwidth when my site will be suspended for "straining the server" .......if ever I get to that stage....
Posted by agoodm, 08-05-2006, 06:28 PM
Thanks for the tips.
Posted by drbrightside, 08-08-2006, 01:07 AM
Other important questions to ask!!

1. What is the host company's bandwidth to/from their datacenter? Do they have a backup bandwidth provider or two? What OC bandwidth level are they providing services at?

2. What is their CPU usage limit? What is their policy on notifying the owner of the site when CPU usage is reaching the limit? What is their policy on reviewing the source of the cpu overusage? If its just geneneral popularity as evidenced by the logs will they shut you down? Is CPU usage limit stated in the contract anywhere?? 1 or 2% is very low and means they are overselling their servers.

3. Ask the host how they prevent and limit overselling and how can they prove it to you?

4. How often do they backup their servers??!!!

5. What plug-ins and widgets do they support? Do they have Fantastico?

Dr. Brightside
Posted by ion_admin, 08-08-2006, 02:43 PM
Thanks for the lovely tips. Makes life so simple for users to see what webhosts to decide. I am researching a lot on choosing one so will ping on this forum for my needs. Currently I am with awardspace and it works pretty well for me except that I miss email functionality which is very much required for a site/forum I run.

Regards
iON Admin
Posted by piearchette, 09-07-2006, 11:03 PM
A little tip from experience...if you are looking at web hosting companies, I suggest that you consider looking for hosting companies that allow adult content. No matter what the content of your site is, if they allow adult content, as a general rule they are much more able to handle any other type of site. There are many viable options for less than $10/mo out there that could get you on the right path. PM me if you need suggestions.
Posted by WebzPro, 09-12-2006, 12:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mahesh83

where did you get this nice!

I wrote it. Look through these tutorials. You will find great advice form many people in here.
Posted by Sam [Vissol], 08-23-2007, 06:33 PM
I think that this guide states the obvious. However, it was very well written. Thanks.
Posted by WebzPro, 08-25-2007, 12:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sam Asante

I think that this guide states the obvious. However, it was very well written. Thanks.

Very glad to see this still gets a read once in a while.

Well Sam you are correct, it does state the obvious. There are so many people out there more than ever today that are new to hosting. There are also many new hosts that have flooded the market place, not to say that is bad but we can only hope this little guide helps people in their search for a solid web host.
Posted by MsMillion, 07-20-2008, 01:23 AM
Good thing I caught this before it getting removed. Its okay now. Interesting content here but I'm through with it.
Posted by Ping-Kong, 07-27-2008, 10:03 AM
Cheers, this is pretty cool. Sounds good. And of course I agree with you.
Posted by mister i, 07-28-2008, 04:57 AM
very beneficial for end user
Posted by Cezary, 07-29-2008, 12:58 PM
Great tips. I agree with most of them...

Thanks,
Posted by mister i, 07-30-2008, 06:15 AM
and image and sound need a lot of data transfer... than text.....
consider it too..
Posted by m0jo, 08-01-2008, 03:26 PM
I like this guide. I has some good guidelines and it helped me a bit choosing the correct webhost for me. because there are so many it is difficult to make a correct choice.
Posted by d'vance, 08-03-2008, 05:13 AM
hi WebzPro, your guide is valuable... what is your job position now?
Posted by WebzPro, 08-03-2008, 11:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by d'vance

hi WebzPro, your guide is valuable... what is your job position now?

Thank you. I am committed to the company in my signature.
Posted by d'vance, 08-04-2008, 01:22 AM
hi WebzPro, so are you WebzPro.com company marketing excutive?
Posted by mexia, 08-11-2009, 08:14 AM
http://www.picturehoster.org/storage/654.jpgThanks i like the tips and the way you just explained everything.

awesome thanks a lot mate.http://www.picturehoster.org/storage/654.jpg
Posted by pcnerdo, 08-11-2009, 08:39 PM
You did a great job of explaining this. Thank you!!!
Posted by checkitout, 08-21-2009, 01:14 AM
Now I know what to do..Thanks!!!Its a great help..
Posted by sugg, 08-23-2009, 10:21 AM
Nice, thanx
Posted by Sue Me, 09-30-2009, 02:19 AM
You did a great job of explaining this. I chose hostgator.com
Posted by jimmy arther, 12-04-2009, 06:18 AM
When choosing a web host it's of course important to consider. Its depends on many factors. such as....
1. Where is the host server located?
2. What kind of connection to the internet does it have?
3. What ISP the customer has.
4. Where is the ISP's servers located
5. Which server would the customer connect to from the ISP. etc....
Posted by TencloudChris, 12-08-2009, 05:07 PM
Some good tips there, nice
Posted by rootpanama, 12-17-2009, 01:36 PM
If they have support chat it helps a lot and this is also very important and you should consult with an agent before place your order also make speed test and if possible ask for an IP address and check all that you need before to chose.
Posted by desbest, 12-17-2009, 01:40 PM
My tip is to look whether the webhost designed their own site or brought a template.
Posted by heidrek, 07-07-2010, 10:25 PM
has anyone used sixserve? they offer a free hosting package, but I'm wondering what their relaibility is like, can anyone comment on them?
Posted by aravindkumar374, 07-28-2010, 02:27 AM
thank u very much...it's useful to me...
Posted by Aran11, 08-01-2010, 10:01 AM
Hi,

Im sure this has probably been asked thousands of times before, but im looking to become a reseller. What would everyone recommend for the top UK reseller services. Have been looking at uk.net's which seems really good. But also web fusion have a really good package.

What would everyone recommend from their experiances?
Posted by MRGatMan, 08-05-2010, 06:36 PM
Great there . Thank's for that
Posted by Almighty, 08-05-2010, 07:17 PM
Nice tut, great tips
Posted by Develious, 08-14-2010, 10:19 AM
I like this thread, definitely helpful to both new and advanced hosters.
Posted by lyndi0810, 08-18-2010, 08:18 PM
Very informative. This will help me so much since I am looking right now for a perfect web host for my website.
Posted by TomMosey, 08-20-2010, 03:56 PM
Very useful! Many people will agree with me in saying well done!
Posted by keserhosting, 10-20-2010, 10:59 AM
Great cool tips. Mostly agree with all the tips Definitely helpful for newbies.
Posted by EF R4ZOR, 10-29-2010, 04:56 PM
check web host reviews, and ask around
Posted by HostXNow, 10-30-2010, 10:58 AM
Searching for realistic hosting plans has to be at the top of the list.
Posted by Lovely_Heart, 11-17-2010, 09:50 AM
Thanks for the tips
Posted by nayan, 11-17-2010, 12:12 PM
Thanks............
Your have give greater Info.
Posted by Net2, 11-18-2010, 08:26 AM
good tips, this is very useful for everyone who wants to find good webhost
Posted by VivuMedia, 11-21-2010, 10:12 AM
They're some very good tips, I usually follow the guidelines of that to find a suitable web host. Another good factor is do they have live support(it doesn't have to be 24/7) that also shows willing to help as well as a phone number!
Posted by Rippa, 11-22-2010, 10:39 AM
thank you for the help
Posted by Dragon Host, 12-05-2011, 08:04 PM
Thank you for the information.
Posted by Beaverbeliever, 02-21-2012, 07:23 AM
Thanks for this guide! I think its great when you are able to find a host and stick with them as your web needs expand.
Posted by iwebadmin, 05-01-2012, 08:57 AM
Awesome, thanks for the tips guys!
Posted by che09, 05-10-2012, 11:55 PM
Inquire about the support the host can provide. A host with a 24/7 support is recommended. Part-time support is not good enough to ensure a high availability of your website. Find out the efficiency of their troubleshooting methods. Make sure their recoveries are fast.
Posted by Mofko, 05-12-2012, 11:21 AM
My advise is just never bother going past the first page in google, theres no need.
Posted by top hosting, 05-21-2012, 03:40 AM
Thanks a lot for useful tips. I like your sharing knowledge about "how to choose" best hosting service.
Posted by b4uindia, 05-21-2012, 04:54 AM
Thanks for sharing such good steps to choose a good web hosting service provider.
Posted by Adeya, 05-21-2012, 06:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mofko

My advise is just never bother going past the first page in google, theres no need.

Yea, and majority of the companys after that underemploy.
Posted by WebHostRanking, 05-23-2012, 10:37 PM
One thing that we always recommend is that a person look for the number of hosted domains a company allows. In today's day and age people are starting more than one website so choosing a web hosting provider that offers multiple hosted domains, it can only save you money! Yes, there are some good web hosting providers that only offer one hosted domain in thier base plan, but most of the them offer the ability to offer mulitple, if not unlimited domains. We can't stress how much money this will save you in the long run. Just our two cents on finding a good web hosting provider!
Posted by gasyoun, 06-29-2012, 01:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WebzPro

Do they provide at least 24/7 Support Desk?

Have you ever seen such?
Posted by Jennifer23, 08-07-2012, 01:11 AM
Hi WebzPro,

Nice information for choosing a good web host. Thanks for the great tips. Can you give me an another tutorial site for web host.
Posted by WebzPro, 08-07-2012, 11:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jennifer23

Hi WebzPro,

Nice information for choosing a good web host. Thanks for the great tips. Can you give me an another tutorial site for web host.

Thank you. This tutorial was written over six years ago. Nice to see people still refer to it.

Not sure exactly what you are looking for in a tutorial site but there are many great tips here in this tutorial section on WHT. You may also want to check out http://www.w3schools.com/
Posted by amitccc, 08-22-2012, 02:30 AM
thanks for the tips
Posted by freeimagesweb, 10-27-2012, 06:39 PM
It is really very difficult to choose a good and reliable web hosting. All the tips are very useful, I hope to have choosen the right one.
Posted by icheesy, 11-11-2012, 01:37 AM
Nice!!! Now to actually find a host that meets all these needs
Posted by samanthaa, 11-11-2012, 01:46 AM
These are some really nice tips, If we follow them than we can get good we hosts. Nice tips
Posted by ruangvirtual, 11-12-2012, 11:59 AM
Nice tips, hope this help for all,Thanks for the great tips
Posted by blowee, 11-19-2012, 09:55 PM
Lots of hosting companies emerge nowadays.They have great offers of hosting services which can get the attention of the customers.Following this guidelines can help you avoid transferring from one host to the other.Thanks for this valuable information.
Posted by jacent, 11-21-2012, 05:02 PM
Great post, OP.
Posted by pahapa, 11-24-2012, 12:00 AM
Thank, it's very useful. I'll use these tips to reviews new hosting service.
Posted by spydoo, 11-24-2012, 03:03 AM
Support, speed and support.

Great service, a fast server and great service are the most important factors. Yep, service is twice as important as speed and speed is the only thing that matters apart from service.

Of course one needs a server and scripts to meet specs, but most do. Good hosts will have some package that will meet your requirements anyway.

So, contact them and see if they'll have a yarn with you about your website. If they take an interest then you're off to a beautiful start. Give it a go.
Posted by cloudways, 11-24-2012, 04:25 AM
Thanks for posting this forum .......It's very helpful to become expert in web hosting.
Posted by toptenhostings, 11-24-2012, 01:49 PM
Nice tips, useful for new members. Thanks for sharing.
Posted by Vamp1re, 12-03-2012, 07:07 AM
nice suggestion , hope u user get good hosting flowing these instructions
Posted by Jimrogers, 12-10-2012, 05:46 PM
It can be so confusing. There are too many options these days but at least it gets cheaper.
Posted by LibranHost, 12-14-2012, 01:45 PM
Really helpful tips. Thanks.
Posted by margoriecurtis, 01-02-2013, 01:09 AM
Wow, that for that
Posted by Sarah Gates, 01-04-2013, 08:18 AM
Thank you for your post.
Posted by TriciaD, 03-14-2013, 04:55 PM
I would add not to overlook small hosting companies. If they offer the services you need, oftentimes the customer service is quite a bit better than the larger companies.
Posted by smulegerry90, 03-15-2013, 01:59 AM
Some Tips for Choosing a Good Web Host

Accounts are perfect for those who want to host their personal blog or website that promotes their abilities.
Cpanel can be used for hosting very large websites.
Posted by ravisaxena, 05-03-2013, 02:19 PM
a good web hosting comes with Automated website traffic report generation
Posted by WKDedi, 05-03-2013, 05:09 PM
Thanks for posting this! We are in need of a good web hosting company and had no idea what to even look for in a web host.
Posted by WebzPro, 05-03-2013, 06:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WKDedi

Thanks for posting this! We are in need of a good web hosting company and had no idea what to even look for in a web host.

Your very welcome. It will be seven years this June since I submitted this post. It nice to see after all these years people are still finding it useful.
Posted by RahulK5, 05-05-2013, 04:58 AM
Good tips.

Also, Check for downtime and server status at their website. See for reviews on WHT, other site. Also, ask for reviews at this community.

Although old hosting companies have better repo and stability in market.
Posted by henkit, 05-12-2013, 06:10 AM
nice tutorial!
Posted by mpur48, 05-12-2013, 08:59 AM
Thank you, that's really
Posted by Jasperino, 05-14-2013, 09:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WebzPro

I have been coming to these forums now for a couple years now. There are a few common threads that you tend to see on a daily basis.

One is, Help me choose a good web host.
Two is, Dont use XYZ host.
Three is, ABC Host has disappeared and my site is gone.

After reading this time and time again I have decided to share some tips that I have used through trial and error since I purchased web hosting for the first time over twelve years ago. These tips really are nothing new; they have been posted here before. I thought it would be helpful to maybe to have them in one place for referral. A few tips and a little research can save you hours of headaches. So here we go.

1. Starts with you. Determine your needs. Space, bandwidth and budget.
a) Space Cover your needs and allow for expansion if needed.
b) Bandwidth- Same as above.
c) Budget Set a realistic budget for yourself. How much are you willing to spend? Lowest price too highest. Being a little flexible on your price will give more hosting choices.

2. Follow some basic guidelines for even considering a hosting provider.
a) Does the host have phone number? At the very least a web host should provide you with a contact phone number. This doesnt have to be a 24-hour a day number but your future host should be available during normal business hours in their respective time zone. A toll free shows a willingness to provide convenience for their customers.
b) Do they provide at least 24/7 Support Desk? Support is important, this is a must. You should have access to support 24 hours a day. Test the support desk. Choose anytime of the day or night and contact the support desk to test response times, ask any questions you might have. A response time under an hour is good; less than thirty minutes is considered excellent.
c) Take a good look at their web site. This sometimes can be over looked but I believe this says something very important about the hosting company. If they care about how they present themselves to the public, they are more apt to care about other things like service and maintaining a high reputation.
d) The hosting company should provide you with an Acceptable Use Policy, Terms of Service and a Privacy Policy as well. It is in your best interest that you read these policies and understand them before you pay for services.
e) Do they have an Uptime Guarantee? We wont set a number on this but a hosting provider should be willing to disclose what their commitment to service is. A professional company will have this included in their Terms of Service.
f) Do they provide a Money Back Guarantee? Again, this should listed in their Terms of Service.
g) Payment Options A host should provide their customers with more than one payment option. Credit cards and other payment option such as PayPal or something comparable.

3. Make a list of at least four to five possible hosting providers that fit your needs from the guidelines above and do some research.
a) Search these forums and others to see what type of information you can find on the host.
b) Compare features and price of the hosts on your list.
c) Contact the host either by phone, email or support desk and ask any questions you might have.
d) Check Testimonials If the host has a list of testimonials if possible send an email to one of those customers and ask for their feedback on the host. Most people are happy to give a recommendation. This can also help determine if the testimonial real or a fabrication.
e) Finally you might want to consider doing a ping test if you can, check some customers web sites if listed, see how fast they load.
f) Make your choice, sign up and good luck.

There are so many hosting companies out there today, and the choices are close to endless. These guidelines are not fool proof in anyway but if you follow them you will have a better chance finding a host that you can trust in delivering quality service and save you from moving from host to host. In twelve years of buying web hosting and dedicated servers I have never once had a provider suddenly disappear on me in the middle of the night. Good luck and good hunting.

Actually a very good list you got here. Will use it if I were to ever switch hosts
Posted by xiValve, 06-01-2013, 01:21 PM
This guide has helped should be stickied
Posted by David-Luz, 06-17-2013, 06:34 AM
Hi..
This Basic Guidelines are very useful to choosing our web hostings and thanks for you post..
Posted by Webhostpython, 06-20-2013, 12:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WebzPro

Your very welcome. It will be seven years this June since I submitted this post. It nice to see after all these years people are still finding it useful.

You've had an impact, great job!
Posted by HostShark - Andre, 06-20-2013, 01:01 AM
Seven years... That's amazing. It seems really informative.
Posted by BlastPort, 06-20-2013, 07:51 AM
Very good guide, hopefully more will read this. It'd help solve quite a lot of the recent posts in this section.
Posted by Kardmii, 07-24-2013, 02:18 PM
This was very helpful information as I am new to hosting and I am starting a social media website for kids.
Posted by WebzPro, 07-24-2013, 04:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kardmii

This was very helpful information as I am new to hosting and I am starting a social media website for kids.

You are very welcome.
Posted by Kevin75, 07-25-2013, 08:17 AM
7 years seems such a long time ago but still very good advice!
Posted by OffshoreGB, 08-04-2013, 08:38 PM
Good Tips!
Thanks bro!
Posted by Brainwashed365, 08-05-2013, 01:02 AM
Thanks for the useful tips.

I'm currently new to all of this (as well as the forums) and I'm trying to find a good hosting provider to set up a blogging website. I'm trying to avoid EIG based companies from all the stuff I have been reading about them and their past...especially the more recent stuff that had happened within the last few days.

I was JUST about to sign up with Bluehost, but now after reading some material here, there's better routes I can choose that would be within my budget. And so, the homework and research continues!
Posted by pound-hostcouk, 10-10-2013, 05:31 PM
wow super tips. thanks
Posted by emlc, 10-20-2013, 07:34 PM
useful - thanks for posting all those years ago
Posted by fastpurplemedia, 10-21-2013, 12:38 AM
Nice Tips .
Posted by WebzPro, 10-21-2013, 07:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by emlc

useful - thanks for posting all those years ago

Thank you, the still hold up after all these years.
Posted by hectorros, 10-22-2013, 07:21 AM
Thanks you, very nice tips !!
Posted by netmadness, 11-03-2013, 07:56 PM
You really helped me with this tips. Are very useful!
Posted by Punct, 12-02-2013, 10:09 AM
I have used this tips, when i first started... what can i say? GOD will thank you enought! Best tips i have ever read... still kicking a** after all these years. Good job.