Web Hosting Comparison

Web Hosting Comparison: What Are Your Needs?

If you are planning to launch a web site for any reason, it's a good idea to shop around and conduct a web hosting comparison. Before you go on that virtual shopping trip, make a shopping list and decide just exactly what it is you want. If you're shopping for an evening gown, you shop at a store that specializes in evening gowns, right? If you're looking for a diamond ring, you shop at a jewelry store. If you want plastic garbage bags you go to a grocery or department store. Once you have made up your list of web host requirements, you will be better prepared to make a web hosting comparison. In doing so, you will know where to go to get the right stuff for the right price.

In order to conduct a web hosting comparison, you will have to take your needs into consideration and then prioritize them. Some of the things you might want to ask yourself to properly create a web hosting comparison include:

* What is the purpose of my website?

* How much am I willing to spend?

* How important is speed and uninterrupted access?

* What operating system am I using?

* Will my web site require a database?

* Do I plan to use forms on my web site?

* Will I be selling products and if so, what kind of shopping cart do I want to use?

* Am I qualified to insert my own HTML coding?

* How secure does my web site need to be?

* How much space will my web site consume on a server and how much bandwidth will I need?

If you have special needs, write them down and include them in your web hosting comparison list. No point is too small to consider and in fact, any important point overlooked could become a big deal if you don't include it in your web hosting comparison.

Using a piece of paper, a ruler and a pen - or an elaborate charting computer program if that suits you best - create a chart. List your prioritized needs at the top of the chart. Leave space down the left hand side of the chart for the names of web hosting companies you explore. If a company meets specific needs, but not others, put a check mark (or smiley face or whatever) in the cross-reference box that indicates a feature is available to you. Compare at least 10 web hosting services and note the cost of each one as you move through them. This chart will become your web hosting comparison. If something about one web hosting service strikes you in a negative or positive way, make a note of it. When you have finished your web hosting comparison, choose a host that has the features you need and the service you expect.