There are a variety of considerations to keep in mind when choosing the type of web hosting service that will best suit your needs. Dedicated / non dedicated server, cost, platform, statistics availability; your level of experience, the list can go on and on. Through answering some of these questions you may be able to narrow down the choices that you have available. There are literally hundreds of sites that can now host a website very easily.
One of the first questions to answer is how much traffic will you be receiving? Is this a personal website, a website for a small business, or a large commercial operation? Most personal and small business websites do not need to spring for a dedicated server. A dedicated server means that only your site will be hosted on computer, whereas servers can handle literally up to 100 small, low volume traffic sites without a problem. There is no need in spending money on a dedicated server when you do not have to.
Platform availability can come into consideration, now for most of us, who are writing our own website will chose an NT server platform. As most software such as Microsoft FrontPage and Dreamweaver work well with this type of platform, this is an option you may want to choose. For some higher end web sites a platform that can handle UNIX may be a consideration. With the NT server platforms, many hosting packages may come with shopping carts, and a variety of e-commerce packages, so this may be an attractive alternative.
If want to see how effective your website is, you will want to host with a service that has statistics that are easy to read. Most services will give you the raw data, but often that is cumbersome, and not something you have the time to sort through. You will want to know how much of traffic is repeat traffic, and where did they hear about your website at. Statistical data can give you those answers. If you have a personal website, you can skimp on this data.
Your level of experience may also play into consideration. Have you done this before? Or do you need an interface that is easy to understand. Often many of the sites that offer hosting may offer easy online dashboards that make adding an email address or posting files a breeze. For those who are more experienced this may be an option that can be skipped.
These are just a few considerations to keep in mind. Others may be data transfer, for example if you have a lot of high end graphics, you may want to opt for a service that offers more data transfer than others. Availability of email addresses is another factor – some hosting sites offer unlimited email addresses, but not all hosting companies do.  Some companies offer free spam blocking.
These are just a few of the considerations to keep in mind. Cost comes into play, for example dedicated servers obviously cost more than non dedicated servers. Data transfer, platforms, extra services also may increase the cost of hosting. You should not spend more than you need to; also most hosting companies offer the ability to upgrade services, so you can start out small and add additional options as you may need them. There is a web hosting service that will fit your budget and meet all of your needs, so ask yourself a few questions before opting for the first service that you may find.
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Creating a Website – Free Guide – Free step by step easy guide that shows you how to build your own website.
