What to look for when finding a reliable web host
Assuming, you have already registered a web address, it is now time for finding a reliable web host. The process will be similar to registering your domain name. For web hosting, you will need to research hosting companies to determine the one that will be the most reliable. It is a good precaution to call the host(s) you are considering before you register. If they do not have a phone number listed, it is a good sign that they are not a legitimate company.
The best of the reliable web hosts have a very strong customer support team that will find a solution to any problem you may have within 24 hours. Avoid hosting companies that have a lot of downtime. If your website is offline (even for a day), any clicks you receive from Google will register in Google that your site no longer exists. This will severely affect your search engine ranking. All of the hard work you put into achieving priority search results will have essentially been for nothing.
Domain & Web Hosting Packages
Many reliable web hosting companies offer a package deal when you register a domain and a hosting account. In many cases, the domain is free with the hosting registration. This can be extremely useful when maintaining your hosting plan – you will only have to renew once instead of renewing your domain and hosting separately. It will also save you about half the total cost per year, as your one fee (often less than that of registering a domain alone) covers both the rights to your domain name and web hosting.
Below is a list of the top reliable web hosting companies and their most affordable starter package:
Host: Siteground
URL: http://www.siteground.com
Monthly Fee: $7.95 (with 3 year registration)
Web Space Allowed: Unlimited
Bandwidth Allowed: Unlimited
E-mail Accounts: Unlimited
Server Uptime: 99.9%
Host: GoDaddy
URL: http://www.godaddy.com
Monthly Fee: $4.24 (with 3 year registration)
Web Space Allowed: 10 GB
Bandwidth Allowed: 300 GB
E-mail Accounts: 100
Server Uptime: N/A
Host: HostGator
URL: http://www.hostgator.com
Monthly Fee: $4.95 (with 3 year registration)
Web Space Allowed: Unlimited
Bandwidth Allowed: Unlimited
E-mail Accounts: Unlimited
Server Uptime: 99.9%
Once you have completed your search and are done finding a reliable web host, it is time to register. You will begin by choosing your desired hosting package. You will be asked if you already have a domain name or if you will need to register a new one. In any case, you will have to fill out some personal information. Entering this information will register an account with the web hosting registrant. You want to have an account with the company that handles your web hosting so they can send you e-mail updates when your package is about to expire. Once you fill out your contact information, you will be asked how many years you would like to have the hosting plan for. For the majority of web hosts, their cheapest offer is with a minimum 3 year registration. If you feel that you will be maintaing your website for a long time, it is definitely worth it to choose the 3 year registration option. In most cases, you will save from $3 to $5 per month. You will also have the peace of mind knowing that you won’t be losing your domain and hosting plan, as it is automatically renewed each year. After you select the number of years you would like to register, all that is left to do is for you to enter your credit card information.
