There’s nothing complicated about hosting a website but defining your needs and understanding the different types of web hosts are essential prerequisites if you want to get the result you pictured.
Having your own domain name
That might sound as an obvious fact but if you want to create your own website then it must identifiable. You can choose your own domain name either before or after choosing your web hosting provider. In the latter situation, the registration fee might be included in your web hosting plan or you might pay additional costs.
In the first case, you’ll have to register a domain name with the ICANN with the help of a domain name registrar. This will cost you between 10 and 35 dollars.
In the second case and after you’ve chosen your web host, a DNS (Domain Name Servers) will be attributed to it. The problem is that it makes no sense to most humans and it isn’t reflective of what your website has to offer. Your domain name is, of course, critical to popularizing your website. Thankfully, changing your domain name is a pretty simple thing to do. You’ll have to access your domain control panel, log in, do the change and you’ll be done with it faster than the blink of an eye. The most important thing about a DNS is choosing a name that’s not too long and that can easily be remembered by your potential customers or visitors.
Define the kind of website you want to create
Two types of websites can be identified: static websites and dynamic websites. The first one is pretty easy to create and to upload with the help of a FTP software but you can’t change anything about it unless you change the pages of the website and upload them anew. By contrast, a dynamic website can adapt its content based on a set of factors including the person visiting the website and the time at which the visit occurs. The modification of the content can be performed much more easily. If your website aims at displaying your products, then this type of site fits perfectly your online shop. Depending on your skills in website building, you might need a web host that offers website building.
What to expect from a web host?
A web host is basically a service provider that provides you with a storage space where all the data that allows your website to work is safely kept. But for most web hosts, it doesn’t end there since they offer complementary services that can be very useful. Typical complementary services include a website builder which can help you create an aesthetically pleasing interface in no time, email hosting and a content management system or CMS.
Know how your data is stored
For a small-sized or middle-sized website, you’ll have to choose between shared hosting and VPS hosting. The difference between shared hosting and VPS hosting is pretty obvious. Shared hosting implies that the physical space used to store the data of your website is shared by multiple other users. As a result, this type of web hosting is much less expensive, reaching a maximum of 10 dollars/month approximately. In VPS hosting (or Virtual Private Server) hosting, your data is stored in a more elaborate server that contains several compartments. Every part of this server works separately which ensures a higher level of security. This option can reach 70 dollars/month on average.
If you’re planning to launch a bigger website, then you should consider two other options: dedicated hosting and cloud hosting. With the first option, your website is going to be much more secure and its overall functioning will be improved but in return for that, the prices are often prohibitive. The last option, cloud hosting, can be considered if your website (or websites) requires multiple servers. With this option, there are no restrictions regarding the storing space and the space that is dedicated to your website can adjust in real time depending on the traffic it receives. This option is a little less expensive than a dedicated server knowing that the latter option is incapable of handling variations in traffic.
Linux hosting VS Windows hosting
As you’ve probably noticed, there’s a lot to be considered regarding web hosts like choosing between Linux hosting and Windows hosting. They use different programming languages and database management systems so you’ll have to take your needs into consideration to choose between them. Note that you can choose the type of web host you want regardless of the operating system you’re using on your computer. With that in mind, just ask yourself what are the applications you need.
Selecting the right web host
First of all, ask yourself how much traffic you might receive for your new website. This will indicate what type of web host you need. If this is the first website you’re ever going to create, then don’t dwell on thinking too much. The best option is often shared hosting. Since it is cheap and has a lot of possibilities, it can be good way to kick off your website. With time and as your traffic goes up, you might opt for another option. You must be aware that the signup price for shared hosting is often much lower that the renewal price. So if you’ve chosen a web host at 3 dollars/month, don’t expect that price to stay the same forever.
Apart from that, you should also turn your attention to the reliability or uptime score of the servers. It is crucial for you to make sure that potential visitors are able to access your website at any time of the day. Therefore, the reliability of servers should be somewhere in the neighborhood of 99%. To know the uptime score of a server you can either read reviews or use a server monitoring tool.
Finally, you should make sure that you choose a web host that allows you to have additional domains with the same account. It is the case for the vast majority of web hosts even those with very low prices but the maximum number of domains varies from one web host to another.