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WEBHOSTING
ARTICLESSelecting a Quality Web Host
By Shelley Lowery
"The page cannot be displayed." Have you ever encountered this message while
surfing the net? Of course you have. We all have. Think it can't happen to you? Think
again. If you're hosting your business on one of the free hosting services, you're
literally placing your entire business in the hands of a complete stranger.
Free hosting services don't need to have a reason to shut your site down. You may get up
one morning, try to access your site and instead of your site loading, this message will
appear, "The page cannot be displayed." There goes all of your hard work, your
web site, your traffic, your search engine positioning, your customers, all gone.
Free hosting services aren't interested in your business or how hard you've worked to
design your web site and create a steady stream of traffic. Their main concern is their
business. That's why they're doing it. They display banner ads on every site they host.
Pop up ads are not only irritating, but they make your site appear to be unprofessional.
In addition, many Search Engines will not allow free host URLs to be listed.
If you're serious about your business and you have a sincere desire to succeed, having
your own domain name is a must. It's not a luxury; it's a necessity. Businesses using the
free services are not taken seriously. Having your own domain name is just as important if
not more important than a professional looking web site. They go hand-in-hand.
Selecting Your Web Page Host
When selecting a professional web host your first consideration should be the company.
Check out their background. Talk to some of their customers and ask them if they've been
satisfied with their service.
• How many customers do they serve?
• What is their uptime percentage?
• Do they require you to make payments in advance?
• Do they charge set up fees?
• How is their customer support? Test them.
• Do they offer fast connections?
• Do they offer shopping cart software to process your
orders?
• Can you upgrade free of charge?
Web hosting prices vary greatly. When selecting your host, make sure you're getting
exactly what you're paying for. Keep in mind, a lower monthly rate will not benefit you if
your site is down a lot, slow, or customer service is poor.
Criteria for selecting a host
Selecting a professional web host is a very important decision. Make sure you do your
homework and ensure the host you select offers exactly what you need.
• Your own domain name (www.yourname.com)
• Your own True POP email account - name@yourdomain.com
• Fast, low overhead, Multi-T3 access
• Your own unrestricted cgi-bin
• Access to SSL Encryption for secure transactions
• Java, C, C++, Tcl support
• Autoresponders
• htaccess Password Protection for your files or
directories
• At least 1 GIGABYTE (1024 MB) of Daily Transfer
• Design (and upload to) your site using Netscape or other
HTML editing software
• Microsoft Frontpage (98) Server Extensions for those
utilizing Frontpage
• Unlimited free access to your server via Telnet/FTP
• Online invoices, account tracking, and payment history
to enable you to check your account balance, monthly invoices, past payments, etc.
• Complete daily server backup
• Easy access to your log files
• Statistics on visits to your site
Free web hosts are great for hosting a personal web site, but not recommended for a
business site. If you're really serious about your business and want to establish your
Internet presence, I highly recommend Host4Profit. They provide you with exactly what you
need to develop a profitable Internet business at a very reasonable price.
http://www.web-source.net/cgi-bin/t.cgi?l=h4p
Copyright © Shelley Lowery
About the Author:
Shelley Lowery is the author of the acclaimed web design course, Web Design Mastery. http://www.webdesignmastery.com
And, Ebook Starter - Give Your Ebooks the look and feel of a REAL book. http://www.ebookstarter.com Visit
Web-Source.net to sign up for a complimentary subscription to Etips and receive a copy of
the acclaimed ebook, "Killer Internet Marketing Strategies." http://www.web-source.net
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