By Sean Lockwood

A well-crafted and designed business website is a marketing powerhouse. It enables companies to use powerful digital marketing strategies to spread brand awareness, engage the customers, and grow an audience. Everyone wants a high volume of traffic and lots of conversions, but these results do not come easy. Apart from web design, content creation and search engine optimization, one crucial aspect often gets overlooked: the choice of web host.

Ball is in your court

The first step on a journey to web prominence is the selection of the right web hosting solution. You have many providers to choose from, which is a double-edged sword. Reputation is one of the best telltale signs, but you also have to evaluate a set of features, customer support, and other elements. In any event, a mistake in this department could face you with poor performance and high costs, which is a business-sinking combo.

Spurring business growth

Sectors like real estate were slow to adapt to the digital revolution, but now I am seeing more and more companies capitalizing on good hosting solutions. After all, customers seem to have discovered how convenient it is to find a trusted real estate agent online. On the other hand, the e-commerce ecosystem is already booming at an unprecedented rate and e-tailers have some specific requirements such as shopping cart software and business transactions processing platforms.

Reliability and uptime

It goes without saying that you have to know what exactly you are looking for. So, before taking a plunge, you want to carry out a research. Strive to find a provider that offers the best uptime guarantee. This aspect refers to the percentage of time that your website is up and running and not experiencing crashes and similar problems. Accept nothing less than a reliable server with a 99% uptime.

Need for speed

The reason for this is that an average Internet user does not want to cope with blank screens and error messages. What is more, the attention spans of today are ever shorter and if the page does not load within a few seconds, the visitor moves on. Both search engines and users love speed, suggesting that fast sites are much more likely to move up in rankings and make it to the forefront of the Internet.

Security aspect

With the proliferation of cyber attacks and breaches, you also have to weigh security dimension. This step is paramount to keeping the sensitive data of your customers and your company safe and sound. Any leak could spell doom for the reputation and public image and weigh your marketing efforts down. Thus, go through security credentials and see if a host provides measures such as Sitelock and domain privacy.

Figuring out your needs

Your decision also depends on factors such as media content you want to post to your website. High-definition videos and images tend to slow the site down, so consider your needs. Likewise, assess the expected volume of traffic and whether you require windows applications special software. Finally, note that it is preferable to have your site’s content automatically backed up, which works miracles in cases of hacker attacks, disasters, and data losses.

Support every step of the way

Hosting companies that provide free support around the clock are always a sound choice. They give you a chance to contact a local expert whenever there is an issue with a website. This kind of responsiveness and attentiveness is even more important for business owners who are not particularly tech-savvy. Beyond that, you can always educate yourself, get into cheap web hosting statistics, or explore free sources of data to shed some light on the path ahead.

Scaling up

Digital marketing is relatively cheap and promises great ROI. Still, it pays off to play it safe and consider the scalability of the desired hosting option. It should grow together with your business, as you never know when you are going to witness a traffic spike. This is to say that you might want to opt for plans that can be upgraded over time (as they involve multiple tiers). That way, you can let the marketing show go on without paying exit fees and contract cancellation costs.

More power to you

A web hosting company is the bedrock of your Internet presence. Therefore, it is highly advisable to make informed decisions instead of taking chances. Ask smart questions ahead of time and do your homework. Keep your options open and take into account your specific business needs. Pick a host that enables your website to run smoothly and lightning-fast. Ultimately, you should be able to harness the full marketing power of your website and take your efficiency to the next level.

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Sean Lockwood is a programmer with outstanding knowledge of special effects. He have years of experience in internet business. Free time loves to spend with his dogs and travelling around the world. Twitter: https://twitter.com/mrseanlockwood