Web Hosting

Web Site Thoughts

There are a large number of Web Hosting companies and service packages available to the home based business owner.  These services range from simple "presence" services to more complex shared work environments and electronic "storefronts".  However, whether you're putting together something simple or complex, remember that your Web site is your "face" to the Internet community.  It should project the image that you want visitors to take away of you and your business - professional, knowledgeable, smart, sassy - it's up to you!  It should also be:

• Easy to read:  A page filled with flash and fuss can be confusing and frustrating to visitors.  Make sure that its easy for your visitors to get to the text.
• Easy to navigate:  The site's structure should be straight-forward and easy to understand.  If visitors can't figure out where the information is on your site, they'll probably just leave.
• Informative:  Make sure you tell visitors what they need to know about you!
• A "Brand Maker":  Finally, the site is your "brand", so, graphics, logos and messages that project and assert your particular "brand" are critical.

Web Home Office Reports

Now that you're ready to establish your presence on the Web, the next step (before choosing the Web hosting provider!) is to think about:

• The purpose of the Web site:  Is the Web site purely to have a "presence" on the Internet where potential customers can find out about your company and get information on how to contact you, or is it going to be the basis for marketing and selling products and services?  Your choice of a Web hosting company, the software development environment and whether you choose to "build it yourself" or "outsource" the design and development of the site will be based on this decision.

• The "development environment" or software that will be used:  Just doing a "corporate presence" site of 10 pages or less?  Then there are "simple" options to getting your site up and running as well as more powerful - and complex - solutions that add capabilities that include product catalogs, streaming media (video and voice), 3D and virtual reality tools and more.  Also, if you choose to use a package such as Microsoft's FrontPage, it will be important to make sure that the hosting company and package you choose supports FrontPage "extensions" (expanded "Web Bot" components that provide capabilities such as floating buttons, banner ads and stock quotes).  The same goes for packages such as Macromedia's Cold-Fusion.
• Who will design and maintain it:  Designing, building and maintaining a Web site can be time-consuming (and frustrating to the uninitiated).  How technical/creative are you?  Do you have, or are you willing, to devote the time, energy and patience it takes to design and maintain your Web site?  If it is a simple "presence" site only, and you use very basic tools (like those provided by Intuit and Yahoo through their hosting services) the time you'll need won't be much (comparatively).  Remember though, that the site's "look and feel" will be limited to the basic capabilities these tools provide.  If you decide that you'll need help to do something a bit more powerful, then you will need to take some time and put some effort into finding a Web site developer to work with.  Again, the complexity of the site will determine the level of developer you'll need.  Friends and business contacts are often the best sources of information when looking for a good developer, and you'll definitely want to see some of their existing work.  However, if you're stuck and don't know where to turn there are resources on the Web to help you.  Check out:  1234 Find Web Designers, IT Moonlighter and ELance for more information.
• What your budget is for development, maintenance and hosting of the site:  Again, complexity means dollars - for development (software if you're doing it yourself) design, and hosting.  Make sure you're sticking to plan.  If you're not careful a Web site can devour cash quickly.  Use our Web budgeting tool to make sure you're keeping things in line. Home Office Web Site Budget.
• Who will develop the content and keep it "fresh":  Getting folks to come back to your site is key.  If you don't keep the content "fresh" and new, your target customers and prospects won't come back.  Make sure that you set aside some time every week to update your Web site (or get "update" information to your developer).
• Will the site remain fairly "static" or do you expect it to grow significantly over 1 or 2 years:  If you're developing a content or commerce site, it will be important to plan for expansion - in costs, complexity and hosting services - NOW.  You won't want to get "locked in" with a service provider who can't meet your site's future requirements.  If you have to change your provider in 6 months or even a year, you'll be forced to hassle with domain name transfers, probable site outages during the transfer and re-installation period and a significant drain on your time and frustration level.
• Your domain name!  Is one available that is close to your business name (a domain name is a text representation of your site's IP address - so instead of having to remember http://www.125.34.35.19.2 for example, folks just enter http://www.homeofficereports.com).  If one is available, you can simply have your chosen Web hosting partner register it for you (so that all the "name" servers understand where your address resides and can route users to you), or you can look for a better price with a "registering entity" like Network Solutions and then "point" them to your hosting provider.  For more information check out what the InterNIC (Internet Network Information Center) has to say about the subject - InterNIC.

Hosting Services

Web hosting services come in a many shapes, sizes and flavors.  At first glance, it might seem easiest to just bring up your Web site using the 'personal' space that many broadband Internet access providers offer as part of their service.  But, be aware, these services are designed for personal Web sites (family or personal information) and do not provide the capabilities in either size (storage - a small business Web site with photos or published documents could easily surpass the limits of these services) performance (often these servers are given lower maintenance priorities and bandwidth from them to the network is "squeezed") services (you wouldn't be able to sell anything) that a business Web site requires.  You - and your customers - would suffer.  Therefore, our advice is to "buck up" and work with a Web hosting service (it could even be offered by your current broadband provider) to ensure that your site (and visitors) will receive the "business grade" treatment they deserve.

When choosing your provider make sure that they can meet not only your current but future needs as well.  Changing providers, transferring your domain name and moving your site can be take time and result in service disruption during the transition period.  So what should you look for in a good hosting provider?

1. Does their service fit your needs - capabilities and cost.  If you expect to sell products or services through your Web site, you'll need "extras" like security (SSL - Secure Sockets Layer) support, product catalogs and credit card processing.  Thinking of using the Web as a collaboration space with your customers and business partners?  Then you'll need collaboration services - like those of Microsoft and their SharePoint products.  Do you have a big site?  You'll need lots of storage - and bandwidth to get all those pages out of the server and onto the network.

2. What is the provider's record for availability?  If their facility has experienced outages, or their maintenance record is poor your customers or potential customers won't be able to reach you!

3. Do they have enough bandwidth to support their customers' demands.  If the provider hasn't invested in enough (or diversified - different routes, even carriers) in their connectivity to the Internet, Web sites will be "fighting" for bandwidth and your customers will feel the pain - slow response time, slow page generation.

4. What is the quality and depth of their technical support?  If you're new to Web hosting (and you're doing it yourself), how willing are they to help you get through the rough spots in the beginning?  Are their personnel familiar with your specific development software (FrontPage, Cold-Fusion, GoLive, etc.)?  Do they have an easy to use trouble ticketing system with regular updates?
5. What types of statistics are available on your site and how easy are they to access and use?  Can you customize the reports offered?  Statistics can tell you a lot about the success (or looming problems) of your Web site.  Hit counters, referrals (where traffic is coming from) are all important to understanding who is accessing your site and what they are looking at.
6. What "extra" services are available to help you "market" your Web site?  Does the provider help you get your site listed with the major search engines (Google, MSN, Ask Jeeves, etc.)?  Do they have Yellow Page or other directory listing available?  What about helping you launch an email-based marketing campaign?

There is a lot to think about.  Our review of Web Hosting Services and Service Providers that follows will help.  If you'd like more information on the Web development software, see our Software page.  (Note:  If you don't recall our rating system:  How We Rate 'Em.)

Web Hosting Services Review

Web Hosting Services and Service Providers*

(Rankings - best, 5 symbols, worst, 1 symbol)

* A = Amateur, R = Rookie, P = Pro

1&1    Affordable & Easy Hosting. Order 1&1 Linux Web Hosting from the World’s # 1 Hosting Provider. Up to 5 FREE domains+$600 in software!

Simple Start-Up - ¹¹¹¹

1+1 offers web hosting solutions for the beginner and the web pro.  They even have a service that includes easy to use site creation tools so you can bring up a web site fast - and simply.

Cost - $$$$1/2

1+1 offers a variety of shared hosting environments at competitive prices.  They also offer server packages for businesses that have very large capacity requirements.

Time Savings - ¹¹¹¹1/2

A Web site is a great marketing tool, and can save significant time and money for you in establishing your business and brand presence.  1&1 offers some great services - including SharePoint collaboration to make you and your business colleagues more productive and effective.

Ease of Use - @@@@

Nice selection of web, ecommerce and collaboration solutions as well as an easy to use account management panel with usage statistics to help you monitor your site.

Works With - YYYY

1&1's web hosting services are compatible with most site development software.  The collaboration service is designed for the world of Microsoft only.

Support - pppp

1&1 offers a comprehensive FAQ as well as 24/7 phone and email support - "800" number available.  24/7 support is available on all services - from the lowest to the highest in revenue generation.

Features - iiii1/2

A nice selection of services with some of the best feature/function to price ratios we've seen.  Linux and Microsoft hosting, e-commerce hosting and collaboration hosting as well.  And they also offer a "beginner" service for a very inexpensive $3.99 per month.

Overall Rating - %%%%1/2

Great pricing, lots of services with lots of capabilities for you to choose from.  1&1 should definitely make your short list.

AT&T                                               

Simple Start-Up - ¹¹¹¹

AT&T offers hosting solutions that range from the "very easy" (their Unix packages with Power Web Builder) to "easy" (shared hosting solutions that include everything from email to electronic commerce capabilities).  The Power Builder packages allow you to build your site using AT&T "stock" templates (you won't need FrontPage or other Web site development software). 

Cost - $$$$1/2

AT&T offers hosting packages as well as electronic commerce hosting services.