Introduction
Taking a business to digital and online platforms requires you to host your business website on a host’s server. Every single website that you visit on the internet has been hosted by a business so that consumers can find it. Without going for website hosting, your online brand platform will be unable for anyone to find on the internet.
The post-Coronavirus world has made businesses realize the importance of maintaining a strong and aggressive online and digital presence. The first requirement in that regard is creating a business website. This has given birth to several important questions that business owners might have regarding hosting services, facilities, and more-
In this article, we are going to cover some important details and information around website hosting and security like-
- Defining website hosting in details
- Choosing a website hosting provider
- Cost to host a website with a hosting provider
- The importance of online security in web hosting
- The Final Takeaway
If you are someone that wants to understand in detail how website hosting works, please check out what we have to say in this resource article.
1. Website Hosting: Meaning and Definition
Every website is a set of information, data, and contents. These are structured in the form of web pages. Check out any website and you are likely to find pages like About Us, Contact Us, Services, Products, Blog, and other pages.
All these sections or pages are in essence just pieces of data and content. In order for these web pages to be displayed on the internet (to the users), it needs to be stored on servers that are often provided by hosting providers and services.
There are two main elements of things you need for website hosting:
- Domain Name
The domain is the registered name for your business on the internet. People type in this name on the address or search bar to find your website on search rankings. A domain is often represented as www.yourbrandname.com. While .com is the most popular, you will also find .net, .org, and so on.
- Server for hosting
You need to understand what a server is by simply thinking of it as a giant computer that stores your website’s entire data and information. There are two options when it comes to servers. You can either go for specialized hosting providers that provide server facilities or you can invest and create your own server. With limited budgets, you need to go with the former option. While such areas and information were hard to find some years back, there are plenty of resources that can help you. You can always turn to YouTube videos, or take help on website hosting and security from informative guides like this one.
2. How to Choose a Website Hosting Provider
Whether you are looking to host a brand-new website or are looking for website hosting migration, you need to select a credible provider. In this section, we are going to extensively look at how you should be choosing a website hosting and security provider or company.
Step 1: Understanding what hosting type you require
There are plenty of options in terms of choosing the different types of hosting for your website. You can go for Shared Hosting, VPS (Virtual Private Server) Hosting, Managed Hosting, or, Dedicated Hosting. Each has its fair share of advantages as well as disadvantages. At the end of the day, you need to look at speed, security, customizations, and customer support.
Step 2: Factors to consider when choosing a website hosting
According to leading IT experts, there are certain factors that should inform your selection process. You need to look at Uptime Time, Speed, Response Timings, Customer Support, Feedback, and Costs. This will help in ensuring that your website is getting the best internet performance enabling it to score high as far as customers and SEO metrics are concerned.
Step 3: Registering and setting up your domain with the hosting
As we already mentioned, you need to get a domain name. Once you have that, you need to upload and register the same with your hosting provider. This is a relatively simple and straightforward process. There are some platforms that offer bundle packages as far as domain name registration and hosting services are concerned. This is a more convenient option.
Step 4: Migrating the website to the new hosting provider’s servers
If you have a fresh site that is on your computer, you need to use FTP or File Transfer Protocol to move your website to the host’s servers. If you have an already existing website that is with some other hosting provider, then you need to go for website hosting migration. In this case, support teams will coordinate between themselves to ensure that the process goes through.
There are plenty of benefits of choosing a website hosting provider. Some of the major ones are-
- You get fantastic upload speeds
- The infrastructure of the server is top-notch
- Set-up is easy and uncomplicated
- Domain addition and configuration is fast
- You get pre-customized server offerings
3. Cost to Host a Website with a Hosting Provider: What you should know
If you have been paying attention to the contents of this article, you will be asking yourself a pertinent question- how much does it cost to host a website with a hosting provider?
The direct answer is that it depends. In fact, website hosting costs can vary from a few dollars to hundreds, thousands, and even more!
There are three main factors that influence website hosting costs and expenditures.
- Firstly, it depends on the hosting company you are going for. Good and established companies do not come cheap. But they offer fantastic speeds, great website security, and incredible levels of support at all times.
- Secondly, it depends on the type of hosting (we have already covered it) you are going for. If you are opting for shared hosting, it will not be expensive. However, if you are going for dedicated servers, it will set you back considerably.
- Thirdly, different hosting solutions have diverse monthly, quarterly, or annual plans. Opting for annual plans helps you get some discounts. However, you need to make sure what all you are getting in the plans first.
When you are researching hosting providers, you will come across plenty of free options in the market. According to experts, it is best to not go for free plans. These are severely compromised in terms of uptime, speed, and cybersecurity. You stand to lose much more than you stand to gain.
You need to understand one simple thing when it comes to website hosting and security. The more money you spend, the higher bandwidth you get. Higher bandwidth equals more speed, better support, and increased uptime. If you are looking to save some money you should be looking for web hosting Black Friday deals.
4. The Importance of Online Security in Web Hosting
Did you know that online security is one of Google’s top three ranking factors for the SERPs?
This means that in the last few years, cybersecurity concerns occupy a dominant position for search engines like Google.
In the last section, we mentioned how free website hosting platforms seriously end up compromising this. You must have noticed that websites have a small ‘lock’ against their domain name in the search address bar.
That is an SSL Encryption that conveys to both users as well as search engines that the website is protected and is safe to visit and engage with.
Great website hosting providers pay particular attention to cybersecurity infrastructure.
- Encryption
- Firewalls
- Anti-Spam Blocking
- Virus Protection
- Threat Assessments
- Kill-Switches
In the post-pandemic period, cyberattacks have become very common. Some of the most successful names in the industry like Twitter have come under attack from cybercriminals. Even if you have one successful cyberattack orchestrated against your brand, you will end up suffering financially, as well as your brand’s reputation will take a beating.
If you are not serious about your website and have nothing to lose, then free web hosting is an option. But for businesses that are looking for the best in terms of web hosting and security, you need to go for the most secure providers and plans.
The Final Takeaway
Choosing a website hosting and security provider might just be one of the most important decisions you will be taking on behalf of your business. A strong and fast website hosting solution can turn out to be a major asset for any business. It can help your customers to interact better with your business, offer a seamless UI and UX, and improve security.
A good website hosting plan is like an insurance plan that protects your website in the event something goes wrong. With cyberattacks increasing four-fold in the aftermath of the Coronavirus pandemic, no brand website is safe from cybercriminals. It is high time web hosting is taken seriously by all businesses, regardless of the shape or size of the organization.
In this resource, we have tried to cover some of the most basic questions that individuals and businesses can have regarding website hosting and security. If you have any specific questions on the topic of website hosting migration, costs to host a website, or something else, please let us know in the comments section below.
