Typically, hosting services come in various packages that are determined by your website requirements. These packages are then charged to you on monthly or yearly terms, usually being cheaper the longer you sign up for. Signing up and purchasing a hosting account does not ensure you with a domain name and vice versa; you must get your domain and your hosting separately although most providers offer both services.
Choosing the right Hosting service for your website can be a confusing task if you aren’t quite sure what all the inclusions mean, so today we’ll take a look at some of the various Hosting services over at GoDaddy and what they really mean for your website.
GoDaddy is one of the most popular website service providers around – and we like ’em, so felt it was only appropriate to use them in our examples. [Source]
“Economy”
Can start at approx. $4.24/mo @ 36mo
- 10 GB Space | Unlimited Bandwidth
- 100 Email Accounts
- 10 MySQL Databases (1 GB each)
- FREE Ad Credits: MySpace® and Google®
“Deluxe”
Can start at approx. $5.94/mo @ 36mo
- 150 GB Space | Unlimited Bandwidth
- 500 Email Accounts
- 25 MySQL Databases (1 GB each)
- FREE Ad Credits: MySpace® and Google®
“Ultimate”
Can start at approx. $8.49/mo @ 36mo
- Unlimited Space and Bandwidth
- 1000 Email Accounts
- Unlimited MySQL Databases (1 GB each)
- FREE Ad Credits: MySpace® and Google®
- Includes Free SSL Certificate
These are the typically the most important factors in choosing your hosting provider; Space, bandwidth, email accounts, database capability and operating system. Note: Choosing your operating system, Linux or Windows is important. If you aren’t sure what one to choose, ask your web developer what your website will require, or select Linux as default. The type of operating system you choose is NOT dependent on your computer.
Don’t be fooled by allocated space and bandwidth, in society we are used to wanting the most space possible (why get an 8 GB iPod when you can get a 64 GB iPod)? The truth is, your website probably doesn’t need all that extra space. Unless you are anticipating crazy-insane traffic (like tens of thousands per day) or offering file download/upload capabilities, a lot of video or a lot of hi-res images, the “Economy” Plan will usually always do. (If space or bandwidth or anything else ever becomes an issue, it is usually no problem to call up your provider and ask for an increase in services).
Linux VS Windows
Each operating system has its pros or cons, although most hosting providers will default to a Linux server for you in an automatic set-up. The basic difference is that Linux is run on an open-source operating system and in doing do it is free to use. The server must purchase a certificate to use a Windows operating system so sometimes Windows Hosting rates can be higher. Windows can host ASP files while people generally use Linux for PHP files.
Dedicated VS Virtual Dedicated
A dedicated server is reserved for one website to use it’s bandwidth, memory and storage space. Because of this, they are usually good for high-traffic performing sites such as gaming websites. With Virtual Dedicated Hosting, servers are shared but customers retain admin access and features at a lower cost.
SSL Certificates
An SSL certificate is a digital certificate that authenticates the identity of a website and encrypts information sent to the server using Secure Socket Layer technology. Not every website needs to be armed with an SSL certificate, only sites that request customers send confidential information over the website (such as a shopping cart). If you use a third party service provider such as PayPal – the transaction is not being completed on your site so you are not responsible for the information. Many third party service providers are widely used as many customers are already familiar using them and they can be a major budget reducer!
Email Accounts
Most hosting providers include email addresses that use your domain in the name; meaning you can use ‘yourname@yourbusiness.com’ instead of often-regarded unprofessional alternatives like ‘yourname@hotmail.com’. Usually you are given a webmail account and retain ability to check and use your email account online or you can find account setting information to apply to email programs such as Thunderbird, Outlook or Apple Mail.
Databases
Not every website needs database capabilities. If you have a static website – something you don’t update yourself on-the-fly or have no need for e-commerce capabilities; you don’t need to worry about the information regarding MySQL, databases and the like. However, if you want a Content Management System (CMS, enables you to edit your website content), selling products online, storing contact form information, etc – you not only need a programmer, but the appropriate capabilities to back those databases up. One WordPress account, for example, would take up one of your MySQL Database slots.
Ad Credits
Look forward to some freebies to entice you to sign up for your new hosting account! With GoDaddy for example, you will usually get Google or Facebook Ad Credit for signing up! These credits will supply you with a code that you will use within your Google and/or Facebook Ad accounts. You won’t be able to ask your hosting service provider for help past that point – its up to you to learn how to run these ads online (you’ve seen them in the right sidebar on Google search result pages and on Facebook) but luckily there are limitless support outlets online! It’s important to use social media marketing to its full advantage for promoting yourself or your business.
Did You Know? You can host a website for FREE. That is, if you don’t mind your site displaying ads. Many hosting service providers offer you server space to host web files for free if you agree to keep banner ads (usually at the top or in a sidebar) on your website. To have a unique URL you would still need to purchase a domain, however, you can score a subdomain for free with some providers. You’ve seen a subdomain before. Your personal Twitter page is set to a subdomain of twitter.com. Instead of using ‘www.yourname.com’ it may appear as something like ‘yourname.providername.com’.
If you have any further questions about choosing the right hosting service for your website, feel free to comment below!