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Web hosting is the very foundation of the World Wide Web.
But yet, it’s a topic that a lot of digital users know very little about.
In this article, we will briefly guide you through the most important things you need to know about web hosting as a business owner. This includes the different types, their own unique benefits and what to consider when choosing a hosting company.
So let’s start at the beginning…
What Is Web Hosting?
Web hosting is essentially where your website “lives” – it is a service that allows businesses to store their website on a server connected to the internet. Your website is hosted on a server, which makes it available for people on the World Wide Web to access. All the content on your site such as HTML, CSS, images and videos will be entirely located on a server so that it can be viewed online.
The best way of looking at it is this: Your domain name is your address, and your web hosting is the actual house that sits at that address.
5 Benefits Of Web Hosting For Businesses
Building a strong online presence is crucial for businesses of all sizes. Here’s how web hosting empowers your business:
- Professional credibility: A website acts as your digital storefront, providing a professional and trustworthy first impression to potential customers. You can showcase your products, services, and expertise, establishing yourself as a legitimate player in your industry.
- Brand awareness on autopilot: The internet offers a vast audience you can’t reach with traditional methods. With a website, you can extend your brand reach far beyond your local area, attracting new customers and building brand recognition on a global scale.
- Boost customer engagement: Your website is a two-way street. It allows you to share valuable information about your business, products, and services, but it also lets you interact directly with customers. You can provide FAQs, answer inquiries, and even create a platform for customer reviews and testimonials.
- 24/7 sales machine: Unlike a physical store with limited hours, your website is always open for business. Customers can browse your products, learn about your services, or even make purchases at any time, day or night. This translates into increased sales opportunities and revenue generation.
- Marketing & SEO powerhouse: Your website is the foundation of your digital marketing efforts. It serves as a hub for your online presence, where you can integrate marketing tools, social media links, and implement search engine optimisation (SEO) strategies. This improves your website’s ranking in search results, driving organic traffic and attracting potential customers who are actively searching for what you offer.
What Are the Differences Between Hosting Types?
There are multiple ways to host a website with each type catering to different website owners’ needs and ambitions. The differences come down to several factors including storage capacity, administrative control, technical knowledge requirement, server speed and reliability.
Figuring out the right type of hosting for your business can be quite tricky. At Digivate, we tailor our hosting plans to the exact needs of your business. Find out how you can get your site up and running by contacting the Digivate team today.
Let’s go through the most popular types of hosting that are available to website owners:
Shared Hosting
Shared hosting is the go-to for website owners who need something on a smaller scale and budget. It essentially means that your website will be stored on the same server as multiple other websites.
As a result of sharing a singular server, each website will have a limited amount of resources such as RAM (Random Access Memory) and CPU (Central Processing Unit). Sharing these resources can be problematic, sometimes affecting your user experience for the worst if your website – or even the server itself – sees a sudden spike in traffic.
This is the main reason shared hosting is recommended for websites with relatively low user bases.
- Benefits:
- Most affordable option: Ideal for beginners or low-traffic websites.
- Easy to set up and manage: Often user-friendly with minimal technical knowledge required.
- Provider handles maintenance: The web host takes care of server maintenance and security updates.
- Drawbacks:
- Limited resources: You share resources with other websites, so performance can be impacted by spikes in their traffic.
- Less control: Customisation options are restricted compared to other hosting types.
- Security concerns: Potential vulnerability if another website on the shared server experiences a security breach.
VPS Hosting
VPS (Virtual Private Server) hosting is similar to shared but offers website owners more customisation and storage space. It essentially means that your site will have its own dedicated space and resources, albeit still on a shared server.
While it is a step above shared hosting, it will still have trouble dealing with sudden spikes in usage and traffic which can affect your site’s performance.
VPS hosting plans are suitable for websites looking for that sweet spot between a shared server and a dedicated server.
- Benefits:
- Improved performance and scalability: Offers dedicated resources like CPU, memory, and storage, leading to better performance and the ability to handle traffic spikes.
- More control: Provides greater control over your server environment compared to shared hosting.
- Cost-effective for growing businesses: A good middle ground between shared hosting and dedicated servers in terms of price and features.
- Drawbacks:
- Requires some technical knowledge: Managing a VPS server requires more technical knowledge than shared hosting.
More expensive than shared hosting: Comes with a higher price tag than shared hosting plans.
Dedicated Server Hosting
Dedicated hosting simply means that your website will have its very own physical server. Unlike shared hosting, having your own dedicated space allows more uptime and faster speeds (perfect for SEO), as well as giving you complete control of your server.
However, with all that power comes a price with dedicated hosting being one of the more expensive options on this list. This is why dedicated hosting plans are more suited to higher-end websites that bring in lots of traffic.
- Benefits:
- Ultimate control and security: You have complete control over the server environment and resources, ensuring maximum performance and security.
- Ideal for high-traffic websites and applications: Perfect for businesses with demanding applications or expecting significant traffic surges.
- Drawbacks:
- Most expensive option: Dedicated servers require significant investment in terms of cost and technical expertise to manage.
- Requires technical expertise: Managing a dedicated server demands a high level of technical knowledge or hiring an administrator.
Cloud-Based Hosting
A relatively new technology, cloud-based hosting uses multiple computers working together to create one giant server. All of this is done via the internet and allows users to expand their own website over time without ever having to build and maintain their own computing infrastructure.
Cloud-based hosting is the perfect middle ground for website owners who want something more powerful than shared hosting, but do not want to face the high costs of dedicated hosting.
- Benefits:
- Scalability and flexibility: Cloud resources can be easily scaled up or down based on your needs, offering immense flexibility.
- High uptime and reliability: Cloud providers distribute resources across multiple servers, minimising downtime risks.
- Reduced maintenance: Cloud providers handle server maintenance and infrastructure management.
- Reduced downtime: Reduce the chance of any downtime due to server malfunctions or hiccoughs.
- Drawbacks:
- Potentially higher cost: Cloud hosting can be more expensive than shared hosting for simple websites, although costs can be optimised based on usage.
- Vendor lock-in: Switching cloud providers can be complex due to potential integration issues with specific services.
Picking the Right Web Hosting Provider
Your website is a critical asset in today’s digital world. It’s the hub of your online presence, attracting customers, showcasing your brand, and driving sales. But for your website to thrive, it needs a reliable foundation: a web hosting provider.
Selecting the right web host is a crucial decision. There are various options available, each with its own strengths and considerations. Here are the key factors to consider:
- Reliability: Uptime guarantees and server performance are crucial for businesses. Imagine customers visiting your store and the doors are locked! Similarly, if your website is constantly down, you lose potential customers. Look for web hosting providers with high uptime guarantees (ideally 99.9% or higher) and a proven track record of server performance.
- Security: Your website is your online storefront, and you wouldn’t want it to be broken into in the real world, would you? The same goes for online security. Features like firewalls, malware protection, and regular backups are essential to safeguard your website from cyberattacks and data breaches.
- Scalability: As your business expands, you don’t want your web hosting plan to hold you back. Choose a plan that allows you to easily scale your resources (storage space, bandwidth) to accommodate future growth. Some providers offer flexible plans that you can upgrade or downgrade as needed.
- Customer Support: Technical glitches happen, and when they do, you need reliable support to get your website back up and running smoothly. Look for providers with responsive customer support, ideally available 24/7, to answer your questions and troubleshoot any issues that may arise.
- Cost: There are affordable web hosting options available, but be wary of overly cheap plans that might skimp on features or have hidden costs. Consider your needs and budget, but remember that reliable web hosting is an investment in your business’s online success. Don’t be afraid to compare plans and features from different providers before making a decision.
Quick Additional Tips
Some providers offer a free domain name and SSL certificate with their hosting package. This can save you on registration fees and security costs. An SSL certificate encrypts communication between your website and visitors, protecting sensitive information and building trust.
If you’re not tech-savvy, don’t fret! Many providers offer user-friendly interfaces and drag-and-drop website builders. These tools allow you to create and manage your website with ease, even without coding knowledge. They often come with pre-designed templates and intuitive features to get you started quickly.
Finally, remember the importance of regular data backups. These backups safeguard your website content in case of technical glitches, accidental deletions, or security breaches. Look for a provider with automated backup solutions, or choose a plan that allows you to easily create your own backups regularly.
In Conclusion…
Luckily, you won’t have to go out there and buy your own servers as there are lots of web hosting companies out there that can do it for you. And these companies know what they’re doing.
They work with developers and IT specialists whose main responsibility is to make sure that these highly valuable servers are up and running 24/7 come rain or shine. However, the level of service you will receive depends on the type of company you choose and its own capabilities.
At Digivate, our professional Web Hosting Services are used by some of Europe’s biggest brands. We provide fast and powerful servers that can meet a wide range of user needs, including other concerns such as security and data protection.
Still unsure about the type of web hosting your site will need? No problem, reach out to us today by clicking the button below and we’ll find the right hosting solution for what your business needs.
Article by
Nicholas Turner
