If you have a website storefront, your website speed might be affecting your bottom line.
When people access the internet, they expect to find things fast. We’ve been trained over the years to expect instant gratification in our online experiences.
And we tend to wander away from anything that takes too long to access.
The statistics back this up. In fact, over 40% of users will abandon a site that takes more than four seconds to load and 47% of user expect a site to load in 2 seconds or less.
Despite the fact we’ve forgotten what the early days of the internet were like, users expect speed. They expect reliability.
And the only place you’re going to get those things for your website is through the right web hosting business.
But how do you know what the right web hosting business is? We’re going to give you a few pointers and hope that by the end of this article you too can know.
Bad Things Happen If You Choose the Wrong Web Hosting Business
Sometimes, choosing what looks good takes knowing what looks bad.
Here are a few things that the wrong web host will do for you.
Make You Lose Revenue
We already talked about what happens with slow speeds. But downtime also affects your revenue in various ways.
If a site goes down and you try to access it, you get an error message of some sort.
This makes people go ack! And then it makes them go somewhere else.
If Google goes down, where do you turn to? Bing? Yahoo?
On average, small businesses lose $55,000 due to downtime every year.
And if you choose the wrong web hosting business, this number could be a lot worse for you.
Bad Security
The wrong web hosting business could get you in trouble by opening you up to data loss.
If your site is hacked and the information irreparably corrupted or deleted or changed, then you need a backup from which to restore.
But if don’t have a good web hosting service behind you, they might not have a backup option.
You want someone who cares about your data security and you want someone who will be there for your 24/7.
SEO Impact
We spend a lot of time and money making sure our websites are at the top of the SERPs.
But what if your website suddenly becomes unreliable? Do you think Google will notice?
They absolutely will. And your website will not go unpunished.
In fact, Google recently started tracking speed as one of their ranking signals.
And, while it’s only a small percentage of the signals tracked, it can affect your rankings.
What Do I Consider When Selecting the Right Web Hosting Business?
It might be a little overwhelming thinking of all the factors that go into website operation.
But there are only a few select things that you should look out for when it comes to choosing a web hosting service.
Here are the things you should consider:
Price
You get what you pay for most of the time in this world.
You buy a McDonald’s dollar menu burger, you don’t get grass-fed, local beef. You get McDonald’s factory-farmed beef.
So, you probably don’t want to run to the cheapest option right away.
If you rely on your website to make money, you want the best value for your money.
And you really do want to check out reviews before you sign on for a web hosting business to help you out.
There are a few price comparison websites out there. HostMonk and WHReviews are two reliable shopping guides.
Area of Focus
Some web hosting businesses host very specific niches. And if the hosting site doesn’t do you niche, you should probably find out why.
Make sure you go with a company that is reputable in your field. Find out what your competitors are using. And if there is a majority that uses one service, find out why.
Tech Support
Becuase you don’t want downtime to happen, you need that sweet, sweet 24/7 support service.
A good web hosting business will deliver on this one. And will offer multiple channels for contact.
Look at reviews and make sure their support centers deliver excellent service.
Are the call center staff knowledgeable? Are they clear and succinct in their instructions?
These are important things. You need to be able to rely on this company at 3 AM when your customers on the other side of the world are trying to purchase your product.
Hardware
If you don’t understand server hardware, you’re going to have to do some digging and research.
If they run the best hardware, you won’t have to worry much about downtime and server issues.
But if they used spit and duct tape and a prayer to build their server facility, then you’re looking at some major downtime coming your way.
Also, if they won’t tell you about their servers, or their representatives say they don’t know, that’s a red flag.
Turn hide and run. That’s not a good web hosting business.
A good web hosting business will know their hardware inside and out.
Email Features
Spam seems like a fact of life. But it’s also dangerous.
If you have a Spam problem, there might be a support group for that.
But if you have an e-mail spam problem, then it might be your web hosting company’s fault.
A good web hosting business has great spam solutions and a great email service.
UI/Control Panel
We expect a lot in the tech world to be user-friendly now. And really, there is no excuse for a user interface not to be these days.
What kinds of control panel options do they offer?
How is their interface? Is it easy to use? Or would you have to call customer support just to learn how to use it?
A good web hosting service will have a control panel/UI that’s usable right out of the box.
Use a Great API on Your Current or Future Website
Whatever service you go with, make sure you use an API that keeps them accountable.
If you want a great API to monitor your website, check out SiteUptime.
