web host cautionWhen it comes time to setting up the web hosting for your small business there are some specific dangers that you need to be aware of.

Taking these issues into consideration will help you to prepare for (and minimise potential damage to) your website … and by extension, your brand.

3 Website hosting issues you need to be aware of

Speed

‘Overselling’ is a common problem in web hosting. Although your web host might claim to have gigabytes of data storage and unlimited data transfer, in actual fact, you’re sharing the server with hundreds of other websites. Too many sites bundled together and your performance could suffer.

Downtime

It’s unrealistic to expect your website to be online and available 100% of the time. Even the biggest organisations in the world like Apple and Google go offline from time to time, but how often your website will be down is a serious consideration. Every minute your website is down could be losing you money – not to mention impacting on the reputation of your brand. The majority of web hosts are able to offer 98%+ up-time, anything less – just isn’t good enough.

Backups

Backup procedures vary significantly from host to host so you need to ensure that your host has a system in place to suit your needs. Never assume that they have it sorted out. At a minimum you need to look for a system that has:

  • Multiple hard drives so that data is mirrored across multiple devices
  • Backup data kept off site in case of fire or theft
  • Data backed up onto disk/drive every day (at least)

It also pays to guarantee the security of your data by doing your own backups.

For more information about website hosting, or to get started on creating your own business website, contact the team at Kwik Kopy today!