Features to Consider While Choosing a Premium Web Hosting Service

Author: John Ward

There are thousands of web hosting providers which offer a variety of packages with variable features included in them. Before choosing the right hosting provider for your business it is required to know the services they should provide which can save you a great deal of money and time.

Server management

  • A good web hosting company manages the allocated disk space properly and often recommends when the client exceeding their disk space to upgrade to another hosting package which offers more disk space.
  • For example, in shared web hosting which is opted by most websites the provider should make sure that none of the web sites should use more than the allocated disk space else it may stop your website and email from functioning as normal.

Server up-time

  • In this global environment it is important that your website is accessible 24/7 and for this any hosting provider should have a server platform which is reliable with 99.99 percent up-time.
  • Having consistent and maximum server up-time is essential to the growth and development of your business.

Server maintenance

  • A regular maintenance such as checking the servers operating efficiency, up gradation of both software and hardware from time to time etc., is highly recommended which helps secure and optimized for maximum performance.

Firewall protection and anti-virus

  • A hosting provider should be vigilant about virus protection on the server.
  • It is highly essential to run the regular updates on the server to make sure that it stays protected. Top hosting providers will have anti-virus and firewall measures along with the anti-virus & firewall you should running on PC.

Troubleshooting and help desk

  • Hosting provider should have a help desk monitored by experienced professionals where clients can easily reach them either through phone email or live chat. They should be able to get help to troubleshoot and resolve their issues immediately.

Hosting package migrations and service upgrades

  • As your business grows, hosting requirements change such as the need for more disk space and other hosting account related features.
  • An efficient hosting provider will be able to make recommendations on the type of packages which suites your business needs. Most reputable web hosting providers will provide seamless migration service at no additional cost.

Phone support options

  • It is one of the preferred and best options for communication among web hosting providers. This support option mode of communication is most suited for pre-sales, billing or technical support inquires.

Enterprise Level Spam filters

  • Email spam filtering is a great way to get rid of unwanted mails (spam) which usually leads to loss in productivity and email traffic congestion.
  • An acceptable hosting provider should provide enterprises level email spam filtering which includes black and white list options, customizable reporting and smart (auto) training of spam filters.

Support Response times:

  • Self-help support: A web hosting provider should have a knowledge base, video tutorials to resolve issues on your own.
  • Ticket support: This is one type of email support allowing you to post queries through email directly to your web host support team. This is a technical assistance support which is provided to the user and monitored round the clock.
  • Online documentation: It is kind of support offered in the form where the help areas are displayed on-screen in each section of the users hosting control panel.
  • Live chat support: It is a new technology used widely for online support allowing for a real time chat sessions with the sales and technical personnel of your web host inquiring about their services and hosting packages.

Be careful and take your own time to review the services listed above. After all, an excellent hosting service is what you need to run your website smoothly and efficiently.