Web Hosting
Plans: So what's the difference?
By Staff
Web hosting plans come in
all shapes and sizes. They also vary in
price depending on the types of services
that are offered. The decision to choose a
web host can be daunting given this
variation but it needn’t be. There are
several things that you can consider before
deciding on which web host plan is right for
your needs. Here are several factors to
consider that will give you an idea of why
prices vary from web host to web host.
·
Low cost plans
– These types of plans are low in cost for a
reason, they usually don’t provide much in
the way of service or technical support.
They are basically suitable for someone
looking to create a family photo page or
simple sales page. They are not meant to
host a startup business that needs room to
grow as well as additional features to
support that growth. They may offer email
services but technical support of any kind
will be very limited if existent at all.
·
Dedicated Servers
– These types of plans often offer a wider
range of services. In some cases, these web
hosts offer a more solid network
infrastructure with a data-center. This
drives up the cost of their hosting plans.
In addition, the types of servers used by
these types of web hosts can further drive
up the costs. If they use brand named
servers like Dell versus no name servers,
they may charge a little more to recoup
their investment in their infrastructure.
·
Other Options
- If a web host offers such features as
bandwidth, web space or email accounts,
these may be offered at an additional cost
to the customer. You can get these options
sometimes with the lower cost plans but the
amount of space allowed you is very limited.
If you go over the allotted space limit you
could pay significant additional expenses.
However with web host plans that cost a
little more, your space limits are increased
and the price is already included in the
monthly fee charged.
·
Setup Fees
– You will find that it is
fairly common among web hosts to charge
initial set up fees. These fees can range
from $50 to $100 and are a “one time”
expense for setting up your web host
account. Web hosts that charge this setup
fee usually will provide additional services
and support in helping transfer your domain
registration and such. Sometimes if you ask,
a web host may actually waive the setup fee
for this transfer just to get your business.
·
High-end Hosting Plans
– Hosting plans that cost $100 or more a
month are considered a high-end hosting
plan. They tend to offer more services and
features and better technical support. They
are known to offer longer hours of support
availability and employ a better grade of
technician to service the needs of their
customers. Some even offer dedicated support
lines for easier and quicker responses to
technical issues.
To sum up, lower costing
hosting plans are good for hobbyists or
simple web pages, they are not intended to
host a small business that needs room to
grow and services to accommodate that
growth. Good hosting is a critical part of
any business presence on the net. There are
many features and services that are needed
to support a growing business. It is best to
buy the best hosting plan possible. One that
offers the needed web space, email accounts,
bandwidth and technical support that are
vital to keeping a business up and running
on a daily basis. It doesn’t pay to skimp on
cost when your business viability is on the
line. Shop around and get the best plan to
meet your needs today and well into the
future.
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