How to choose the best web host for your business!
Choosing the right web host for your business is a critical decision. It can help you grow your business, deliver a better customer experience, and save money in the long run. The first thing to consider when choosing a web host is what features are important to you and how those will impact your business model. For example: Do you need more than one website? If so, do you want them all hosted on one domain name or separate domains? How much control do you want over security features? Are there any limitations around e-commerce functionality that might impact sales?
Consider the cost
When it comes to finding the right web host, the cost is an important factor. The cost of hosting a website can vary widely depending on the level of services you need and the company you choose. Here are a few companies that offer hosting:
- Godaddy
- BlueHost
- CSR Consulting
Then there are Content management systems (CMS) that allow you to build and maintain your website. Popular CMS are:
- WordPress
- Drupal
- Joomla
Lastly, you have companies that host and have built-in CMS such as:
- Shopify
- Wix
- Squarespace
Consider how much time you’re willing to spend managing your website. Configuring Google Analytics, your Email service, and adding additional functionality can require a lot of research and technical expertise. Developers pricing varies depending on experience. If you are looking for an affordable developer contact us for a free consultation.
Platform usability
As a business owner, you can probably think of 100 other important tasks to focus on rather than your website. So it is important to keep in mind the platform you choose can drastically affect your time commitment to creating your website.
The best platform should be simple enough for beginners but powerful enough for advanced users. User interface should not require much training (if any) and allow you to easily update content using the tools provided by the hosting company.
CSR Consulting manages all areas of your site from content to security. We offer 24/7 customer support to ensure help is always available.
Staging Website Option
A staging website is a copy of your live website that you can use to test new content, designs, and functionality without affecting the live site.
You can use it for testing purposes before you make changes to your existing website. You can also use it when upgrading or moving to another web host to preserve all the current data on your live website so that you don’t lose any information from customers or users who have entered their information into forms (such as newsletter sign-ups).
Staging websites are a great way to use security best practices to push updates to the staging site before updating your live site. We will talk more about security practices below.
Detailed Reports
CSR Consulting provides detailed reports on site traffic, search engine optimization (SEO), and security. These reports can help you understand who is visiting your website and recommend ways to optimize your website and make your site visible to more customers.
We use Google Analytics to analyze your clients’ websites. We provide you with detailed analytics about what pages are most visited, where people are coming from, demographic information, and much more! Our SEO reports discuss many ways to improve your site visibility by using keywords, regularly posting content, and increasing backlinks. The more information you have about your customers, the better you can serve them.
Content Management
Once you have selected a web host, it is time to create your site. The first thing to consider when deciding on a content management system (CMS) is the technical skills required to use that CMS. The next thing would be to consider the learning curve you may need to endure trying to develop your website.
For example, WordPress is an open-source platform that allows you to use multiple plugins for different functions such as creating landing pages or building an e-commerce store. That said, there is no limit to what kind of functionality you can add with WordPress but, each additional capability comes at a compatibility risk. It is best to use a developer who can work with HTML, CSS, and Javascript to write or modify code to make your website function exactly how you would like.
Small business owners tend to go with the most cost-effective and easy-to-use CMS in the beginning but quickly realize the time commitment and limitations associated with platforms like Wix and SquareSpace.
Web Security
When using WordPress, Web security is the process of protecting your website from malicious attacks. It includes regularly updating plugins, installing security plugins, and using a secure hosting provider. Some hosting companies offer automated plugin updates, which is great! But, hosting providers are not ensuring that the plugin updates are not breaking your site.
As mentioned in the Staging section, it is best practice to make updates to staging sites first and then push updates to the live site. To busy business owners, this can be a tedious and time-consuming task. CSR Consulting provides weekly updates and ensures all updates are safe to make. In turn you can sleep peacefully without worrying about breaking your website and having to pay a high cost for a developer to fix it. Here are three security tips to keep a WordPress website safe.
- Change the default login URL (/wp-admin)
- Enable Two-factor authentication (2FA)
- Install additional security plugins that monitor your website
Think about your immediate and future needs
- How many pages will you need?
- How many visitors do you expect?
- Will you need to integrate with other systems, like e-commerce, social media feeds, or live chat?
Consider if you will need to add new software or service offerings that require some development. CSR Consulting offers discounted rates for clients to help you with those types of integrations and upgrades. So, when the time comes, we will already understand the layout and can quickly develop or integrate new features.
Consider one-stop web hosting and design packages!
If you are looking for a web design and hosting package, consider working with CSR Consulting. You will get a complete solution that includes everything you need to launch your new website, including design and hosting services. CSR Consulting offers a more tailored approach to the needs of small to midsize businesses.
Conclusion
We hope you found this article helpful. It may seem like a lot to consider when choosing the right web host, but as long as you take your time and do some research we think that anyone can find the right fit.
If you have any further questions, feel free to get in touch with our team. We’re here to help! sean@csrroberts.com
