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So_You_Want_Your_Own_Website_Is_Free_Or_Paid_Hosting_Right_For_You
| So, You Want Your Own Website? Is Free Or Paid Hosting Right For You?
You have made the decision to build a website! Good for you.
Whether you are simply looking for a way to show off your
family, to try your hand at making money from an affiliate
program or to go into a full-fledged business, your first
decision is going to be where to host it.
Traveling the maze of hosting options is a bewildering and time
consuming job these days. There are literally millions of
hosting sites on the Internet! If you don’t believe me, try
putting “hosting sites” into any major search engine, and look
at the number of sites you will get back. There are free ones,
cheap ones, expensive ones… ones that offer a lot of space or
only a small space… some offer free templates to build a site
“in minutes” and some require an extensive knowledge of HTML
programming. Will you need an on-line control panel? Do they
allow uploading from your hard drive, or are you going to need
an FTP manager? Am I confusing you? Well, these are all things
that you are going to need to consider before you make your
choice.
Most people want to try their hand at a free site to begin
with. If you are going to try and do it yourself this is a good
way to start learning the ins and outs of site design. I
strongly recommend that you sign up with a well-established free
hosting site for starters. There are a ton of free hosting
options out there, but you are going to want one that is not
going to disappear after you have built your site! You also want
one that has very little down time. The best site is never going
to be seen if the host is unreliable. So, consider such hosting
options as Tripod, AngelFire, Yahoo Geocities, AOL Communities
and other long-standing sites for your choice. Remember, anyone
can buy a used server and set himself up as a hosting site, it
does not mean that they will give you anything but grief.
If you are starting a business, you really should consider
paying for your hosting. Those banners at the top of your free
site, or the constant ad pop-ups say to the visitor that you do
not have enough faith in your product to risk paying for a site!
It may be unfair, but it is the reality. How much you pay for
your hosting has a lot to do with your budget. Most of the free
sites will allow you to upgrade to a banner-less site for a
small amount of money each month.
If you are thinking of going with another option, shop around
carefully. Check to see how long any hosting business has been
around. You are going to want to pick one with a proven track
record. Do they have an 800 number for tech support? Sites that
only offer email support are chancy. They might not respond for
days, or at all. Any reputable hosting business will have a
phone number clearly posted. Be sure and check out what country
they are located in. You don’t want language problems if you
need help. You also might seriously consider contacting them and
asking them for the email addresses of other clients. This is a
good way to see if their other sites are satisfied with the
service. If they don’t want you to contact their other clients,
beware!
Also, I assure you that you do not have to pay a lot of money in
order to get a good hosting site. There are many good options in
the $15 to $20 a month price range. Don’t be dazzled by a lot of
options that you may not need. All it really takes is common
sense to find just the right hosting site for your needs. Good
luck!
About the author:
Sibyl McLendon is the owner of Spirit Web Design
http://www.spirit-webdesign.net. She has been designing sites
for 3 years. Visit Spirit Web Design for useful information on
website marketing.
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