For those who are looking at a web-hosting service, make sure that the company chosen is already providing what they are claiming to offer to their other customers.

Below are some examples of the types of guaranteed services that web-hosting companies offer their customers when they know that these services are impossible to guarantee.

100% Uptime
It is impossible to offer 100% up time 24/7 to customers. Even the most expensive, best quality machines are prone to fail some of the time. If the web host loses even a few seconds of uptime then it is fair to say that they cannot provide their customers with 100% up time. If a web-hosting company is offering this service, check to see if they will refund or compensate the customer if they do have any down time.

Foolproof Anti-virus
With viruses popping up all of the time and the people creating the viruses getting better at creating trouble, it is untruthful to say that any type of anti-virus is fool proof. It is impossible to be up to date with all of the definitions all of the time. Even the best anti-virus services fail to catch a virus at times. This doesn’t mean that the anti-virus service the web host has in place is not good, all it means is that nobody is perfect and there is no such thing as foolproof.

Anti-spam that never fails
Anti-spam is a great service, sometimes. All anti-spam services have their negative points. They are known to block emails that are wanted and let in the ones that are spam. Good anti-spam services allow the user to ‘allow or deny’ emails into their email box. But it is misleading to say that anti-spam services never fail.

Unlimited disk space
There is no way that a web-hosting service can promise unlimited disk space. Even the biggest data center has limitations and size restrictions. The point being put across to customers may be that the disk space being offered is ample enough for any website, however, unlimited space is misleading.

Unlimited Email Accounts
By definition, any control panel has to have a defined number of email account allowed.
This number may be very high, lets say a thousand. You will probably never use a thousand email accounts for your business and it would be crazy to try to handle that many. However, high as the number of email accounts may be, it’s still not unlimited.

While all of these services are necessary, it is important to remember that, although outrageous promises made by some web-hosting companies can be very attractive, customers should make sure that the web-hosting company can deliver what they are promising before signing up for them.

The biggest disadvantage to average cheap webhosts is the fact that they will commonly offer less disk space and bandwidth than other hosts. The trick is to find a webhost that is established enough to have extra disk space and bandwidth available. This means that the no-name hosts that don’t have reputation will likely be less appealing than the mainstream hosts.

Sometimes it isn’t about what one needs in a web host, so much as it is what they don’t need from a host. Some hosting companies will offer different services, programs, and tools that veteran webmasters won’t need. These often cost much more money in the long run, and are usually unnecessary. Other things such as the web hosting panel used can impact a bill- whereas cPanel will cost much more than a free web panel offered by a hosting company.

Although it is a little ironic, sometimes spending more money on a hosting plan will give a customer a better discount. Web hosting companies will charge based on amount of disk space and bandwidth allowed. Such limits are increased dramatically with bigger plans. The cost per megabyte, thus, is much cheaper when paying for a larger plan. This is usually the best option for medium to large websites.

Those who have the funds to make a commitment, there are vast savings to be had by agreeing to a length of service. The most common length of service is a year- in which case the webmaster pays upfront for the entire year’s worth of service. This will commonly give the webmaster a month or two of free service in savings, although it also means that they will have to use the same service for a year- so make sure it is a reputable company.

Cheap webhosts can also be obtained through other types of efforts, although it’ll take more time and patience. The first way is to simply place ads on one’s website that link back to the webhost. This will require an “under the table” deal with the webhost, who will agree to offer a discount in exchange for the links. Other things, such as forum posting, referring sales, or even completing offers can help reduce a payment each month.

Final Thoughts

Web hosts have a lot of fees, bills, and expenditures to abide by. But this doesn’t mean that they can’t offer cheap hosting to their customers! To get the best deals, always ask about referral programs, ad placement opportunities, and always opt for the service agreement each year if the funds are permitted. And in the end, opting for established web hosts is usually the best route to take.

By: Chris Channing