DON'T BE FOOLED BY THE WEB HOSTING COMPANIES

Well I guess that you find them everywhere, people who operate with a hidden agenda that is! Again it goes to doing the research before you get involved with people like this - ask the questions, check the references and research, reasearch, research!

Don't be fooled by the webhosting companies
Workplace staff

26 June 2007 at 11h00

Websites have become the portal through which companies can effortlessly connect with existing and potential clients. Acting as an informative tool , websites offer vital company information, in bite-sized chunks, packaged correctly and presenting a finely-tuned image that communicates all the right messages about the brand. Rarely does any brand want to communicate the message of "unavailable", which is exactly what a substandard, non-operational, slow website will do. To prevent your website from going down at the most inopportune moments, it is key that you do your homework when it comes to choosing the right webhost. Wam van Strij de Regt, owner of Plant Hosting and an expert in the international hosting industry, having founded one of Europe's most successful webhosting companies, offers five quick tips in choosing the right webhost:

Do not be fooled by companies that advertise "unlimited bandwidth". There is usually fine print in your contract which stipulates that, when a certain amount of bandwidth has been usurped, you will start to be charged thereafter, per megabyte (MB) or gigabyte (GB), for all bandwidth used or data transferred.This can lead to exorbitant and very unexpected bills arriving at the end of the month.

Equally, Do not be tempted by "unlimited diskspace". Most average sized websites only need about 50MB of space on the host's server. If you're being offered unlimited space, it doesn't really benefit you in any way and shouldn't be used as a deciding factor in choosing the right webhost.

Make sure that your webhost has an email address and a telephone number that you can contact 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for technical support in case your site goes down. Many hosts only advertise an email address, which makes it difficult to rectify technical problems after hours. Sales can be lost and the wrong image projected if your site is down for too long. Test the host and give them a call on a Sunday to see if they answer the phone.

It is standard for your host to offer a number of email addresses, at your own domain name, as well as a catch-all email address that will filter all email addresses through to your address. They should also offer anti-spam and anti-virus protection for free, that you should be able to self-manage.

Beware of "virtual" Internet service providers. These companies are re-selling hosting services as a part of their own services, but are not truly specialised webhosts. They do not actually own the equipment, the servers or the web space, but act as a middleman between you and the primary webhost. Often, because these companies don't have access to the equipment, it is a longer and more difficult process fixing any problems.

According to van Strij de Regt, if you are dissatisfied with your webhost and wish to change to another host, it is a quick, easy and effortless process that should not, if professionally handled, affect your website or e-mail addresses at all.

For more information, visit www.plant.co.za or phone 08600-75268.