Web hosting is not a glamorous occupation. Being a web host isn’t one of those things that cause friends to ask lots of questions about what you do. Pretty girls will not likely say, “That’s fascinating,” and mean it.
When you are asked for specifics you may likely be able to spout a laundry list of technical jargon that may only have meaning for you.
However, if it weren’t for the web hosts of this world ecommerce would not be a reality for the millions who love to shop online. We would not see information sites or game sites. Sports and news would be relegated to talk radio or 24 hour news channels on TV.
Without the advent of wide spread web hosting the Internet would be a series of techno-codes for an elite group of university professors and students. Web hosting has taken what was once a format for science and mathematics and simplified it for the rest of us.
A web host takes care of hardware and software issues, they assure the uptime on your website and they take what may be difficult to understand and simplify it for all of us to use.
Web hosts are the business partners of worldwide commerce. These experts quietly assure continued operation of a website that has the potential to bring wealth to the site owner.
I have said before that using a web host is a bit like buying an office, but it’s really more than that. You are responsible for the business part of your operation, the web host is responsible to make sure your office runs smoothly. That makes your web host a business partner and office manager. Not bad for someone so quiet.
We tend to attach celebrity status to actors, sports stars and singers, yet many of us would never hear about the latest news of these icons if it weren’t for web hosts on the job to allow the information to be available online.
Web hosts are heroes in their own quiet way, yet they don’t mind monitoring equipment, replacing servers, and installing new software to make your online experience the best it can be.
The World Wide Web has opened up a world of opportunity for ecommerce and web hosting has led the way in making an online presence not only a possibility, but also an affordable means of fulfilling the dream of business ownership.
Consider this a hearty salute to the brave men and women that keep our websites running and rarely receive the gratitude they deserve.
Showing posts with label co-located server. Show all posts
Showing posts with label co-located server. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Web Hosting: Do You Really Get What You Pay For?
There is an assumption among business owners that in order to have a quality website you need to follow the old adage, “You get what you pay for.”
The truth is, in web hosting you can pay a significant amount of money and receive poor service. Certainly the reverse is true, but the point is inexpensive doesn’t always mean ‘cheap’ and expensive does not always equate to excellence in web hosting and design.
Many web designers who also provide hosting options may supply a reasonably priced plan for site development, however the plan doesn’t always include the things you may need for your ecommerce store and the add-ons can add up.
There are web hosting/design options that include many of the most used features of ecommerce as part of the bundled price.
Some of the options available include…
* Customer Newsletter System
* Customer/Order Database
* Feedback Forms
* AutoResponders
* PayPal Shopping Cart Tools
* Search Engine Registration
* Full Feature Website Wizard
* Merchant CC ID OAC
* Authorize.net Setup OAC
* Pro Stock Image Library
* Premium Hosting
If you are shopping for a web design and a web host you need to consider all options. It is reasonable to believe that by paying more you can receive better service, but experience says that this line of thinking is not always true.
Sites have been developed with a fee for every photo, every page, every design element and every tool that was used to create the site. What if you simply had access to all of these things at monthly fee that is less than a night with the family at a fast food restaurant?
While some businesses may feel this is an inferior way to develop a website, consider what other business owners have to say about this type of web hosting option.
"Enables you to make your own website and there's no need for you to know any programming." - David Chalk
"I was quickly able to build a fully functional commercial web site using the easy-to-use templates with Slide Shows, Image Maps, Fully Functional Search Engine, Pay Pal Shopping Cart and more! Highly Recommended. Tremendous Value." - Don Fortner
"My staff laughed when I told them I was going to make our company website myself, but you should have seen their faces when it was done!" - Gerod Floyd
"I don't know why everyone does not do it this way." - Garfield McCormick
Whatever web hosting and design service you use, make sure to explore the total cost (site design, add-ons, maintenance, etc) before you make a decision. Your site could cost you a lot more than it needs to.
The truth is, in web hosting you can pay a significant amount of money and receive poor service. Certainly the reverse is true, but the point is inexpensive doesn’t always mean ‘cheap’ and expensive does not always equate to excellence in web hosting and design.
Many web designers who also provide hosting options may supply a reasonably priced plan for site development, however the plan doesn’t always include the things you may need for your ecommerce store and the add-ons can add up.
There are web hosting/design options that include many of the most used features of ecommerce as part of the bundled price.
Some of the options available include…
* Customer Newsletter System
* Customer/Order Database
* Feedback Forms
* AutoResponders
* PayPal Shopping Cart Tools
* Search Engine Registration
* Full Feature Website Wizard
* Merchant CC ID OAC
* Authorize.net Setup OAC
* Pro Stock Image Library
* Premium Hosting
If you are shopping for a web design and a web host you need to consider all options. It is reasonable to believe that by paying more you can receive better service, but experience says that this line of thinking is not always true.
Sites have been developed with a fee for every photo, every page, every design element and every tool that was used to create the site. What if you simply had access to all of these things at monthly fee that is less than a night with the family at a fast food restaurant?
While some businesses may feel this is an inferior way to develop a website, consider what other business owners have to say about this type of web hosting option.
"Enables you to make your own website and there's no need for you to know any programming." - David Chalk
"I was quickly able to build a fully functional commercial web site using the easy-to-use templates with Slide Shows, Image Maps, Fully Functional Search Engine, Pay Pal Shopping Cart and more! Highly Recommended. Tremendous Value." - Don Fortner
"My staff laughed when I told them I was going to make our company website myself, but you should have seen their faces when it was done!" - Gerod Floyd
"I don't know why everyone does not do it this way." - Garfield McCormick
Whatever web hosting and design service you use, make sure to explore the total cost (site design, add-ons, maintenance, etc) before you make a decision. Your site could cost you a lot more than it needs to.
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Web Hosting: Portals
One lone computer in a business is useful. When that computer is connected to a second computer a small network is developed that allow files and information to be more readily shared. Large companies have hundreds or thousands of computers tied together in a company-wide network that speeds many processes along.
This concept is a microcosm of what it means to develop a network known as the World Wide Web or Internet.
The Internet is a connection of computers linked through servers for the purpose of sharing information, entertainment and ecommerce.
Web hosting is the mechanism whereby you can access a portal to the World Wide Web. When you work with a web host to place your site files on their server you are moving from spectator to player in ecommerce.
This portal is important because it provides a means of interacting with your customers. They can view your site and you can gain access to information about the visitor that may assist you in developing new sales opportunities or introducing them to new products.
This portal is not just a storefront, it effectively becomes your sales force if accepted Search Engine Optimization (SEO) strategies are utilized.
It is also this portal that allows you to take your business to international markets you couldn’t have dreams of fifteen years ago. Web hosting makes it possible for you to learn new skills that will benefit your ecommerce store while supplying consumers with products or services they are motivated to purchase.
The privacy a website provides customers has allowed ecommerce to grow at a very rapid rate. Consumers are generally tired of impatient sales associates and limited stock at conventional brick and mortar stores. The ecommerce solutions on the web are the portal many consumers are using to facilitate the acquisition of many items they once purchased at a store as well as items they did not have routine access to.
Web hosting can be managed as an extension of site design, but it may also include site design. A web design expert can manage this design or it can be created and maintained by the ecommerce business owner.
However it is accomplished site function, maintenance and presentation are done through the portal of web hosting.
We live in a world where millions of computers are now connected. The knowledge base and available consumer products and services are mind-boggling. A web host facilitates a future in ecommerce in the online world.
This concept is a microcosm of what it means to develop a network known as the World Wide Web or Internet.
The Internet is a connection of computers linked through servers for the purpose of sharing information, entertainment and ecommerce.
Web hosting is the mechanism whereby you can access a portal to the World Wide Web. When you work with a web host to place your site files on their server you are moving from spectator to player in ecommerce.
This portal is important because it provides a means of interacting with your customers. They can view your site and you can gain access to information about the visitor that may assist you in developing new sales opportunities or introducing them to new products.
This portal is not just a storefront, it effectively becomes your sales force if accepted Search Engine Optimization (SEO) strategies are utilized.
It is also this portal that allows you to take your business to international markets you couldn’t have dreams of fifteen years ago. Web hosting makes it possible for you to learn new skills that will benefit your ecommerce store while supplying consumers with products or services they are motivated to purchase.
The privacy a website provides customers has allowed ecommerce to grow at a very rapid rate. Consumers are generally tired of impatient sales associates and limited stock at conventional brick and mortar stores. The ecommerce solutions on the web are the portal many consumers are using to facilitate the acquisition of many items they once purchased at a store as well as items they did not have routine access to.
Web hosting can be managed as an extension of site design, but it may also include site design. A web design expert can manage this design or it can be created and maintained by the ecommerce business owner.
However it is accomplished site function, maintenance and presentation are done through the portal of web hosting.
We live in a world where millions of computers are now connected. The knowledge base and available consumer products and services are mind-boggling. A web host facilitates a future in ecommerce in the online world.
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