For anything more serious and especially if you need your site to be available and look professional, then not only should you sign-up for paid website hosting, but you should also grab a domain name of your own.
OK, how about I use free web hosting but coupled with a solid business domain name? Well, generally speaking free website hosting is NOT very reliable. Your up-time may vary considerably. (You get what you pay for.) Also, to defray the cost of providing hosting for free, the free website host will probably insist on running ads on your site... ads you may not like and ads you won't get paid to show.
These are just general comparisons, but if you are still considering using a free websites hosting company, then the following article should help you decide between free vs paid. ENJOY! . . .
Free Web Site Hosting Considerations
There are a lot of free web site hosting companies out there touting their services. While the accounts offered by many of these web hosting providers are free to use, there are sometimes hidden costs that can leave you wasting both time and money.
If you want to build web sites that are truly free, you are going to have to carefully evaluate free web site hosting services before signing up. Special considerations to keep in mind when shopping for web hosting providers include:
Reliability You can build web sites all day long, but no one will ever see them if your web host isn't reliable. To find out how reliable a free website hosting company is, you should ask about expected downtimes, traffic limitations, and customer service procedures. You should also ask what type of message will be displayed if the web site is disabled for any reason.
Bandwidth The amount of bandwidth you have determines how long it will take for your pages to load. To keep costs low, many web hosting providers offer limited bandwidth. The problem with this is that your pages can take ten seconds or more to load. That's just enough time for a user to get frustrated and seek out another web site. If your free website hosting account comes with limited bandwidth, you need to be prepared for the possibility of missing out on customer sales.
Unwanted Ads Free website hosting services are notorious for placing unwanted ads on customer web sites. This means that you will have pop-ups and other annoying advertisements on your site that you cannot remove. These ads might become very irritating for you and even more so for your customers, who may choose not to visit as a result.
Other Limitations If you want to build web sites that include pictures, icons, and large amounts of text, you may want to look for web hosting providers that will allow you to build these kinds of web sites. Some free website hosting services will place limitations on what you can and can't do. For example, you may be barred from using pictures or more than five web pages.
A Couple of Things to Look For There are a couple of things to consider when acquiring a hosting company that offers cheap web site hosting. An affordable web host that is worth investing in has two main attributes: there are no hidden fees and there are enough quality features to keep your web site running smoothly. When comparing hosting companies or looking for cheap web site hosting, it is imperative that you keep these two attributes in mind.
No Hidden Fees A web site hosting plan you can afford will have free or low cost set-up fees and reasonable annual or monthly maintenance fees. Hosting companies should make you aware of these fees right away and should also make you aware of any hidden costs that you might not be considering.
Unfortunately not every cheap web site hosting company does this. In fact, some of them purposely try to be sneaky and trick you into buying into a seemingly affordable web site hosting package that will become more expensive as time goes on. This is why you should always ask hosting companies detailed questions about what you will be expected to pay.
Quality Features Cheap web site hosting companies offer many of the same features that expensive web site hosting companies do, but not all companies have plans that are comparable.
To make sure you get a plan that keeps your site up and running smoothly, you will need to consider specific hosting features like storage space, down time, customer support, and tech support when making comparisons. If you shop carefully, there is no reason why you can't get an affordable web site hosting plan with all of the quality features you require.
About the author: Cliff Posey ... This article is provided by Websites That Succeed were you can get free website help.
Visit: http://www.webbusinesstoolsonline.com/build-your-own-website.html
Bottom Line:
Basically your options boil down to these: For the average web site or blog owner the choices are free website hosting or paid hosting.
Some considerations: Free Website Hosting vs Paid Website Hosting:
Free Website Hosting:
- Some free hosting plans are run by very reliable companies and their down-time is minimal.
- On the other hand, many are not managed reliably and there is virtually no support so your complaints / problems can fall on deaf ears.
- Features (like picture hosting and bandwidth) vary widely, so it's harder to find just the right free websites host for the kind of website you may be running.
Paid Website Hosting:
- There are many reliable, yet inexpensive web hosting plans to chose among. For example, I can recommend Hostmonster as one of the best web site hosting companies on the web. Hostmonster has one full-featured hosting plan making your choice much easier. Also, their hosting service is very reasonable and customer service is available 24/7 via phone, live chat or email. Bluehost is another company with a similar hosting plan and excellent customer service.
- Any problems? You usually have access to customer service either by email, telephone, or live chat depending on the hosting service provider.
- Features are usually more than adequate for a blog or small to medium sized business website, so you can add enhancements to your website or blog and not worry about availability or extra cost.
- Reliability is usually around 99% up-time!
In short, if your website is not critical and if you feel you can manage your website without support help, then go ahead and try a free website hosting plan.
However, if you depend on your website for income or for the smooth operation of your business, then be sure to sign-up for a paid website hosting account and enjoy the benefits of reliable up-time and comprehensive website features.
But remember, just as all free web hosts are not the same, neither are paid hosting plans. We are happy to recommend Hostmonster.
See How Affordable A Full-Featured Web Host Can Be!
Visit Hostmonster Now...
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Read Our Hostmonster Review Here!
P.S. Hostmonster's complete hosting plan is a bargain at the everyday low cost of $6.95 per month, but I've seen it on sale at various times.
I suggest you visit the Hostmonster website now to take advantage of their frequent sales!. You won't find a better price for full-featured, reliable website hosting.
P.S.S. Want more information about web hosting? Take a look at the Free Guides available here: More Web Hosting Guides!
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