The Five Key Features You Need to Look For

 

So, you’ve decided to start a website, huh? That’s so freaking awesome!

But what now? Where do you start?

Well, after you’ve decided to build a website, one of the first things you’ll need to do is choose a web host. I’m sure you’ve noticed how many are out there by now, and they all come with different options. When you’re just starting out, they can be overwhelming, but there’s no need to fret.

I’m here to help you weigh the pros and cons, so you can make an informed and confident decision.

The first thing most people consider is price, and although cost is important, you want to choose a web host that fits all your business needs.

You’ll naturally lean towards popular names like Bluehost, and while it may be a good choice, there are so many other options out there that could be better. So, before picking the most popular, let’s break down the differences in web hosting and see just what your options are.

There’s three important things that need to be discussed before even breaking down the list of features.

The best way to choose between a shared hosting service and a private server is to envision where you see your blog three months down the road and what you anticipate your needs to be then. You don’t want to pay for a year’s worth of service that won’t meet the demands of your business, nor do you want to overpay for extra features that you’ll never use.

Scalability will be another important aspect. You want something that will allow your business to grow. It’s much easier to upgrade with your current provider than it is to uproot your business and move to an entirely different hosting company.

Also, customer service is crucial when comparing hosting providers. You don’t want a host that’s going to make you feel like an idiot for calling to ask questions. Most hosting packages come with a slew of features, and while some are vital, others are only there to make it seem as if you’re getting more for your money.

These three things need to be evaluated before we even get into features, so let’s discuss them a little more in-depth, and then we can break down the five key features you’ll want to look out for when choosing the best web host for you.

As a bonus, I’ll give you two of the best web hosting options for your new WordPress site.

Ready, set, go!

 

Shared hosting vs. VPS (virtual private servers)

The two most common web hosting options are shared hosting providers and virtual private servers (VPS).

So, how do you decide which one is best for your website?

Well, it’s a little more complicated than simply opting for the best price point. You should evaluate where you see your site going in three months or six months or even a year from now.

Knowing where your business is (or could be) going will help you determine which option is best for you.

A shared hosting plan is basically an apartment complex for your website. You rent your own little space, but share the building with other tenants. Just like apartment complexes in real life, you sometimes end up with a rowdy neighbor that’s constantly causing problems for all the other tenants. Even worse, they decide to throw a party and their guests hog all the parking spaces.

This metaphor might be too vague for those of you that are just getting starting.

Basically, it means that one website is using up all the available bandwidth making it impossible for your guests to visit.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that shared hosting is a bad thing. In most cases, the web host will promptly handle such issues and evict the rowdy tenants.

However, there is another potential risk to using a shared server. You could have a neighbor that participates in unsavory behavior resulting in your entire server being blacklisted.

Let’s say your neighbor is a drug dealer. Ouch. Harsh, I know.

Well, this drug dealing neighbor has caused some problems resulting in your entire server being blacklisted, and now everyone in the neighborhood knows your building houses a drug dealer, and they are avoiding it like the plague.

No one is visiting your site because the cops (otherwise known as Google) are on patrol. They’re denying entry to all visitors because of the mess your neighbor has made. It’s killing your business, but even in the digital world, life’s not fair.

Luckily, this can also be resolved by addressing the issue with your hosting provider. They should fix the problem in a timely manner, usually by setting you up on a different server. While these both are rather extreme examples of risks associated with sharing a server, they do happen, and it’s something you should be aware of before signing a lease.

The second option is a virtual private server, or VPS, and the main difference here is that it’s private.

There are some technicalities, but it is essentially your own little space. Where the shared server is comparable to an apartment complex, the VPS is more like a townhouse.

You’ll always have neighbors, but with a VPS, you don’t have to share an address. Your neighbors are still there, but this time you’re set up with a privacy fence.

The extra security is a great feature, but it comes at a price. You will pay more for it, and you’ll have to set up the backend a little more to accommodate your website. Once that’s done, though, you’re good to go.

Just be prepared for that raised rent.

Both are great options when you are starting out, but it is ultimately up to you to decide which one best suits your needs and your budget.

 

Scalability

Scalability is so important when choosing a hosting provider. You want your business to grow, and that means you need to choose a service that will allow you to grow with them. Moving your site is not a fun task, and it can cause you to have a downtime of 24-48 hours at the least. If your website is generating revenue, the last thing you want is for it to come to a screeching halt because you need to get a new web host.

Not only will you experience some loss during the downtime, but you could also lose clients because of it.

Some hosts only offer shared hosting plans. Some only offer dedicated servers. Some offer both. Some offer a combination of hosting plans that will allow you to upgrade and scale your business with them.

Lyrical Host is a fantastic example. You can start with a shared hosting plan for less than a trip to Starbucks! #winning

 

Customer Service

At some point, you are going to have questions about your hosting plan or have an issue that you need to be resolved quickly. This is where great customer service comes into play.

You want to know that you can reach out to your provider at any time and receive an answer in a timely manner, and better yet, not be talked down to because you are not very tech savvy.

This is where I came to love and adore my own hosting provider, Lyrical Host.

They really go above and beyond for their customers. If you are experiencing issues, they are always happy to offer a helping hand. You will probably be able to look through their knowledge base and find the answer to your questions within minutes, but if not, their customer service representatives are just a few keystrokes away. The quality of their customer service is the same regardless if you have a small hosting package that is only $5 a month or you spend hundreds keeping your internet empire up and running.

Customer service should make a huge impact on your decision when choosing where to host your website. There are hundreds of providers you can choose from, so it is crucial to find one that will be in your corner and aren’t just in it for the paper.

If you’re wondering how to judge a company’s customer service without being a customer, try giving them a call to inquire about their services or read other customer’s reviews.

 

The Five Key Features

There are some must-have features you are going to need to run a successful site. When you’re starting out, deciding which features and add-ons you’ll benefit from the most can be quite overwhelming. With all the available options, it’s hard to know if you’re making the right decision. However, I’m going to help get you started with a list of features that are absolutely essential.

 

cPanel Access – It’s a must!

cPanel access is the first feature to look out for. If the hosting provider you’re considering doesn’t provide this, move along.

Seriously, don’t think twice.

Just move on and find one that does. There’s many things you’ll need to access on the back-backend of your website, and this is where you’ll do that.

All the “stuff” for your website is stored in your database, and that is found in your cPanel. Occasionally, you’ll need to access this to add a file or delete something. Even if you’re outsourcing these tasks, that person will need easy access to it as well.

Your cPanel is also where you create your email accounts for your website. There is nothing more professional than having email addresses that end in your domain name. It can make or break your business so much that I wrote a whole post about it, and your cPanel is where you’ll create and manage your email accounts.

These are just a couple reasons you’ll want easy access to the back-backend of your website. The easier your access is to your cPanel, the smoother the rapids will be for you in the digital sea.

 

Unlimited Email Accounts

Speaking of email accounts, they’re coming in right behind the cPanel in this list of features.

More specifically, does the web host offer unlimited email accounts? No matter how big or small your business is, you’ll want unlimited accounts (or at least 4).

This is something you could easily overlook when you’re just starting out, but you’ll figure it out real quick once you have a hot mess in your inbox and need to hire help just to wrangle that bad boy.

So, choose a hosting provider that offers unlimited email accounts, and utilize it. It will save you tons of time down the road.

For example, if you hire an assistant, you can give them access to just the one inbox they need, or you can give your employees their own address linked to your site. If your team grows, it’ll be important for each employee to be able to personally reach out to anyone on behalf of your business.

If the hosting provider you’re considering doesn’t offer unlimited email accounts, then I would strongly encourage you to, once again, move along.

Seriously, don’t think twice about this one either.

cPanel access and unlimited email accounts are the two most important things you will need. Please don’t waste time or money on a web host that can’t provide BOTH features.

 

CDN

There are shit tons of acronyms in the online world; I suppose the terms seem less daunting when presented as such.

This one stands for Content Delivery Network.

And I know, I know… that’s nice and all, but what the hell does it mean?

Your content is delivered via your website, right? Technically, yes, but there’s a better way.

This is a feature that isn’t necessary, but it has its perks. It will increase the load time for your website. It gets a bit techy to explain, but I’ll try to keep it simple.

Basically, using a CDN is like having your website on servers across the globe. It is a network that delivers content based on geographic location.

You could travel by plane from Chicago to London to visit someone, but that takes a while, right? This is more like cloning yourself, so you can rent the flat next door and be there in seconds at any given time.

How freakin’ sweet would it be to have multiple clones so you could live next door to all your friends regardless of where they live?

The CDN feature also increases your security while simultaneously decreasing your chances of falling victim to hackers. This is because you’re hiding your awesome “stuff” behind an extra layer.

It gives you an upgrade that turns that townhouse of yours into a freakin’ castle! Now your enemies must cross a moat and get past your armed guards to take you down.

A CDN is a pretty sweet perk if your hosting provider offers it, but it shouldn’t be a deal breaker. You can add a CDN as a standalone product if it isn’t included, so you aren’t left completely vulnerable.

 

Storage and Bandwidth

When deciding on storage and bandwidth, think about what type of website you’re going to be running.

For example, if you’re a photographer, and you’re going to be hosting all your photos on your own site, you’re going to need a lot of storage. You could also host your photos on a third-party site and embed a link to it, but that requires you to be a bit more tech savvy.

Bandwidth can be rather tricky. Many hosting providers claim to provide unlimited bandwidth, but in most cases, they’re full of shit.

This is where you need to be careful and read the fine print.

Otherwise, you’ll start getting some nasty emails and possibly have your site shut down from using up too much bandwidth. You’ll need to make sure your server can handle the expected visits to your site.

And what if you have something that goes viral? You need to know they’ll keep you up and running or else you could lose a ton of potential customers. It’s always better to look at the details, so you know exactly what you’re getting. You can then monitor your site’s traffic and upgrade your hosting plan as your business grows.

Be proactive and prepare for growth from the beginning; otherwise, your ill-prepared ass will just be cleaning up one mess after another.

 

SSL

Another freakin’ acronym! I’m telling you, the internet is full of ‘em.

SSL, or Secure Sockets Layer, is a new must-have for your website unless you don’t want Google to like you. (But here’s a free tip: You really want Google to like you. Trust me.)

Depending on which host you go with, you could get this feature included with your service, or it could be a paid add-on.

Either way, don’t skip this step.

This feature adds the little “s” to your URL which turns the “http” into “https.”

But what does that little “s” really mean?

It is a form of encryption between your website and the web browser. There’s recently been loads of hacking attacks across the internet, and this adds an extra layer of security to your site. This will be necessary if you’re asking for information from your audience, whether it’s an email to subscribe to your list or more personal information for selling products.

Moreover, Google started penalizing sites in 2017 that don’t have an SSL.

This is something you’ll want to avoid. If you don’t comply with Google’s rules, you won’t rank high in their search results no matter how much work you put into making your site SEO friendly.

 

Cost

Cost is the last item on the list of essential features, and everyone understands the importance of this one.

No one likes to shell out tons of cash for something you can get cheaper somewhere else.

I encourage you to keep these key features in mind, and start shopping around for a host that offers the features you need while remaining within your budget.

There’s one hosting provider that I cannot recommend enough, and that is Lyrical Host. They offer all these features while remaining ridiculously affordable.

You can even save an additional 10% on their hosting plans by using the code TCB10.

However, I remember promising you two great choices for hosting providers.

That’s right; I didn’t forget. J

My second recommendation is WPEngine. This is the one for you if you really want a company to manage the back-backend of your WordPress site.

Also, they’re completely open about not being an “unlimited” hosting provider; you get only what you pay for. In their terms, that is the number of visitors per month and the number of WordPress installs.

WPEngine is great if you’re already established, especially if you’re running multiple sites, but might be a little pricey if you’re a newbie. They are one of the best hosting providers for a more hands-off WordPress experience. They’ll handle regular backups, state-of-the-art security, CDN, and amazing scalability for your site.

In addition to the discount from Lyrical Host, WPEngine has also provided an awesome 20% off coupon code (wpe20off) if you decide to go with them.

In conclusion, choosing a web host can be daunting, and it makes many budding entrepreneurs give up before they even get past the first step.

But you’re not going to be one of them.

I’ve provided you with the tools you need to wade through the murky waters and find the best web host for your growing business. As scary and overwhelming as it can be, if you choose the right provider from the get-go, you can move this one-and-done task from your list of to-dos to your list of accomplishments.

You got this!