Over 27 percent of all internet content is managed in WordPress (WP) and this figure is hardly surprising in the light of all benefits that this CMS has to offer. Apart from beginner-friendly learning curve, plethora of plugins for every occasion and myriad of themes, WP also seems favored by Google when it comes to their ranking scheme. Still, not everything is up to WordPress. In order for your website to perform admirably, you also need to find the right host and here are six things you need to look before you make up your mind.
1. Speed is Paramount
The absolutely first thing you need to look for is speed. According to an infographic on Kissmetrics blog, 25 percent of all your audience will leave after the page fails to respond for 4 seconds. For all who decide to stay, user experience will be significantly diminished. Because of this, you need to make sure your host can follow up with the needs of your website.
2. Uptime
Next thing you need to look at is the uptime that your future host has to offer. You need to look at something that is as close to 100 percent as possible. Imagine a situation where a visitor is directed at your website only to find it down. In case of a first time visitor, chances are that there will be no second attempt. Simply put, your websites uptime is in direct correlation with your availability and whenever you are not there and your competitors are, you are losing customers.
3. Customer Support
Another thing that should be of interest is the customer support of your chosen host. Whenever there is a problem, they are the ones who are going to respond on your call, so you need to make sure they are available 24/7. Having a website is not like running a store since a problem that occurs at 4 am can be as serious as the one occurring at 4 pm. You need to make sure your host puts your troubles in the first place.
4. Type of Hosting
Another thing you should think about is what type of hosting you want to go with. In general, there are four types: shared, VPS (virtual private server), dedicated and managed hosting. Each one of them has their own set of drawbacks and advantages, so you need to look for the one best suited for the needs of your business. For small businesses and beginner bloggers, managed services are probably the most cost-effective choice.
5. Scalability
One of the things that commonly gets overseen is potential growth and expansion. Sure, the offer from a certain host may suit the current needs of your host, but what about the future. In case of rapid expansion, will your host be able to follow up or will you be forced to unnecessarily change associates? These are all things you need to take under careful consideration before deciding to work with certain hosts. Always keep scalability in the back of your mind.
6. Customer Reviews
Sadly, most of the abovementioned you will only get to see once you actually enlist their services. Now, some would agree that learning on your own mistakes can be a powerful didactic technique, but making these slips can sometimes be too expensive. This is why, it is always better to learn on errors made by others. Look for customer reviews and see what others have to say about that particular host. One good thing about the internet is that the truth cannot stay hidden for long.
Conclusion
As you can see, choosing the right host for your WordPress website might be trickier than you originally thought. Still, with these six abovementioned points of interest on your checklist, you will always be able to tell if a certain host fulfills your needs or not. Going with a host that doesn’t fulfill every single one of them is probably not the best long-term solution.
Author bio: Steven Clarke is a business consultant at WPCREATIVE WordPress Developer. In his spare time he likes to write about his ideas and share them with the world. Steven is a regular contributor to several websites.