Building a house starts with a solid foundation. Building a website starts with a secure web hosting platform. Just like invisible cracks in your home’s structure could lead to eventual collapse, left unsupported by a host, your website could suffer the same fate. The truth is, sites can’t just look pretty. They need the technical chops to prevent issues that could take you offline. A secure hosted site can also help you handle all that incoming web traffic from youreffective digital marketing campaignsThe trick is to understand which type of hosting environment is best for your business.

What is a web host?

These are providers with secure servers who store your website’s files and databases. When potential customers come browsing, hosts send information their way as they click through your landing pages. Web hosting services charge based on a monthly or annual basis. Each plan specifies a certain amount of data storage that includes information transfers, software, etc. Companies offer different hardware capabilities. Taking the time to understand your company needs and the nuances of each plan is key to succeeding online.

Website Hosting Types

Not only do you have individual plans to choose from, but you also have varying types of website hosting altogether. Below we offer a simplified breakdown of the most common environments to help you understand what your options are.

When one server hosts many sites at once on the same IP address, it’s known as shared hosting. Some of these hosted environments number into the thousands. Pros include affordability, especially if your operation is on the smaller side. However, your site is dependent on all the other websites and apps running well. This means one crashed site could divert resources and negatively impact your own.

Virtual Private Server (VPS)

If you like the idea of having your own server, but prefer someone else manages it, this option with dynamically scalable hardware resources might be for you. With a VPS system, a portion of a larger server’s resources will be allocated to you, insulating your site from the loads of others. You’ll have less processing power and memory than a full cabinet, but you’ll still be covered if your website experiences unexpectedly high traffic.

Dedicated Server

If you want full use of a solely dedicated server, you’ll have access to all the processing power and memory the cabinet can offer. Understand that this means the entire platform, from OS (operating system) to a web server, is yours to manage.
Small businesses without a dedicated IT team usually opt for another hosting environment.

Managed Hosting

Think VPS or dedicated hosting platforms, but with an additional layer of support. They’re configured to maintain your site by conducting updates, managing speeds, and overseeing security on your behalf that are specialized at hosting your specific type of application(s) ie., WordPress.They can be expensive and also limit the types and sizes of files you can add to your site, a double edge sword.

Cloud Hosting

Instead of storing your website data on just one server, it’s duplicated and hosted on numerous servers located in different parts of the world. As internet browsers search for information on your site, the server that’s closest sends the page info. Speed is a huge benefit here. It’s also said to mitigate outages. The downside is that it can be complicated to understand and expensive to employ.

Our Recommendation

The internet is a big place, but one hosting company, WordPress, powers about 29% of it. The reason? Their open source platform offers businesses clean, enticing web architecture and makes it simple for owners or their chosen digital marketing agencies to update their sites as needed. Even though SSL and most hosting providers provide a secure storage solution for your sensitive data, we recommend choosing a WordPress-exclusive hosting environment or Managed WordPress Host. Both specialize in WP websites, integrate seamlessly, and perform better than other options we’ve found.

Need help building your web’s home? Make contact and our team of web development experts will gladly put on their hard hats and get to work.