web hosting serving

n finding a host, there are many requirements that you should consider. A few of the most important may be:

• Web Space - Is there enough space to add images, text, scripts, and multiple pages or add-ons without the worry of having your account banned?
• Bandwidth - With more and more people using broadband connections, content is becoming increasingly larger - many sites are between 300+ KB, meaning that for every page load, you can expect to use a similar amount of your bandwidth. Almost every host provides at least 5 GB of monthly transfer. If you want lots of visitors, find a plan that offers more space.
• Add-ons - Planning on adding a forum, blog, or other interactivity feature to your site - find a host with Fantastico or other similar tool to easily install software into your site.
• Multiple Domain Hosting - Another aspect of expansion - if you plan on creating more than one site, it is much easier if you can host them all with one account.
• Email - Having multiple email addresses can make your life easier if you need a separate address for advertising, support, etc.
• Support - Does the site offer multiple contact methods - live chat, email, phone? Is it 24×7, reliable, and fast?
• cPanel - cPanel is a control panel with access to an FTP server (uploading files), stats, web mail, and other site tools. Although a standard in web hosts, be sure your web host has this.

Before the thought ever came to me to start my own site, I came across BlueHost. It looked like a professional site, offering professional web hosting. At that time, I was even attracted to the outrageously cheap, affordable and good services they offered. I had already heard the horror stories of shared hosting - huge amounts of down time, slow page loads, horrible support. Although BlueHost does oversell (500-1000+ sites/box), they constantly monitor the sites and have advanced hardware - keeping the loading times up. BlueHost’s CEO and President Matt Heaton’s blog show what type of company he wants BlueHost to be.

Several months later, I began looking more at what I needed in a host, eliminating any that didn’t meet my general needs. In this process, I also browsed through many reviews (both negative and positive), sites hosted with them, and also chatted with their support (to see what should be expected once a customer). Out of all the reviews and reports I found, I kept coming back to BlueHost. The two key features that most influenced my decision was the support, tools, and space (bandwidth/web space).

To see an image of all the features of BlueHost, click here.

So far after a couple weeks of using their hosting, I have been very satisfied. Their support is outstanding, using the chat feature I can typically get help within 5 minutes, their speed is great, and everything has been running fairly smoothly.

Prices are $6.96/month for 2 years, $7.95/month for 1 year, and slightly higher prices (with setup/domain registration fees) for 3/6 month plans. All BlueHost plans come with a 30 day money back guarantee with a pro rated refund if you ever choose to leave BlueHost.

If you need a good, reliable web host, then BlueHost may be your solution.