Your Guide To Web Hosting

When it comes to creating a website, secure and reliable hosting is a must. Otherwise, your site can be left vulnerable to malicious attacks and server downtime, all of which can affect your site’s performance.

What is web hosting?

Web hosting is the storage and delivery of your site’s files, elements and content to an internet browser. When a user types in a domain name, it’s translated into a series of specific IP numbers (also known as your site's IP address), which connects it to the server where your site is hosted. The server then delivers your site's content to the user according to their request, so when they arrive at your domain name, they will view your homepage.

You can think of web hosting as similar to renting a storage space. Inside is stored all of your site's elements and files. A server is a physical computer or virtual system that provides information and data over a network.

Where and how your site is hosted has an impact on its performance. So, you need to make sure that the web hosting service you choose is secure and reliable. When a server is unable to complete the request to display a site (also known as server down-time), it can be difficult—potentially impossible—for users to access your site. This can cost you repeat users, conversions and sales.

Essential web hosting features

1. Security

When it comes to web hosting, security should be the first thing on your mind. Attacks on websites through servers, including DDoS (distributed denial-of-service) attacks, are devastating and difficult to recover from. Not only do you need assurance that your web hosting is secure enough to protect your site’s content, but to guard users’ data and privacy too.

With WixSpace, free web hosting includes 24/7 security monitoring, as well as HTTPS and SSL certificate protection. Combined with extensive hacker testing and specific DDoS protection, you can rest assured that your site is safe from server level threats. All Wix sites are also protected by Transport Layer Security (TLS) which secures communication between your browser and Wix servers. This eliminates the risk of security breaches and protects your site from server downtime.

2. Server reliability

Server reliability is essential to your website, and ultimately running a smooth business, since downtime can have a detrimental impact on performance and your site’s usability. This will affect its ranking in search engines, and can also lead to search engine penalties. It can also prevent your site from functioning properly, and make it difficult for users to complete sales, or other calls-to-action.

To avoid this, choose a web hosting service with high uptime (WixSpace’s is 99.9%) that will ensure your site is always connected and accessible. It should be able to handle global traffic (with locally placed servers and CDNs) for optimum performance.

Better yet--your web host should be proactive in monitoring traffic, and be able to preempt surges or outages that will affect a specific server. Constant monitoring of servers’ functionality is a crucial part of your host's reliability.

3. Domain name hosting

While there are generally no issues with sourcing web hosting and domain name from different providers, the easiest way is to combine the two. Many website builders offer these services together, which means they can be instantly connected without the extra hassle. A WixSpace Premium Plan, for example, includes a free domain name for your site, allowing you to start your branding journey with a professional, customized domain name.

4. Scalable bandwidth and storage

Bandwidth refers to the number of bytes needed to transfer a site to users from the web host. So, when choosing a web hosting provider, it's important to understand your storage and bandwidth requirements.

If you’re creating a content heavy site, you may need more storage and bandwidth than is initially provided by your web host. Sites with a large amount of videos and images are good examples. Some web hosting plans put a limit on bandwidth, and once you reach the threshold your traffic numbers can be restricted.

Keeping this in mind will help you choose the right website builder to ensure scalability for your site, no matter how large it gets.

5. Service support

Unless you’re a technical wizard, there is not much you should be doing to maintain or manage your web hosting, beyond opting for a secure and reliable option. A great website builder will manage all of this for you, and provide the professional technical support and customer care needed to help you manage your site.

At WixSpace, all of our customers receive the above features for no additional cost! That's right all of your web hosting is included in your monthly service package.

If you're ready to get started, use the form below and we will have one of our WixSpace experts contact you today!

Source: Wix.com