The Price to Pay for Web Hosting

 I am posting this blog because I've seen a few posts lately in various message baords in which people are paying an arm and a leg-and I'm talking up to $50 a month-for web hosting.

Most of these people had purchased hosting and web design from the same company. I don't see a problem with this: In fact, my company offers both hosting and design and oftentimes this works out really well for a customer who wants to keep everything in one space.

In most cases, you'll find reputable hosting with different companies. In reputable I mean that the cost is fairly low-you should be able to run a basic site for about $9.95 per month that offers enough space on which to host enough information for your clients. If you want to run an ecommerce site, rates may be slightly higher than this, starting around $14.95 per month and going upwards from there.

Recently I was working on a site for a girl who was in business with another girt. Her business partner knew little to nothing about website design and hosting, paid a big premium to have a poor site designed (for instance, no seo, not browser compatible-meaning it looked terrible in some major browsers-and she didn't even have access to her own html files!) and then on top of paying for the site development she was being charged an enormously hefty fee of $50 per month for hosting!   

If you are looking into developing a website, do your research first. I am always for going with smaller companies when it comes to business, meaning ordering products and services from a company that doesn't have a major name that's splashed across most newspapers, television screens and internet browsers.

Small mom and pops often offer just as good or better service than these big companies, and they do it (most of the time!) with a smile.

Yet if you find that you are dealing with a company that you have not heard about before and you are feeling as though you are getting gouged when it comes to price, it is time to do some research.

Again, hosting for a basic site can be as cheap as $9.95; ecommerce can start around $19.95 per month. You should be able to find hosting for this price that offers a variety of perks, such as easy, one click installation of blogs or php forums, numerous email addresses, excellent support and a great control panel in case you would like to do some site editing on your own.

Still not sure? Check out some of the big names, see what they are offering and charging, and compare them to what you are paying. If they are somewhat compatible, chances are you are getting a good deal. If you are being charged ten times that amount, or even five times that amount, run!