Once the exclusive reserve of the technical department, those responsible for any aspect of the digital experience (namely marketing) side of a business should almost always play a role in the selection process of a Web host.
Web hosting, of course, is a relatively technical undertaking, but what most do not realize is that the leading solutions actually require enterprises to make some important considerations about their growth and how their brands will be managed.
Some of the aspects that marketers might want to address include:
+ Inquire About Package Upgrades
If you're doing your job right, then your website (and the enterprise itself) will grow in tandem. As a result, you may need to upgrade at some point in order to meet disk space and bandwidth demands. Inquire about how upgrading might work (the process), what the additional costs (or overage charges will be), if there is anything that needs to be done on your end and the impact that it might have on users' experience.
+ Availability of Additional Functionality
Marketers are always looking for ways to "optimize" and improve upon the digital experience for their users and regularly integrate third-party scripts and software to help them achieve that end. Check on the availability of solutions and providers offering software such as chat, blogs, message boards, analytics, guestbooks and the like which may be available out of the box and by default in your hosting account.
+ Depth and Responsiveness of Support
Most web hosting companies do an exceptional job of providing support to their customers. They are highly skilled in most cases and more than willing to lend a hand when it comes to helping their users make good use of their account. Determine what level of support will be provided, the typical channels of support (email, chat, phone), and if there are any costs associated with projects like creating website and database backups, installing an SSL certificate, or figuring out why your Wordpress platform has been hacked again.
These issues are, of course, just the tip of the virtual iceberg that is Web hosting. There's a lot to learn, but as those most successful can attest, a strong and sound hosting plan goes a long way to helping enterprises achieve their objectives.
