How do I choose the best web hosting service provider?

I agree with those who said what you need depends on a variety of factors in order to choose a vendor that best fits your needs. If you need cheap/commodity web hosting for a personal blog or family site, this may not apply. However, for businesses, I think there are specific qualities that separate the truly competent providers from the wanna-bes…the critical combination of specialization, technology and hands-on experience. Thus, when choosing a web hosting service provider, you should consider the following:

1. Do Your Homework: Not all vendors are the same. Often it is easy to compare and contrast vendors based on some aspects like hardware specs, price point and network connectivity. However, you should also consider things left off the data sheet like:

a. How will the vendor be able to meet your support needs, especially if they change?
b. Will the vendor be able to adapt to your business needs as they grow?
c. How competent is the staff managing your hosting at the vendor?
d. Does the vendor have defined, tested, and proven operational processes?
e. What are the security measures?
f. Does the hosting vendor have redundant, offsite, backup in case of a data loss?

2. Technology & People: With numerous customers, websites, and hosting packages all humming within the same operation, it is crucial that the hosting provider dedicates the necessary resources – hardware, software, and most importantly trained staff – to properly serve its clients, especially in a crisis. The helpdesk 800 number may be enough when things are going great, but when crisis hits (natural disaster, internal fail-safes triggered, etc), it’s the adequate appropriation of talented staff that will keep your hosted services running.

3. Level of Control: Often, providers are resellers who do not actually run their hosting service in-house,. Thus, choosing a provider that has the ultimate control over the underlying infrastructure and personnel (meaning, they OWN and OPERATE it themselves, and don’t outsource) is absolutely required to deliver enterprise-class solutions. This not only makes them accountable as a supplier, but often also gives you the greatest level of support, scalability and flexibility as a customer.

I also recently published a brief on Focus about the “3 Things That Matter” when choosing a data center, and it is very applicable to your question as well. It focuses on the people, processes and technology that make up the vendor’s offering. I’d be happy to send you a PDF version of it, if you’d like.

I hate to say such an old cliche, but you do get what you pay for.

Talk to their customers about what the service is like. All hosting companies have access to cheap disk space and bandwidth these days, but a responsive and competent customer service and technical support team is more valuable than saving a few bucks on the monthly hosting fee.