Which content management systems are supported?
But your needs might shift in the future and you will need to transition to another CMS.
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An important component of any hosting service is support for migration.
Does it support transferring your website from another service?
Can it help you transition from one CMS to another?
How much customization do you get?
The granularity of access you get to website and server configuration can be crucial when choosing a hosting service.
Some companies provide basic site-level administration only, such as wp-admin access to WordPress websites.
Good hosting platforms should provide a host of access and customization levels to fit your needs, Foster says.
For instance, HostGatorscPanelincludes File Manager, and FTP access to the backend of your website.
These options double-check that you have all bases covered from simple to advanced, Foster says.
This will give you a central hub to manage everything that is related to your website, he says.
What is the uptime agreement?
At face value, a 99.9% uptime guarantee might not look like a big improvement.
First, see to it that your hosting provider has a clause where it explicitly states its uptime commitment.
What is the level of support?
The question is, how ready are they to support you?
Also relevant is responsiveness.
How fast is the hosting companys support team in responding to customer queries?
How qualified is the staff in answering technical questions?
One of the hallmarks of good hosting support is an extensive knowledge base, he adds.
Will you be protected?
No web hosting plan would be complete without a measure of defense against common cyber threats.
That said, its good to know what kind of help you get from your hosting service.
At a minimum, a good hosting service should provide automatic updates for major CMS platforms such as WordPress.
What are the available plans?
Not every website has the same resource requirements.
Pricing plans should provide discounts for users who make long-term purchases.
The hosting service should also be transparent about what they charge you for, what their plan doesnt include.
A good hosting company should be able to support you as your online presence expands.
With that in mind, vetting each hosting service shouldnt be a problem.
