I get a lot of questions regarding how to tell a good web host from a bad one. While it isn't a hard thing to do, it can be for someone new to the website world. In my opinion, here is what you should look for.

1. Customer Support

How often is the web host available to help you? In today's world, good customer care is essential, and it should be! If you pay for a service you should be able to expect the best there is to offer. I have heard stories of terrible customer service and how it effects projects. Don't cut corners in the beginning of your project by selecting a host that won't be there when you need them to be. I suggest getting a host with 24/7 live support.

2. Market Share

While I am completely for supporting small businesses (being one ourselves), there are some things that should be left to larger companies with more resources. I believe hosting is one of those things. Part of the reason Design Advances does not offer hosting is because I don't feel we have the resources to offer a high class hosting operation. There is strength in numbers. Choose a host that has a lot of happy clients already.

3. Add-on Domains

This is a feature that I feel is often overlooked. Many people purchase a hosting account expecting to be able to host unlimited websites on it only to find out later that they are only allowed one domain. This is where add-on domains come in. Add-on domains allow you to add a completely new domains to your existing hosting account. Some web hosts allow 5 add-on domains while the really good ones, such as HostGator, allow unlimited add-on domains. Pick a host that allows you to expand with more domains.

4. cPanel

Do yourself a HUGE favor and pick a host that utilizes cPanel. cPanel has become the internet's standard web hosting administration panel. It is not hard to learn and it is by far the most user friendly control panel you will come accross. 

Of course there are other things to consider such as bandwidth and disk space, e-mail accounts, etc. when choosing a web host, but I think those are pretty straight forward. If you are running into problems in the bandwidth and space department, it is time you upgrade to a dedicated server. Having your website shut down temporarily because of exceeding bandwidth is not a good way to be successful online.