TriPHP Blog

Six Things To Remember While Choosing A Free Web Host

Those who are new to Internet Marketing generally tend to look for free web hosting
to host their sites. They want to keep their start up costs small.This definitely
helps the marketer to start free . However, free web hosting has certain disadvantages
which should be kept in mind and in the long run he/she may be forced to go for commercial web hosts

(1)Amount Of web space

The marketer/webmaster has to see whether the web host has enough space to fulfill his needs.
Most of the free web hosts provide space of 5 MB or less.Though this space is adequate for most people in the beginning,it may not be sufficient for future expansion.Also, one may need more space,depending upon how many pictures the pages may use,whether the pages include sound files,video clips etc.

(2)File Type And Size Limitations

Sometimes there are limitations on the maximum size of a file that can be uploaded to the free site. Sometimes there are restrictions on the file type.

(3)Advertising

To cover the expenses of providing free web space and other associated services,the free web host may impose advertising on the free sites. Sometimes banners are placed on the pages.
Sometimes a pop up window is displayed. The webmaster has to keep all these in mind.

(4)Online Site Builder

Most of the free web hosts only allow to design the web pages by their online site builder.
This is beneficial for the new internet marketer/webmaster. But as one gets experienced, he/she may want to go beyond the available site builder. He/she may require more tools and may go for more complicated web designing.

(5)Speed of Access

Most important thing for a website is reliability and speed of access. The marketer/webmaster must ensure that the free site he/she is going to set up is not down most of the time. For example, if somebody finds the site on a search engine and wants to have a look at it and if the site is down at that time,he gets frustrated.He will go for another site instead.So before choosing a free host,the webmaster must try it out himself,both during peak and non peak hours.

(6)Bandwidth Available

Another important thing the marketer/webmaster must keep in mind,while going for free web hosting,is the availibility of bandwidth to his proposed site.That means most of the free web hosts generally impose a limit on the amount of traffic a site can have per day or per month. If the amount of traffic exceeds the limit per day/month, the web host may cancel the site or may ask to pay for the additional bandwidth used.It is very difficult for the webmaster to try to measure the amount of bandwidth he/she may need.A lot depends on the design of the pages(it may have more graphic images) and the number of visitors it can attract.A minimum of 100 MB bandwidth per month is suitable for a simple personal home page.
On the other hand,a minimum of 1 GB is required for a commercial site in the beginning.

So, the new internet marketer/webmaster may start with free web hosting.But he/she must keep in mind that in the long run,as their business grows, they have to switch to a commercial web hosting service.