One clear sign that a web hosting provider cares about its clients is when it goes the extra mile to ensure it has happy customers. After all, happy customers lead to happy reviews which in turn help to attract even more clients. Anyone looking for a decent web host need simply search for “best web host” (or a similar phrase) to find a list of the providers that have been deemed to be good at what they do. But what about those that aren’t included in such lists? What have they done to annoy their customers? Well, here are some traits that most people would find exasperating and ones you should avoid when seeking quality web hosting:

Bad Support

Figuring out how to tinker with your site’s host is no easy task. The more you want your site to do, the harder you will have to work behind the scenes. Unfortunately, unless you are an IT expert, you might find it to be a daunting task. When you have reached your e-limits, you will eventually have to turn to the tech support guys. The best of them will offer you excellent support, while many others will not deliver on that promise.

To begin with, clients find themselves having to wait ages before they can even connect to a tech-guy, no matter which medium they use. After describing the problem, the client is made to wait for hours, if not days, before a generic response is given or is gently pushed towards seeking a solution in the hosting provider’s knowledgebase. If that doesn’t work, a number of general recommendations are proposed – something the client could have gotten from Google. When those too have failed, the client is asked to pay for another “expert” to look into, and hopefully fix, the problem – if they even care to do so. Finally, the client is told that it is simply not possible to do the configuration at this time and advised to look for an alternative way of going about  it.

Extended Down Time

Another great selling point is the “99.9 %” guaranteed up time. While it is true that some web hosting providers have excellent up time reliability they have maintained for years, these companies have worked hard at ensuring redundancy by investing time and money into spreading risks and taking every conceivably precaution in protecting their servers and networks.

And then there are the fly-by-night hosts that could care less if your site were down for an hour or a day. One server and one network connection is all they have in the basement of an unsecure location. Even when the connection is up, a slight rise in traffic would bring the whole server to a standstill. If you want to keep your visitors, and your sanity, the only choice you have is to change to a hosting provider that makes server redundancy a priority.

The Hidden Price Tag

Web hosting has become quiet cheap. There are 5-star hosting companies that offer their services at very low prices. These companies never waver in their quality standards, and you won’t have to worry about your site dying on you. What you should be wary of are the providers that offer you almost-free hosting plans with an unbelievable number of bells and whistles thrown in.

These kinds of providers will oftentimes manage to make you pay, directly or indirectly. They might ask you extra for disk space or bandwidth that was advertised as being “unlimited”. Your domain name,which was supposed to be given to you for free,could need to be renewed for a price slightly higher than the going rate. Also, the web building tool that you were promised would do wonders will probably cost you a little more if you want the features that truly matter.

So what can you do about it?

1. Do a little research to find providers that are known for their exceptional customer support before you sign up. InMotion Hosting would be a great place to begin, as they are known for exactly that.
2. The same rule applies to down time. There are a number of websites on the internet that offer statistics on the up time of all the major hosting providers. Pick the one with as close to 100% up time reliability as possible.
3. Price is important in deciding which provider you are going to choose. Whenever possible, buy your own domain name. Don’t sacrifice tools and important features because you want to save a few dollars. To make money you will need to part with some of it.
4. Reviews are important. In fact, make it your priority: visit as many web hosting provider review sites and find out which providers are being showered with praise. Be sure to check out or Top 10 web hosting providers and read reviews that should get you well on your way to discovering which host is best for your unique needs.