If you’re running a business in today’s digital generation, having a web presence is extremely important.  A good website can mean the difference between bankruptcy and success.  These days a Facebook page is like a phone book entry – it doesn’t cut it.  To put yourself above your competition, you need your own website.  To do that, you need web hosting.  E-commerce web hosting is the best possible solution.

Web pages are relatively cheap, compared to other business expenses.  Yet the impact they have on your business presence and customer base is immense.  Whether you’re selling a product or a service, a larger audience will almost always benefit you.  If your business is based entirely online, you save a ton of money on expenses that storefront businesses need.  Property taxes, retail permits, utility bill, maintenance, asset protection and more are all outdated.

If you’re running a business online out of a home office, you don’t have any of these expenses.  All you need is web hosting and a domain name.  At most, you’d need to pay for someone to design and code a website for you.  At best, you can do it yourself and save even more money.

What sort of hosting is ideal for a small business?  Free web hosting is not the way to go.  As tempting as it is to use free hosting, they always have strings attached.  Some add advertisements to your site, or include a banner or byline you can’t remove.  Others have poor uptime, and your site needs to be up to make money.  Still others have clauses in their terms of service that explicitly state you can’t use their hosting for business.  No, you’re going to have to search for special hosting to run an online business.

That’s where e-commerce hosting comes in.  E-commerce hosting is specialized web hosting dedicated to businesses both small and large.  Such a web host offers a number of benefits over standard hosting.  They often come with excellent tools designed to build and run a business site.  Complicated code like business security and shopping carts is done for you, so you can rest easily.

E-commerce hosting offers better storage, better backups, and better bandwidth than hosting designed for personal sites.  They keep your site alive for a fee, rather than bring it down, because they know how important uptime is to you.  Most have uptime guarantees that ensure your site will never lose customers due to your hosting.

Business hosting offers a much higher degree of security than personal hosting as well.  All of their software is guaranteed to be up to date, so any old security holes are gone.  Their servers are secure against outside attacks and physical failures.  If you lose business, so do they, so it’s in their best interest to offer you great service.

When you’re setting up an online business, your choice of web hosts is your own.  It’s up to you to find the best web host for your needs.  Chances are, when it comes to small businesses, dedicated e-commerce hosting is the best choice.  They can match any budget and suit any need.  Accept nothing but the best for your business.

Jeffrey DeArmond is the owner of Best Edge SEM – The most popular internet marketing company in Tampa Bay, Florida. Our company has helped hundreds of businesses in the area grow their online presence and increase revenue substantially over time.