Click here for your free iPod Nano!
I’ve been tempted as you probably have. Although a new iPod Nano runs about $150, the idea of getting something for free appeals to everyone. If you are over the age of 30, you have most likely learned from life experiences that there is nothing for free. You will pay for it in time or frustration or both.

Web hosting as a business is a great entrepreneurial idea; lease or buy a web server, host websites and collect the monthly fee. That’s an over simplistic illustration of the business model, but you get the idea. Over the past couple of years, the number of “cheap web hosting” companies has grown tremendously. Today, you can even get basic web hosting for free.

So why does it matter?

With more and more web hosting companies entering the market, the pricing has fallen to the point that there are very few “mom and pop” hosting companies that actually manage their own datacenter onsite. Web hosting is mostly done by large companies that operate large datacenters with redundant Internet backbones and back-up power. The volume of business they do enables them to provide low-cost or free services and then up-sell the client after the account has been set up. Some often offset the low cost by adding advertisements to your site pages. While this may be acceptable for a personal website, most businesses come to rely on their website as a vital part of their business “store front”. Additionally, businesses rely more and more on email for business transactions and client communications.

Customer support is often reduced to a few pages of Frequently Asked Questions or common problems. Phone support is typically non-existent or an upgrade. Which again, not too important for someone putting their daily journal online. But the main disadvantage is that your website will be unable to run the type of software that enables you to manage the content or to have a custom shopping cart developed. Low cost hosting providers remove the ability to install custom applications because it is this same capability that allows spammers to set up shop on their server. For years, spammers have been able to create accounts on low cost servers and go to town with unsolicited emails. By the time the hosting company shuts them down, they had moved on the next low cost hosting account.

If you are a business owner, you should know your hosting provider does not allow just anyone to set up an account on the same server that is hosting your website and providing your email services that keeps your business connected with clients and prospects in today’s digital world.