If you are an absolute beginner this is where you should start. if you already have your own domain name and web hosting you can fast forward to part 3.

In this article I'm going to be talking about the pro's and con's of both Shared Web Hosting UK and dedicated web hosting packages. By the end of the article you should have some idea what your online business needs now and what it will need when it expands.

So, you have a name, a plan and a place for your site to live. Finally, it is time to start designing! The choice here is to try to build yourself, "self-build", or find a professional to do the job for you. A half way house some use is to find a family member or friend who dabbles in Shared Web Hosting UK design and will do the job for as little as a case of beer. I would strongly advise against this route as the design process can be quite intense and is apt to place some strain on any personal relationship if significant redrafting is needed or the design is not all you had hoped for. If your first designer is not up to the project you can fire them and move on. Letting go of a family friend can present far more issues.

Popularity does not guarantee you a good service. Many popular host start of small and offering a good service but once their popularity grows they start to become complacent and their product suffers. It may not always be the case but it happens more than you'd believe. Also becoming popular nowadays can simply be a case of having the largest advertising budget.

There are plenty of affordable hosting providers that will make you pay for setup fees. So make sure you don't get blinded by a very cheap offer. Chances are, they will also let you incur hidden charges like setup fees. A few years back, it was hard to get an affordable plan with unlimited bandwidth and space. But today, there are plenty of Affordable Web Hosting plans that can offer you unlimited space and bandwidth. Ask your potential hosting providers and learn more about these features.

Forget Testimonials at the host's page. Although we also have them and what is written are true opinions, no doubt, you have to see for yourself if the company is as reliable as it claims. Just contact them and ask for information you will need to know. "Where is their data center located?", "What happens if I exceed a bandwidth limit?", "Do you provide basic help with scripting?", "Am I going to have full control over my domain and if not do you register the domain at customer's name?" etc. Ask any question that might affect on your online business.

So as you can see, shared hosting is one of the best ways to get a good deal on hosting. If you are putting together your first web site and low on cash this is the best option for you. Even if you already have a hosting service take a look at how much space you have used so far? You might find it better to move your site to a shared site to save on hosting.