In-House Method

Hosting your e-commerce site in-house involves setting up a server room, purchasing the necessary hardware and software components, leasing a reliable high-speed connection and employing an IT team.  Experienced IT personnel are required to handle day to day technical aspects such as performing backups, monitoring security and basically doing whatever it takes to keep the server up and running.  The costs and complexities that come along with an in-house operation are considerable and often too much for startups and small businesses to handle.

Colocation

Colocation refers to an alternative solution that allows businesses to store their server hardware and network equipment in a facility maintained by a hosting company.  The firm provides you with physical storage space, internet bandwidth and electricity to power the hardware.  There are many advantages to this type of arrangement, including a lower cost for bandwidth and the enhanced reliability you get from the data center.  The disadvantages are that you must purchase your own hardware and actually find a provider that offers a colocation service in your area.

Shared Hosting

One of the most common ways to run an e-commerce website is through a service arrangement known as shared hosting.  In this environment, the websites of multiple companies are stored on a single server, which share an internet connection and various other resources between them.  While suitable for the needs of many, this type of service is best for companies that anticipate a small to moderate amount of traffic and have a limited budget.  This is mainly because there are strict limitations in regard to disk space, bandwidth and control.  With that said, a reputable firm should be able to provide you with a stable platform that can support the needs of both startups and small companies.

Dedicated and Managed Hosting

Dedicated hosting is a method that calls for you to a lease an entire server from a hosting company.  The provider is responsible for maintaining the hardware and network connectivity while the bulk of server administration falls on your shoulders.  This could be a downside because of all the technical challenges that go into maintaining a server, but there are number of benefits as well.  For example, you have extensive control and flexibility that permits you to run your own operating system, database servers, web applications and services.  For those who lack the experience or time needed to handle these tasks, managed hosting exists, a solution that eases the burden of server administration.  Though notably more expensive, managed hosting will allow you to focus more on promoting your e-commerce site and servicing customers rather than dealing with the all the complexities as these processes are handled by the provider.

The fact that there are so many options for hosting an e-commerce site works to your advantage.  What you need to do is a carefully assess your situation and determine which service is best for your business.  After settling on a reliable solution, the fate of your online business is in your hands.

Related posts:

• March 18, 2009 – Hosting Considerations for E-commerce
• February 10, 2009 – Managed vs Shared Hosting – Which Type to Consider
• January 16, 2009 – The Many Faces of Web Hosting
• December 1, 2008 – What to Look for in Colocation
• October 15, 2008 – What Type of Hosting Do You Need?
• January 18, 2012 – InMotion Hosting In-Depth Analysis
• September 25, 2011 – What To Remember When Moving To A New Control Panel
• September 20, 2011 – Dedicated Hosting: Managed or Unmanaged?
• September 7, 2011 – Pros and Cons of Shared Hosting
• June 14, 2011 – Ascent to Partner with Comcast

What Leads to a Disaster?

There are a number of instances and obstacles that can lead you straight into a disaster.  For example, you could sign up with an unreliable web hosting provider, select the wrong e-commerce solution, or choose a payment processing method that hinders or completely derails your online transactions.  This is the type of website that runs slow or offers horrible navigation, making its usability inconvenient and very undesirable.  It is an environment where consumers are not sure about making purchases or feel as if their most essential needs are not being satisfied.  While abandoned order pages and shopping carts are tell-tale signs of a disaster, turbulence may commence from the very moment a potential customer lands on your website.

If you want to avoid a disastrous situation with your e-commerce site, you need to make yourself aware of the following inadequacies:

Bad Web Hosting

It is important to know that an e-commerce site is only as efficient as the underlying platform.  When choosing a bad or inadequate hosting solution, you stand the chance of suffering from limited bandwidth, slow loading pages and worst of all, excessive downtime.

All of these instances can result in a loss of customers and ultimately, loss of sales.  An ideal e-commerce platform is one that leverages reliable, high-performance server hardware, redundant high-speed internet connections and the best security practices.

Ineffective Content

Having a website that clearly communicates to your audience is one of the essential keys to succeeding with an e-commerce venture.  You must be able to relay the unique value of your offerings beyond price in a manner that makes visitors want to stick around and make a purchase.  While you don’t want to come on too strong, using cleverly aggressive, action-orientated content can serve as the powerful persuasion you need to convert your visitors into long-term customers.  Play around with a few approaches to find out which processes work best for your business.

Poor Navigation and Usability

Almost every website owner is under the assumption that their sales flow and navigation is intuitive, transparent and user-friendly.  We are here to tell that this is not always the case.  In fact, even the most well designed websites need a little fine-tuning every now and then.  Does your site provide too much information or is it lacking in the content department?  Are there any elements that will distract your visitors from what they need to be focused on?  The answers to these questions and several more can tell you a lot about the navigation and usability aspects of your website.  If outstanding flaws are identified, diagnosis these issues and then optimize your site accordingly.

Related posts:

• November 18, 2009 – How Complete is Your E-commerce Solution?
• September 21, 2009 – Obtaining a Reliable and Secure E-commerce Solution
• October 14, 2011 – How the Kindle Fire is a Catch-all Reflection of Current Web Trends
• September 25, 2011 – Linux and E-Commerce: The Top 5 Best Hosts for Two Long-term Trends
• September 16, 2011 – Flash Sales – Serious New Trend or Flash in the Pan?
• September 6, 2011 – E-commerce and Social Media: No Longer Oil and Water
• June 24, 2011 – Preventing e-Commerce Shopping Cart Abandonment
• June 6, 2011 – Surviving Website Downtime
• April 13, 2011 – Using Captcha Scripts to Prevent Spam
• March 17, 2011 – How to Start a Web Hosting Business from Scratch