Shared web hosting services are usually based on plans, which allocate a predefined percentage of resources to every customer. The problem comes when your needs go beyond your shared hosting plan. As your needs grow, your share of the server resources will no longer be able to satisfy them. This will undoubtedly lead to terrible web performance and even down time. Most beginners in the art of “webmastering” go for cheaper shared hosting plans. Sure, it may seem like a good idea at the time, but once your network grows, you will start feeling like your old web hosting plan is just holding you back. We will now tell you how to determine when you should switch to a stronger shared hosting plan or even VPS or dedicated hosting.
Domain Network Growth
Many shared hosting providers permit you an unlimited of very high number of domains. However, there are also many of them who make you pay a lot more if you want to increase your domain number. Once you know you will need to host multiple domains, it would be a good idea to check with your provider, see how much they charge and look elsewhere if their service plan will no longer satisfy you. Also, apart from extra fees, your new domains will have to split disk and bandwidth usage, which will cause, as we mentioned before, poor web performance and even down time. It would be easier for you if you upgrade before you set up the new web sites.
Terrible Loading Time
Even if you don’t plan on adding new domains, if your website is continuously growing, the web server resources you can now use will no longer be enough. Also, the server may just be too weak to handle your needs, and that will undoubtedly lead to terrible page loading time. Many of your visitors will be quick to get angry and you will lose a big percentage of your web traffic. If it happens just once, it could just be a glitch in the server. But if it goes on and on, you should stop wasting your time and upgrade to a stronger web hosting service. The money you’ll save from keeping your web traffic will make up for the few bucks you spend on a dedicated server.
Spikes in Web Traffic
It often happens that websites become popular overnight, and web traffic surges upwards. If you have the kind of website that you continuously update and more and more people start visiting it, you should get out of shared hosting right away. VPS and dedicated hosting are much more recommendable solutions for websites which are actually successful. If your website becomes even more popular, you will undoubtedly need the resources only a dedicated server can provide. Also, it will ensure that the spikes in web traffic don’t crash your website and the loading time stays low. When either of these situations ensues, you will know that the time has come to put shared hosting behind you.
