Archive for October, 2011

Within the current world economical climate, CEOs and business professionals routinely find themselves turning to an array of different techniques in order to increase profit. Some firms focus their attention on customer service, some innovate with new products, and others attempt to increase income through additional marketing and promotion. These methods have the potential to transform the revenue for even the most struggling business. But the most effective solution for increasing profit is often a simple process.

Before increasing expenditures on attracting new customers, the best advice to improve your profit is to take a look at your business costs. For companies with an online presence, overpriced web hosting can have a significant impact on margins. So how can you find a low-cost hosting solution that maximizes your return on investment (ROI)?

How A Shared Hosting Solution Can Be A False Economy

For many website owners, the first hosting solution is a modest shared hosting plan. Shared hosting is an easy-to-use and affordable solution that provides enough resources to accommodate a website with modest traffic. However, once the traffic increases, shared web hosting quickly becomes inadequate. The money you may save by choosing a budget shared hosting solution for your online presence quickly becomes irrelevant when long periods of downtime turn your potential customers away and on to your competitors.

Dedicated server hosting is on the other end of the performance scale, allowing users to host fully-fledged websites with complex implementation and high resource requirements. Where shared hosting customers sit alongside numerous other accounts on one hardware server, a dedicated server ensures consistently good performance with dedicated hardware resources. Nevertheless, many customers are reluctant to make the jump to a dedicated hosting solution, due to the relatively high costs of renting a dedicated server.

It’s true, some of the dedicated hosting plans out there can set you back hundreds of dollars per month. But not all offers are the same and if you know what to look for – and where to look – you can get a dedicated machine for less than you would expect. One option is to choose Linux dedicated server hosting as the power of a Linux dedicated server is at a more affordable price point than Windows alternatives.

Why are dedicated Linux plans more affordable than Windows solutions?

With web hosting, it is important to balance performance requirements with budget considerations. Things are rarely as simple as finding the cheapest hosting option. Instead, you should be searching for a dependable, reliable host that has a fair and transparent pricing scheme in place.

When it comes to Linux dedicated servers, there are several factors that influence the total cost of ownership, including initial costs, ongoing costs, and the cost of associated software. Let’s analyze these three groups of expenses, and see why Linux dedicated servers are more affordable than Windows servers.

1. Setup Costs

Most Windows hosting providers will charge you a hefty fee for setting up your dedicated server. The fee covers the workload required to install the server and, in most cases, a part of the cost of the software installed on the server. The setup cost for a Linux dedicated server is usually smaller, as the Linux operating system is completely free to use, even for commercial purposes. Additionally, you can easily find providers that will setup your Linux server free of charge, saving you a lot of money in the process.

2. Monthly Costs

The bulk of the costs associated with hosting your website on a dedicated server come from the monthly fees. Over the course of a fiscal year, the cost of leasing a dedicated server hosting solution could potentially run into thousands of dollars. Windows Server, the operating system used on Windows hosting plans, costs hundreds of dollars to license – a price that is passed on to and ultimately paid by the customer. Because Linux is free to use, hosting providers generate substantial savings when using a popular Linux distribution such as Ubuntu, CentOS, or Debian. In turn, customers who choose Linux get a fully-featured operating system for a much smaller fee.

3. Software Costs

One cost category that should not be neglected is the cost of the software installed on the dedicated server. Many customers don’t take into account the costs of the various applications that will run on the server, and do not factor these costs into their budgets. Linux is the foundation of the open source ecosystem and hundreds of free applications are designed to integrate with it, from PHP and MySQL to Zen Cart and WordPress. In contrast, most applications available on Windows Server are only available with pricy commercial licenses.

For the best return on investment, choose a Linux dedicated hosting provider

When searching for a hosting plan that can handle increased traffic while remaining affordable and cost-effective, Linux dedicated servers provide excellent features and a rich feature set, at a price that is significantly lower than the overall cost of a Windows machine. Unless you specifically require a Windows environment, Linux plans should be your first option, as they provide a better return for your investment and a superior set of features.

There are many Linux dedicated hosting plans available and sometimes it can be difficult to make the difference between marketing talk and genuine quality offers. Before committing to any hosting plan, thoroughly research the market and make sure to take into account all the costs associated with the dedicated hosting solution. Once you have done your research call us (604-866-5800) or email us for a free 1 hour consultation to find out how we can provide you with a reliable, fast, cost effective solution.