Expert Blog by Rodney Laws
Website hosting is an issue of great importance, yet it’s often seen as a trivial matter: something to be dealt with as swiftly as possible using any viable means. But just as it would be foolish to build a sturdy house on a foundation of sand, anyone who intends to make their website a success must invest time, effort and money into securing the right hosting deal.
This raises the question of how you’re supposed to choose, of course. You ultimately need to pick out whichever hosting package is going to best serve your specific needs. In addition to that, though, you have to decide whether you’re going to use managed hosting.
What is managed hosting? Very simply, it’s where the hosting provider also manages the system for you. In this post, we’re going to run through the pros and cons of using managed hosting, giving you the information you need to make an informed decision. Let’s get started:
The Pros of Managed Hosting
Running a successful website can be very time-consuming, and that’s just factoring in the content updates, design tweaks, and digital marketing activity. Add in ongoing technical maintenance – particularly if you’re not technically-inclined – and you can run into major issues trying to keep everything in line.
Managed hosting allows you to focus on the specifics of your business without needing to worry about things like site performance or security. It’s particularly useful in ecommerce where merchants need speedy loading times but can’t afford to work on it themselves: this is why the provision of full-service hosting based on easy setup has become an industry standard.
It might seem costly relative to handling things manually, but you need to factor in the value of your time. If you’re skilled at sales but don’t have a clue when it comes to website architecture, where’s the sense in taking time from the former to address the latter?
The Cons of Managed Hosting
If you happen to have solid IT skills and want to tightly control everything that happens with your website, you won’t want to relinquish control over the fundamentals – however trustworthy the hosting company may be, and however much of your time it takes.
That’s the most common reason why people choose to stick with manual hosting. Imagine wanting to make an immediate change but being unable to do it because you must first contact your hosting company. Then imagine wanting to use a particular CMS but finding less support for it. Outsourcing important tasks is useful, but it also limits you in some ways.
There are two other concerns with managed hosting. One involves cost: if you don’t anticipate ever needing to make any changes to your initial setup, why keep paying a company to manage it? The other concerns freedom: because manual hosting sees you give up less control, you can switch to a new host with minimal obstruction and confusion if terms or prices change.
Is Managed Hosting Right for You?
Having looked at the pros and cons, we can address the core question of whether you should invest in it – and the answer is that it depends on your circumstances, but it’s more likely than not that you should go for it. Why? Because anyone with enough skill, time and confidence to maintain their hosting doesn’t need to ask the question.
With good managed hosting, you’ll have protection in the event that your site is attacked or a server fails. And if managed hosting doesn’t work out for you, you can always finish up that deal and migrate your site (assuming that host has solid exporting features, which is why you should look for them when considering your options). Why not give it a try?
About the Author
Rodney Laws is an ecommerce expert with over a decade of experience in building online businesses. Check out his reviews on EcommercePlatforms.io and you’ll find practical tips that you can use to build the best online store for your business.
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