| By: Brennan Heyde | Published On: 11/23/2007 |
If you are just starting out in the world of e-commerce there are a lot of important decisions which must be made in your stores early development. Two of these important decisions are which Miva Merchant hosting company to choose, and the other is which hosting plan will be right for your store. If you haven’t already done so I recommend you read “What to Look for When Choosing a Miva Merchant Host.” It outlines 5 important things to look for in a Miva host, and also explains why I always recommend DotComHost to all my clients for Miva hosting.
There are 3 important things to consider when choosing a Miva Hosting Plan.
- Bandwidth
- Disk Space
- Expandability
Bandwidth – Your bandwidth is determined by the amount of traffic your website receives. Each time someone comes to your website they are using a certain amount of bandwidth to view your pages. The more traffic your site receives, the more bandwidth you store will use. As your store grows your bandwidth will grow as well. Bandwidth costs money, so expect to upgrade your hosting package as needed.
Disk Space – Disk Space is determined by the amount and size of files and databases stored on your host servers. Because this space is limited, the more of it you use, the more money it is going to cost. If you have a big store with thousands of products you are going to have a relatively large database. Make sure you pick a plan which has enough disk space to support your store and files.
Expandability – You want to choose a hosting package which enables you to expand in the future. This includes things like email addresses, and MySQL databases. If you choose a hosting plan which only allows for one database, then later down the road when you want to add things like a Blog (which also requires a database) you will have to switch hosting plans. Better safe than sorry. Being prepared will make your life easier down the road.
DotComHost offers a wide array of different hosting plans to suit your needs. If you are creating a new store I recommend choosing the MM1-Basic Plan ($45/month)
This plan offers plenty of disk space, plenty of bandwidth, and an unlimited amount of email addresses, and MySQL databases. Another big plus is there is no setup fee. Don’t let the high prices of Miva Hosting scare you away. Not only are you paying for the server space and bandwidth, but you are also getting the Miva Merchant software ($995 retail value) and unlimited Miva Merchant Support. Running an online store is not cheap but when it comes to your hosting, the foundation of your store, you want the best available.
Click here to view DotComHost Hosting Plans
About the Author: Brennan Heyde is an e-commerce consultant working in San Diego, Ca. He specializes in online marketing and SEO for e-commerce. Have a struggling e-commerce website? – Contact Brennan today for a site analysis.
