Technical Support : This is the most service that you need.

It is very important to be able to reach the hosting company if your website begins experiencing problems.

The best hosting support one can hope for is available twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.

Most companies know this, so take their stated hours with a grain of salt. Always spot check the companies with email at random times to see if they really have someone available to help 24/7.

How much control does the hosting company offer webmasters? It is inconvenient to work through customer service every time to modify a password or to change email addresses. Be sure hosting companies offer some form of a control panel accompanying hosting.

Finding the Best Web Hosting: Rate that you pay.

Different hosting companies offer a large variety of rates. Companies offering dedicated servers will be substantially higher than others offering budget hosting with limited bandwidth.

Competition from overseas is priced temptingly low for many, but there are many factors to consider. Don't stop at price, and if you plan on using your website in a professional capacity, it is important to move beyond free web hosting.

Free hosts are great for small family or fun sites, but are not suited to the needs of internet marketers – even those just starting out

Some issues to consider for select web hosting providers

1.Uptime: This is probably the most critical piece of information you need to know to make an informed decision. How often a server goes down means lost business and lost sales and no one needs that. Our webhost is up 99.9% of the time as compared to the first one we had which was more like 25% of the time.

2.Bandwidth Usage: Some hosts actually charge you for the amount of traffic you get once you pass a certain percentage. Why on earth would you want to be charged for that? Our webhost offers us unmetered traffic at no extra cost (this is what you should look for).

3.Server Space: Look for hosts that give 50-500 mg of space. As the technology changes sites will take up more space. You should try to get as much as you can right now even if you don't use it all.

4.CGI Access: This is critical. You need the ability to use CGI and especially custom CGI. If a host doesn't offer it, run screaming!

5.MSQL; Real Audio; Real Video; Cold Fusion: This is the future of the web and in particular web marketing.

Make sure a host offers support for these applications even if you don't presently have a use for them.

from "How to Select a Webhost that Fits Your Needs" by By Marc Goldman

www.webhostingoverview.com/article30.html