Round Tale

Search engine optimization is perhaps the most important aspect of marketing your site and building a substantial visitor base which converts to sales in the long run. All other traffic generation pales in comparison to search engine optimization, as the results of successful SEO tactics can be seen years later. Properly creating a website with search engine optimization in mind is a very difficult process that involves many different practices. In fact, many people even hire SEO experts to assist them in creating a website that is guaranteed to rank well in the search engines. Even after spending thousands of dollars on search engine optimization techniques, many business owners find that their efforts were in vain.

How SEO Efforts Fail

The main cause of most failed SEO attempts is the lack of continual SEO. In other words, SEO requires patience, and it can take months before you see the results of your work. Therefore it is crucial to maintain a certain set of strategies for a prolonged period of time to see if they actually work or not. Simply executing a few strategies and then switching to a different strategy the next day is not going to help you determine what works and what doesn’t. Instead of placing all of this burden on themselves, many website owners rely upon tools to facilitate the search engine optimization process. Perhaps the most fundamental tool needed for a proper SEO is a competent web hosting plan. The following information will help you select a hosing plan that will improve your sites search engine optimization.

Web Hosting SEO

When selecting a web hosting package it is important to look for plans that offer control panels and other tools that have specific features geared towards continual SEO. These services are designed to improve the page rank of your website by formatting the coding of your website in a search engine friendly manner. These services often include open source control panels and content management systems that allow for instant expandability with web applications that are designed to enhance the SEO efforts of the website owner. An example of the SEO-oriented features of such automatically place SEO-friendly title tags and meta tags on each page.

Web Applications

Another way you can use your web hosting plan for search engine optimization is through the endless selection of web applications that can be used to extend the capabilities of your hosting control panel. There are literally thousands of these applications, designed specifically to increase the search engine optimization efforts of your website quickly and easily. An example of such an application would be one that automatically retrieves backlinks for your site by posting all of your site posts to various social bookmarking sites simultaneously. As your site gains more exposure from these social bookmarking sites, people will begin linking back to your site, which will eventually improve the search engine ranking of your site. This is just one example of the many web applications that can be added to your web hosting control panel to improve your SEO efforts.

The face of every online business is the domain name, which is ultimately responsible for embedding the identity of your website into the minds of your visitors, thus providing repeat traffic and eventually sales. Although owning a domain name is absolutely imperative, it is surprisingly cheap to buy a domain name. However, there are many domain registrars that claim to sell cheap domain names and charge a lot more than advertised.

Domain Name Cost

The cost of a domain name is largely dependent upon the nature of the domain. Buying a standard .info domain could cost you less than $1, however registering a .com domain with private registration and certified ownership could cost around $20-$30 depending on the registrar. The key to buying a good domain name is not price, as any domain speculation expert would tell you – it’s quality that matters. Purchasing a top level premium domain name will do more for your business in one month than any .info domain name could do in 5 years. However buying such a domain could cost thousands of dollars depending on the name and who owns it at the time. If you are in the process of registering a domain, then the following information may prove to be useful.

Assessing Your Needs

Choosing the right domain name for your website will depend upon your needs as a website owner. If you are planing on starting a reputable professional business, then you’ll need nothing but the best. Online business owners should set their goals towards premium .com domains. Such a domain should only cost around $10-$20. If you find a service that offers .com domain names for $10, make sure there are not setup fees which could bring the price back up to about $20. If your planning on starting a personal blog for fun, you should consider a .me, .info or .cc domain name. These domain names usually cost less than $5 a piece.

Private Registration?

Another determining factor in the overall price of the domain will be private registration. Private registration is a service that hides the information of the domain name owner from the WHOIS database. The WHOIS database is a publicly accessible database that anyone can use for free to find the  information on a domain owner. All of the information you give to your domain registrar will be on public display at all times, for anyone to see. If you’re going to build a website that represents your currently established physical storefront, then having this information may be desirable. However, if you provided personal information to your domain registrar such as your home address, then you may want to consider private domain registration.

Domain Name Protection and Automatic Renewal

Another service that may increase the cost of a domain name is domain name protection and automatic renewal. This service prevents you from losing your domain name by accidentally forgetting to renew it. It also keeps hacker from stealing your domain by notifying you when any changes are made to the account. With some domain registrars this service is free, however other may charge an initial fee of about $5-$10 for this service.

Running an online business is not an easy task, and it can be very difficult to stay on top of all of the responsibilities that come with it. Customer satisfaction and safety is of the utmost importance when running an ecommerce site, and the only way to ensure the security of your website is by following strict security protocols on a regular basis. Hackers are constantly searching for security loopholes and lapses that they can exploit to gain access to sensitive information such as credit card numbers. Sometimes, even when they are not successful at retrieving this information, they can still cause your site to crash by consuming server resources.  When you site goes down, even for a few minutes, you could possibly lose several customers and thousands of dollars. To prevent yourself form losing business due to poor security measures, the following precautions should be exercised.

Serious Firewalls

Even though most web hosting providers employ firewalls by default, a lot of these firewalls are not properly configured and the restrictions can easily be circumvented by a knowledgeable hacker. If you want to ensure the security of your website(s), then you should inquire about he strength of the firewalls and it is important to have the capability to adjust firewalls to your specifications. If your web hosting company does not allow you to make changes to your site’s firewall, then you need to consider another service.

A good example of the need for firewall administration abilities, would be when a hacker is sending malicious traffic to your site form a certain IP. In this instance, it would be crucial to block this IP, and as a domain owner with a hosting account, you should have the right to do so.  The safest web hosting services offer IDS (Intrusion Detection Systems). Any breaches to your firewall can cause downtime and loss of business, therefore it is crucial to have the serious firewalls protecting your website a all times.

Protection from Distributed Denial of Service Attacks (DDoS)

Although a DDoS attack is a very basic and commonly used attack, it is also extremely difficult to prevent and treat. This simple yet effective attack can cause downtime in many websites by affecting the server functionality. This means that even users who are unrelated to the attack will suffer.  Therefore it is important to inquire about an Anti-DDoS feature before purchasing a web hosting plan.

Proper Data Encryption

If you plan on selling your services or products online, then data encryption is essential. All web hosting plans should include SSL encryption. SSL encryption will transform sensitive date from plain text into special code that make interception by a hacker very difficult. While most web hosting companies offer this feature by difficult. You may want find one that will give you the option to purchase a private certificate for added security benefits.

Security is by far one of the most important factors to consider when choosing a web host. With so  many possible threats online, it is not as hard as on might think for a security lapse to occur. Security is not something that should be taken lightly by the consumer or the web host, as there are several threats that could result in serious financial turmoil. The following are three threats in particular that are becoming increasingly common, and that are responsible for a large portion of the security issues involved with web hosting.

Credit Card Fraud

The internet is a massive virtual marketplace, swarming with merchants, customers, and people who would like to take advantage of both the merchant and the consumer. The people looking to exploit any security fault they can are commonly referred to as “hackers.” Hackers see the web as an opportunity to  prey on the weaknesses of other individuals and companies. A vulnerable website makes an ideal target for these hackers, especially if the website is engaged in daily e-commerce. Many of them have access to highly advanced applications that are capable of telling them if there any “loopholes” they can exploit. Any online store they can find with a single security lapse will become a feeding ground for them, resulting in thousands of dollars stolen form your customer’s credit cards. Once the hacker has the credit card details of your customer’s, the situation becomes progressively worse. Of course, the customer is going to be inclined to believe that you are the thief, and they will not want to accept the fact that you are actually the victim. This kind of situation can result in lawsuits, and even the loss of your online business!

Bot Rings

Then there is the possibility of a horrid “DDoS attack.” A DDoS attack is a security exploit that is normally employed by criminals that are members of or have control of  “botnets.”  DDos stands for “Distributed Denial of Service.” A bot ring is a group of hackers, or programmed computer’s that are set up to carry out a specific task. A DDoS attack is executed by a botnet that continually floods the network with DDoS requests. As the network is flooded with requests, it slows down until ultimately traffic screeches to a halt. Even though the DDoS attack is one of the oldest online security exploits, it is still extremely difficult to prevent because of it’s organic and seemingly genuine nature. Once the server’s traffic has been affected the hacker then takes control of the server, using it as a puppet to find   other vulnerable servers. Once the hacker has gained control over several servers, they then begin their attack on the target of their choice.  To prevent your business from being a victim of one of these attacks, make sure you discuss this threat with any prospective web hosts, to be sure they are aware of this threat.

Malicious Software

Then there are the threats that pose a virtual risk to the web hosting providers. Hackers may attempt to attack a web hosts server or network with a malicious application designed to retrieve crucial information.  This malicious software is called “malware” ( a combination of the two words).  While server’s generally have more stringent security measures in place, they are still susceptible to the same threats that a personal computer may be faced with.  You can avoid these kind of security lapses by  ensuring that your prospective host takes the proper precautions to defend against all forms of malware. Do not be afraid to ask questions about the security measures they have in place, before hand.  It is important to remember that once the web host’s server is compromised to malware, every bit of information on the server can be accessed, including your web site’s financial data.

(The Hosting News)–Superb Internet announced today the extension of its existing industry-leading lease-to-own program to all of its dedicated servers. The existing lease-to-own program, until now only offered on the Superb Enterprise high-end/custom dedicated line of servers, allows – as of today, all — dedicated server customers to pay a small lease to own fee for a year and then at the end of one year they own the hardware outright while the monthly fee is reduced to a minimal colocation fee, saving the customers thousands of dollars over the life-time of the server.

This program is particularly well-suited to large partners and resellers who often have hundreds (or thousands) of servers representing huge ongoing monthly costs. Resellers can own all their servers after one year of service, significantly reducing their costs, which they can use to grow their businesses.

“We understand that in tough economic times customers are looking for more and more value, and we believe this is one of the best deals out there,” states William Song, Senior Product Manager. “This represents a paradigm shift in the relationship between customer and web host, offering much more transparency in the billing practices. At other web hosts customers are typically forced to pay outrageous ongoing monthly fees for hardware that is often 3-4 years old. With the Superb lease-to-own program customers always know that they have paid off their hardware after year 1, and the low ongoing fees simply represent, space, power, AC, support, and bandwidth among other costs. If customers wish to upgrade their server they can do so at wholesale rates, and if they decide to leave they can have the server shipped to them, because they own it! Compare that to most companies where customers end up paying thousands of dollars more (many times the cost of the server hardware) and end up with nothing when they cancel.”

For more information on the new lease to own program please visit www.superb.net/LTO

Dedicated Servers Company Superb Internet Launches Lease to Own Program is a post from: Web Hosting News

Chicago, Illinois – (The Hosting News) – August 19, 2009 – Provider of Managed Dedicated, Managed Hybrid and Virtual Private Server (VPS) hosting solutions, WiredTree, has restructured its Managed VPS hosting plans and moved customers up to the next-highest plan, without changing its pricing structure.

Zac Cogswell, President of WiredTree explained, ”We have invested thousands of dollars over the past few months upgrading our infrastructure to support these increased allocations to ensure our customers are receiving he best value for their money. Nearly every client will receive a memory and bandwidth upgrade and some will receive a disk space upgrade as well – and we’re doing it without raising prices.”

As part of its restructuring, WiredTree has phased out its lowest-end configuration, the VPS384 plan. It also added a new high-end configuration, the VPS1024 plan, which provides 1024MB guaranteed SLM RAM, 80GB of RAID-10 Disk Space, and 1000GB of monthly data transfer. Each existing VPS account will be leveled up a step from its current plan. For example, customers currently hosting on the VPS384 plan will be upgraded to the new VPS512 plan; customers hosting on the VPS768 plan will be upgraded to the VPS1024 plan.

In addition to plan upgrades, WiredTree has added several new features to its Managed VPS services. Namely, VPS customers now have access to the WiredTree private network, a secure, fully routed internal network that offers free data transfer between WiredTree severs. The company has also added IPMI monitoring for all VPS accounts, enabling customers to monitor the physical health of their servers remotely.

Formed in June 2006 to set a new standard for managed hosting, WiredTree provides a superior managed hosting environment through customer service, innovative network design, a unique suite of services, and the latest technological advances in server hardware. WiredTree designed a network that leverages two logically separated networks – a public Internet network and a private internal network. This modern network-within-a-network design allows the company to securely provide a wide range of value-added services for business of all sizes.

To learn more about Managed VPS from WiredTree, please visit: www.wiredtree.com/managedvps.

For more information about WiredTree, please visit: www.wiredtree.com.

Chicago, Illinois – (The Hosting News) – August 19, 2009 – Provider of Managed Dedicated, Managed Hybrid and Virtual Private Server (VPS) hosting solutions, WiredTree, has restructured its Managed VPS hosting plans and moved customers up to the next-highest plan, without changing its pricing structure.

Zac Cogswell, President of WiredTree explained, ”We have invested thousands of dollars over the past few months upgrading our infrastructure to support these increased allocations to ensure our customers are receiving he best value for their money. Nearly every client will receive a memory and bandwidth upgrade and some will receive a disk space upgrade as well – and we’re doing it without raising prices.”

As part of its restructuring, WiredTree has phased out its lowest-end configuration, the VPS384 plan. It also added a new high-end configuration, the VPS1024 plan, which provides 1024MB guaranteed SLM RAM, 80GB of RAID-10 Disk Space, and 1000GB of monthly data transfer. Each existing VPS account will be leveled up a step from its current plan. For example, customers currently hosting on the VPS384 plan will be upgraded to the new VPS512 plan; customers hosting on the VPS768 plan will be upgraded to the VPS1024 plan.

In addition to plan upgrades, WiredTree has added several new features to its Managed VPS services. Namely, VPS customers now have access to the WiredTree private network, a secure, fully routed internal network that offers free data transfer between WiredTree severs. The company has also added IPMI monitoring for all VPS accounts, enabling customers to monitor the physical health of their servers remotely.

Formed in June 2006 to set a new standard for managed hosting, WiredTree provides a superior managed hosting environment through customer service, innovative network design, a unique suite of services, and the latest technological advances in server hardware. WiredTree designed a network that leverages two logically separated networks – a public Internet network and a private internal network. This modern network-within-a-network design allows the company to securely provide a wide range of value-added services for business of all sizes.

To learn more about Managed VPS from WiredTree, please visit: www.wiredtree.com/managedvps.

For more information about WiredTree, please visit: www.wiredtree.com.

Although having a website is easier and more affordable than ever.  However, actually getting your content in front of potential customers is becoming progressively difficult.  This is mainly because so many businesses and industries are being established online.  Regardless of what you specialize in, competition in the market is sure to be heavy.  Unless you have a budget to put forth thousands of dollars on advertising and SEO web design, there is a possibility that your site will just sit collecting dust in cyberspace.  Fortunately, there are numerous strategies that can get you one step closer to the traffic you desire.  Believe it or not, your domain name plays one of the most significant roles in increasing search engine visibility and bringing in quality visitors.  While some tend to go for flash or unique terms, this article will explain why you may want to keep your domain name simple with generic keywords.

Why a Generic Domain?

When registering a domain name equipped with generic keywords, you stand the chance to rank higher and faster than some of the most well designed and optimized sites.  This is a very crucial aspect of SEO.  Although search engines literally return hundreds to thousands of results, you want to find yourself at the head of the class instead of the last few pages or even somewhere in the middle.  Let’s be honest – how many pages do you sift through when looking for products or services on Google?  Probably not many.  Most web surfers don’t make it past the first two pages.  This means your web pages needed to be listed somewhere in the top 20 in order to be viewed.   One of the best ways to achieve this ranking is with a good, generic domain name.

How it Works

The average search engine is more like an advanced variation of the Yellow Pages.  You can typically find the exact product or service you’re looking for in the phone book underneath a generic name.  On the web, search engines like Yahoo function in a similar manner, delivering search engine results based on sites with URLs and content relevant to what is being requested.  For example, if your business “Computer Company” sells laptop computers, you can dramatically increase search engine traffic by using the generic term “laptop” in your domain name rather than the name of your business.   This simple strategy could put you light years ahead of competitors who focused on the trendier names.

Some organizations pay thousands of dollars on advertising but the internet has evolved tremendously.  With this evolution have come a variety of new ways to attract the increasing number of potential buyers.  There is a lot that goes into site promotion and to be honest, nothing is ever guaranteed.  While investing in quality advertising can prove beneficial, site promotion all starts with choosing a good domain name.  Savvy webmasters and businesses have learned that when it comes to securing their presence and gaining a competitive edge, the generic domain name is one of the best ways to go.