If you have ever had to endure an experience whereby your business’ website has gone-down for an extended period of time, we are sure that you will want to do everything in your power to ensure that a repeat of this never happens again. This is a vital tool for any firm operating in the modern era, particularly if you operate in the e-commerce sector. Without this, you will struggle to make sales; whatsmore, you will find that some of your core customer base will look elsewhere for a company that can cater to their needs.

Preventing website crashes is easier said than done, however. This is especially true if you are less-than proficient in technical operating systems. Rather than try to familiarise yourself with the ins-and-outs in relation to how website’s work, your best-bet would be to make-use of a managed dedicated server. This innovation has been highly sought-after ever since it was initially introduced, and rightfully so. Having firmly established ourselves as the UK’s most-prominent provider of server solutions, the catalyst2 team is here to explain why dedicated server hosting is an investment worth making.

Customisable Service

When websites were first starting to become popular, most businesses would simply opt for the cheapest package. This would be one that was not bespoke in any shape or form; instead, there would be a couple of preset options that would be available across the board. Whilst this might have sufficed for a short period of time, this is not a service that would do-well from a longevity standpoint. As you begin to carve-out more of a market share, you will see a noticeable spike in the number of daily visitors that your website receives. Without proper management, your server will struggle to cope with the increased demand. This, in turn, will lead to longer loading times, the damage of which will be nothing short of catastrophic. The key to keeping your audience placated is by offering them convenience – if they try and place an order with you, only to discover that the site routinely crashes, it won’t take long for them to start browsing through other options.

Should you be trying to find a way in which to make your website a cut-above the rest of the competition, a solution that may not have occurred to you is to start utilising a managed hosting service. As long as you take the necessary time to scout-out your options, and locate a firm that has overseen similar projects in the past, there is no reason that your website cannot be running smoothly each-and-every day of the year. When you need to make changes in a timely manner, your provider will gladly complete these for you – the support that is available to you is second-to-none. Customisation is key if you want to remain ahead of the curve, and this is something that you will appreciate as time goes on. Depending on your level of expertise, it is possible that you might hand full-control of your site over to your hosting facilitator. In the long-run, the advantages of this move far-outweigh the risks.

Time-Saving Option

In the past, the likelihood is that you will have spent a considerable amount of time and effort trying to put-together a first-class IT support team. They will be your first point-of-call whenever you encounter a technical-related problem. Whilst this is all well-and-good, it can mean that they are forced to divert their attention away from their daily duties whenever an issue arises. From a productivity standpoint, this is certainly less-than ideal – they will struggle to get any meaningful work done, and this is something that you should look at addressing sooner rather than later.

From the moment that you enlist the help of a managed hosting provider, you will notice an immediate change in the way that your business functions. Firstly, this is a rather shrewd way in which to reduce your overheads, as you no-longer have to worry about keeping a large number of support staff on retainer. Instead, you can leave the running of your server to professionals, which is certainly going to cost a lot-less. More-importantly, those that you do keep on your roster will be free to concentrate on tasks that benefit your company. Instead of seeing their lives constantly interrupted due to website-related problems, they can continue to operate in a way that improves the efficiency of your firm from a technical standpoint.

Picture the scene: you are preparing for the launch of a flagship product, and want to allow as many customers to visit your website as possible. For this to become a reality, it is possible that you will have to monitor traffic, and increase the power output as-and-when required. Previously, you will have entrusted this task to your IT department. With a dedicated team managing your website, who will have access to a control panel which is designed to make things considerably easier, your launch will proceed in a smooth-and-seamless fashion.

High-Quality Security

If you are someone that has an avid interest in the news, you will have no-doubt noticed a sizable increase in the number of stories pertaining to cyber crime. Although the technical improvements that have been made in the past decade certainly offer benefits to you and your business, a negative consequence is that criminals have also made advancements in their methods. Within the data banks of your website, it is highly-likely that you will retain important customer information. Whether this is personal details relating to domestic addresses, or financial data regarding credit card information, you have a duty of care. Your clients will have entrusted this intelligence with you, and you need to repay this faith.

Should you be rather lax in the way that you run your website, it is entirely-possible that you will become a target for hackers. Regardless of if you are a multinational corporation with millions of clients, or an independent firm that is just starting to gain momentum, the reality of the situation is that you must protect your servers. In truth, there are dozens of ways in which to safeguard your customer’s details. That being said, if you are lacking experience, it would be sensible to entrust this duty with a third-party that has a comprehensive understanding of this field.

When you enter into an agreement with a dedicated server provider, the first thing that you should inquire about is the type of cyber-security that is included. If they are veterans of this industry, they should have no-trouble pointing you towards a whole-host of add-ons that are designed to keep you safe from the efforts of criminals. For example, you will be privy to regular scans that are designed to detect and eradicate viruses that have infiltrated your system. Similarly, the SSL certificate that you are subsequently granted can be used as a way in which to authenticate your site. This means that when new prospective clients visit, they can feel comfortable browsing without having to fear having their information stolen.

Back-Up Solutions

No matter how confident you are in the overall quality of your data center, there is always room to improve. If, for instance, your local area was subjected to a prolonged blackout, the chances are that you would have no-way in which to keep your website live. This, as we are sure you will agree, is a scenario that you would like to try and avoid. There will be times where powers outside of your control work against you, and as a business owner it is your responsibility to be ready and well-prepared for these types of eventualities. One of the most-prominent benefits associated with dedicated server services that routinely flies under the radar is the provision of back-ups.

If you are conducting large-scale improvements across your website, you will certainly want for the changes to be saved on a regular basis. Otherwise, there is a possibility that all of the alterations are lost, which could impact you in a major way. After you have enrolled into a package with a dedicated host provider, this will quickly become a problem of the past. In recent years, you might have heard a lot about the importance of disaster recovery services – this is something that you would be wise to brush-up on, as it could have lasting implications on both you and your business. To put it simply, disaster recovery is meant to negate the effects of such events as power outages. As soon as your server detects a loss of electricity, it will immediately migrate to a different centre. In the eyes of your customers, nothing will have changed – this is what makes it so valuable.

Speaking to some people, you may be led to believe that private cloud servers are best when it comes to safety. When you lay the two different types of hosting side-by-side, there are certainly some parallels, and even certain factors that give the cloud-based system the edge. However, the managed element of dedicated servers is what gives this package the edge. Depending on the amount of money that you are investing on a monthly basis, it is possible that you will be on the receiving-end of back-ups on multiple occasions throughout the day. The necessity of this, we are sure, has not been lost on you, and you can never know when disaster might strike. For those of you that do not want to take any chances, this is an investment that is more-than worth making.

Are You Convinced?

At first, you might think that the existing form of web server that you have in-place will suffice for the time being. As the months go by, however, you will notice that it is not able to consistently offer high performance on a day-to-day basis. Whilst the initial investment may put a little bit of a strain on your corporate finances, you can be rest-assured that the benefits that stem from your decision to switch will more-than make-up for this. Fully-managed dedicated hosting is a sure-fire way in which to elevate your company to the next level, hence why now is the optimal time to begin collaborating with catalyst2.

It is safe to say that when you come to catalyst2, you are in the hands of technical experts; when you are looking for peace-of-mind that your website will remain up-and-running for years into the future, we are the firm that you reach out to. Over the past twenty years, our stock has grown to the point that we are now revered as first-class hosting providers. With twenty years of experience, there is no-project that is beyond our capabilities. When you factor in the additional safeguards that we offer, such as DDOS protection, it is no-wonder that we are routinely receiving brand-new customers.

If, after much deliberation, you have come to the conclusion that you would like to appoint us as your elected dedicated server providers, the way in which to start your journey is to get in touch. Aside from our technical prowess, catalyst2 is also home to an excellent customer service team. Any questions or queries that you may have, we will gladly answer them to the best or our abilities. Should you wish to chat about, for instance, our data centres, or want to get a quote for our managed hosting packages, all you need to do is pick up the phone and call us on 0800 107 79 79.