Web Hosting Directories: Pros & Cons

While most directories focus upon diversity they seem to forget about what is most important, which is quality. Instead they are seemingly more proud to offer you a huge listing of companies to choose from. This is often something that they brag about by saying that they are actually one of the most comprehensive web directories on the Internet today. Unfortunately, this is of very little relevance to the person who is trying to use this database. These users will actually select their host based upon price and features. However, the directory itself will oftentimes suggest that price, space quota and the amount of transfer are the things that really matter The most.

Of course, there are some things that a web hosting directory can do if they actually want to help people find the web host that best fits their needs. One of the things that they could do is to write a message to their visitors, telling them that they need to check out the quality of the host before making a purchase. Oftentimes this is not done because hosting directories simply exist to make a sale. Therefore, these directories take the potential customer through a sales process that has been created in order to push them toward the host that the directory will be able to make the biggest profit from.

Something that many directories actually do to help their visitors is create a short article that explains how a person should actually conduct a search for a host that meets their needs. In this short guide, the directory will often instruct the visitor on how to use their site and also tells them what a few of the most important hosting terms actually mean. While this is great, many hosting directories still forget to tell you that what the host actually provides is much more important than the promises it makes and then fails to deliver upon. This is important because those who are actually more experienced in shopping for a web host will tell you that you should care more about a host's reputation than about the price you will pay or the incredible features you will receive.

As was aforementioned, hosting directories exist to make a profit. This is done by selling advertising space, which is why so many directories will only list those hosts that are willing to pay them large amounts of money for this listing. Since this directory actually serves a very targeted audience, there are a lot of web hosting companies that are really interested in advertising their services on them. Of course, these hosts pay to be listed on these web directories. This payment can be either in the form of a monthly fee or an affiliate program. For those of you who do not yet understand how an affiliate program works, you should know that with an affiliate program a web directory is earning commission whenever someone purchases a package from that host. It is unfortunate that you often cannot tell the difference between such ads and the other information that exists on the web hosting directory's web site. What is also unfortunate is that these web hosts really are not ranked based upon the quality of service that they give, like these directories claim to, but instead rank them in such a way as allows for the companies that pay the most to be listed the highest up towards the top.

There is actually one way that you can tell if a hosting directory is using the Commission Junction affiliate program. However, many people are not aware of this. What you need to do is simply hover your mouse over the link that points to the host's web site. One thing that you need to look for here is the domain: www.qksrv.net, which Commission Junction uses to track referrals. This will show up at the bottom of your browser's window, in the status bar. Today Commission Junction is also using Java to hide this URL.. However, if you right click on the link and select properties, you will be able to see the real URL. The common thing about the various domains that Commission Junction uses is that they will make no sense since they are gibberish. If you are uncertain though, you can simply type that URL into your browser and check to see if it redirects you to the Commission Junction web site.

Many web hosting directories also have what are known as "featured hosts" and yet they do not tell you what this term means. Instead, as a customer you are left to wonder if it means that those hosts are better than others, if they were hand-picked or did they simply pay to be listed there. As a client you definitely deserve to be given this information, especially if the webmaster does not think that these hosts are any better than the other ones that are listed on the web site. Otherwise you may be led astray through this form of deception.

There are also a lot of web hosting directories that claim to collect reviews from their visitors. More often than not these directories have paid someone to write these reviews in order that they may be able to send customers to the highest paying advertiser. Considering that many people turn to these reviews for educational purposes and are thus being deceived instead, this is quite sad. This happens so often due to the fact that the owner of the site can easily change the results that are posted by simply adding or deleting a comment or modifying the statistics whenever they desire to do so.

As you can see, unfortunately the majority of web hosting directories are of little to no value. They are good if you want to be able to find a company that offers certain features that you want, which are difficult to find, such as JSP or Cold-Fusion. They are also good if you need to find a web host that is located in a specific state or country. Otherwise, you are not going to find very many directories that have a credible review-collecting system. Instead, the majority of them are simply cluttered with flashing banners and buttons that are there to grab your attention and make a sale. So, make sure that you do your research so that you find the best company that really does suit your needs and deserve your business.