The phenomenon that is Web 2.0 has made its mark, originating in social networking platforms and evolving through traditional business applications. Because it has become more widespread, web hosting providers are increasingly customizing their offerings to meet the demands of this trend. This allows customers to benefit from a dynamic set of features that enable websites to thrive in the world of Web 2.0.
What is Web 2.0?
Web 2.0 can be described as a trend that revolves around using interactive, community-driven sites to promote the sharing of information, networking and other forms of collaboration among users. Some of the most common examples of this activity are blogs and wikis along with social bookmarking sites like Digg and Reddit. Thanks to Web 2.0, the customers are now able to interact with the business and actually play a significant role in the company’s successes. This new wave of web interaction is quickly replacing the dull, static website of past times. These days, users can interact with the website content and get involved in ways that were not possible before. By allowing the customers to play an active role, your business will gain trust, popularity and most importantly, credibility in the eyes of your audience. The web has changed and this is now one of the essential keys to succeeding.
You may be familiar with Web 2.0 and not even realize it. In fact, popular sites like eBay and Facebook are perfect examples. Ebay has its detailed feedback report while Facebook offers many web-based applications that allow profile users to get hands-on with the site. These large, dynamic websites are powered by e-commerce hosting services, thriving off the same features and administrative tools that can be used to bridge the gap between you and your customers.
The Role of E-commerce Hosting
Here are some of the Web 2.0 features you will find in an e-commerce hosting solution:
Free Blogging Applications – Blogs can be considered as some of the Web 2.0 pioneers and many web hosting providers offer these applications free of charge. WordPress is one of several blogging programs that functions well in the business environment. These platforms are generally easy to use and very friendly in the eyes of the search engines.
Multimedia Support – Internet gurus are raving about how effective video marketing has become. With support for multimedia technologies such as Flash and Silverlight, you can incorporate rich features that enhance the experience for your visitors.
Social Networking Tools – Social networking is the core of Web 2.0. E-commerce hosting features such as chat scripts and bulletin boards will give you the power to create a community environment that makes your site the place to be.
Why Jump on the Bandwagon?
The internet is driven by Web 2.0 and if you don’t catch on, your business could get left behind. Many have found that this is the most effective way to establish and strengthen brand recognition and keep existing customers around as well. There are many ways to approach this trend and as long as you stick with the program, you can make your business a success.
E-commerce Hosting and Web 2.0
Establishing Your Online Presence with WordPress Hosting
Even though social networking has evolved to include sites like MySpace, FaceBook and Twitter, traditional blogging continues to be one of the hottest phenomenons in today’s web-based world. There are quite a few blogging platforms, but WordPress is easily among the most widely used and perhaps the most popular of them all. This powerful web publishing tool is easy to install, customize and maintain, providing you with the ability to have your very own blog site up and running in no time. You can blog about a hobby, something that interests friends or family, or use this medium as tool that helps propel your business to the next level. Regardless of what your plans call for, Wordpress can act as that stable and reliable platform you need to make a name for yourself as a blogger.
The WordPress Phenomenon
WordPress has become an immensely popular blogging platform due to its ease of use and cost efficiency. The software is open-source with no licensing fees required, making it absolutely free to anyone who wants to use it. Being open-source also allows the WordPress software to be customized to meet the specific needs of the user. Over the years, developers have created a number of themes and plugins that are now widely available to its large community of users. All this activity gives you the opportunity to start out with a simple blog and later incorporate all the features and functionality needed to enhance your site.
Meeting the Requirements for WordPress Hosting
Perhaps the most unique quality of WordPress is that is can be self hosted through WordPress.com or WordPress.org, with the latter requiring you to install the software on your own web hosting account or server. Finding the right solution isn’t necessarily difficult, but it does call for you to evaluate all of the available options before choosing a hosting provider. Because it is such a popular software program, WordPress is widely supported by many companies on the web hosting market. However, one must still conduct thorough research in order to make sure their requirements and expectations are met. When shopping for a service, some important factors you want to keep in mind are bandwidth and disk storage so your blog will have enough resources to support traffic and store your files. There are also some basic requirements that must be fulfilled to complete a WordPress hosting package. The two most essential features you will need are a MySQL database, and a web server such as Apache with PHP installed, which is the programming language the software is written in.
There are many web hosting providers offering a wide variety of features and options that make it much easier to work with the WordPress software. For example, some offer auto-install utilities and upgrades that allow you to remain current with the latest functionality and security features. Others permit the hosting of multiple domains, which gives you the opportunity to host more than one blog under a single account. WordPress can work wonders for your web presence, but the journey all begins with finding a company that can provide you with a reliable hosting solution.
