When building a new website, the design, features, layout of the site is eagerly discussed – but where to host the website is often overlooked.

Surprisingly, the server you use and its location can actually make a difference and help you achieve your business goals!

So, lets ask the question, should you choose offshore hosting (where the datacentre is located outside of the UK) or opt for using a server in the UK?

Offshore Hosting:

Advantages:

Cost – A main reason UK businesses often choose hosting on offshore servers is the annual costs being much lower.

Attracting Overseas Customers – If your target audience live abroad and generally within a specific country, then offshore hosting in the country of where your target audience is located could be beneficial.  For example, an individual searching for your domain in the USA could see a business website rank higher if you are hosted in the USA.

Disadvantages:

Quality – The lower annual costs of offshore hosting doesn’t always equate to quality or a reliable service. Internet access and connectivity can vary across countries and you run the risk of hosting in a developing country that has an inferior IT infrastructure to the UK.

Cultural Issues – You need to be aware of potential time differences, the working culture and how this could impact your working relationship with the hosting provider.  Communication could be restricted and inefficient due to language barriers.

Data Protection – Some countries have an agreement regarding the access to information or data outside of their jurisdiction. This could range from search, seizure, or disclosure of stored data to intercepting communications, meaning if you host outside of the UK for legal reasons, the government may still be able to circumvent this.

Disappearing Providers – When hosting overseas, providers can benefit from diminished culpability and it has been know for some providers to suddenly disappear. Be sure to choose well-known hosts with plenty of credibility.

UK Hosting:

Advantages:

Better Performance – If your business operates in the UK, it makes sense to use a UK server. This is because internet traffic must travel to and from your hosted platform and local hosting means it has a shorter distance to travel – which can directly improve the performance of your applications.

Search Engine Rankings – Having a server based in the UK is more likely to see you rank well on google.co.uk as opposed to other regional variants such as google.es.

Data Sovereignty – As you must abide by the laws in the country where your server is located, choosing a UK hosting provider can be advantageous due to the UK’s high levels of data security, advanced IT infrastructure and (relatively) stable government.

Boring Climate – The UK is fortunate that is does not often contend with severer weather unlike other countries round the world, almost eliminating the risk of the server failing due to weather conditions.

Convenience of Communication – Using a hosting provider in the same country and preferably local to you can mean face to face and over the phone support and could result in a more efficient service.

Disadvantage:

Cost – The main disadvantage of hosting within the UK is that it can be more expensive than in other countries. This is mainly due to the higher overheads involved for UK web hosting providers including administrative costs for compliance with UK data protection laws and EU directives.

Speak with a member of our team today! 

Adept Marketing Services is a marketing agency which has had great success in building new and developing existing business websites.

If you haven’t already, you can contact a member of our team today and find out how our website design & development services can benefit your business!