More Companies Outsourcing Web Hosting

The overall satisfaction levels for Web hosting trail similar satisfaction ratings for base Internet access services, but few companies plan on switching their hosting provider, according to a report by TeleChoice, Inc.

Few companies participating in the survey said they were “very satisfied” with their hosting providers, but despite this, many companies are focusing on extending their relationship with their Web hosting providers for more enhanced services. More than three-quarters (76 percent) of customers are “unlikely” or “very unlikely” to change their hosting options in the next six months.

TeleChoice surveyed nearly 1,000 US companies across a range of industries for the report. The companies were drawn from the subscribership of Inter@ctive Week and PCWeek.

Sixty-two percent of the large companies surveyed outsource their Web hosting solutions, the report found, while more than 90 percent of the extra small companies rely on outside firms. Overall, 73 percent of the survey sample outsources its Web hosting, a 30 percent jump from 43 percent last year.

The report also found that the purchase decision has broadened, with more factors participating in the decision.

“Users consider quality and performance more important than price in the selection process, and many options and features are possible for service providers to differentiate themselves,” said Ruth Chatterton, Internet consultant and editor of “The TeleChoice Internet Services Market Report.”

When looking for a Web hosting provider, smaller companies tend to focus more on price, speed of repair, and technical support, while large companies care more about security, service options, and advanced services such as caching and mirroring.

“Customers place a high level of importance on reliability, connection speed, and speed of repair when rating Web hosting solutions,” Chatterton said. “Unfortunately, customers are generally less than satisfied with, or indifferent to, their current hosting provider’s performance in these areas.”

End users that currently host their own Web sites are far more satisfied with the value for the cost/price compared to those outsource. Respondents in the healthcare industry are least satisfied overall, and are also less satisfied than average on most criteria, including key quality criteria such as reliability, connectivity, and fault tolerance. Government and financial service providers do not rate their satisfaction much higher, the report found.