Having quality, reliable web hosting is a key part of running a successful business website, yet with so many hosting options available, finding the right host provide can be a challenge. Should you choose a large hosting company, or an individual contractor? Is it a good idea to cut costs by hiring a web host that's located outside the country? How much should you pay for your hosting?

The answers to these questions will depend on what type of business you run, how your website will be used and how much website support you will need. Before deciding on a website hosting provider, consider the following.

Identify Your Business' Hosting Needs

Google has finally allowed the addition of a little bling to their search page, but you're not going to see it unless you're logged in. When you're logged in to your Google account you should now find a link in the bottom left hand corner that allows you to choose a background image for the search page.

You can choose from a variety of images from different sources to use as a background image on the Google search page. You can choose a background image from your pictures on your computer and it'll be uploaded to your Picassa drop box. You can use existing images from your Picassa web photos gallery, a public gallery and from some Editor's Picks.

You have between four and eight seconds to catch the attention of the user that's browsing your web site. If you can't catch their attention within that time - you're most likely going to lose them.

When designing a web site, one of the most important things the designer must take into consideration is the extremely short attention span of the audience. The internet isn't like a television where everything is pushed to the user, the user has full control and pulls at what they want to see. If your user isn't convinced or interested in what they're seeing, they're going pull themselves to something that's more appealing.

The Rule of Thirds is a compositional rule that is commonly associated with photographic arts. However, the rule can be seen historically in paintings as far back as the early 1800's and its application can be applied to any visual art form. The Rule of Thirds is even used today in modern art forms like web design.

The Rule of Thirds states that an image should be divided by two equally spaced, imaginary, horizontal and vertical lines. It states that the important subjects or elements of the composition should be placed on the line intersects or on the lines themselves.