Starting an e-commerce site. At the moment it will have limited items. I already have an account with Yahoo! but am still wondering if I should go with an independant web host. I know I'll have more flexability with independant hosting but Yahoo almost has the same tools. I think for small business with limited items Yahoo might be the better option?

Hi JustinSC,

Yahoo is a good service - and offers most things required by small businesses just starting out. I dont think choosing a Yahoo solution is the wrong thing to do - and looking back, regardless of which direction you choose, you will not think you made a mistake.

However, Yahoo strategy is to get small business "hooked" in, and make it difficult (though not impossible) for you to migrate later. They take percentages of all sales, and as you grow, particularly if the margins are tight with your offering, you will look for options that reduce your costs - and chopping the yahoo percentage will become the most obvious choice. Migration issues from a Yahoo store are also well known.

I dont think there is a concrete statement - 1 way is better then the other - however, take some time and evaluate what your profit margins are, what your expected growth rate will be and compare this to the value Yahoo stores can bring you vs their costs. If you determine that Yahoo possesses enough value for your offering and enough potential to drive business to your store, then maybe their fees are justifiable for your business. Otherwise, you may want to look at an alternative solution.

Hope this helps..

One thing about Yahoo! is that there uptime is very good. You might find cheaper plans elsewhere. If you favor price over uptime go somewhere else. If you favor uptime over price, stick with Yahoo!.

Sorry to tell you this but it is a bad idea to go with Yahoo if you need a web host. Since you have decided to start e-commerce site you have to be able to communicate with your web host and their support. Avoid every company that is going to loose first 5 minutes of each phone call forwarding it to automatic systems or answering machines.

Regards
D.

If you favor uptime over price, stick with Yahoo!.

There really is no correlation between uptime, price and yahoo -

Yahoo seems to nickle & dime you on everything. I will say that one a few of our overseas merchants used them & when I called them for the customer, the customer support was very good. But every thing I asked them - there is a charge for that.....

If you have a lot of competition on the Yahoo side, it might not be a great idea.

JustinSC

It's very common for people to use both options. You can host your own domain anywhere you like then simply link to it from one of Yahoo!s lesser priced packages.
:)

Please keep in mind that:
Also alot of people here work for or own thier hosting company. So their opinion might be biased.