Can I Host an Online Boutique With Bluehost?

Bluehost allows users to host their websites on their machines.

Bluehost is a Web hosting provider that offers subscribers unlimited Web space starting at $6.95 per month, payable in quarterly, bi-annual or annual installments. Bluehost users can create and manage an online boutique using Bluehost's provided Web commerce, marketing and communication tools.

Domain

BlueHost users must have a registered domain name to use the service. Users can choose to register a domain name when signing up for BlueHost service for an extra fee or can choose to point a domain name that they already own to their BlueHost hosting service. When choosing a name for your online boutique, choose one that represents your brand and image.

Shopping Cart

BlueHost offers a number different shopping carts for its subscribers including Magneto, Zen Cart, OpenCart and PrestShop. These are all shopping cart applications that allow you to create and manage items for sale. These applications are available to install on your Bluehost domain through the SimpleScripts one-click interface. Each application varies in usability and functionality. Before your site goes live for public usage, use SimpleScripts to install different shopping cart applications to find which one suits your needs. You can then delete the applications you do not use from the SimpleScripts interface.

Other Tools

BlueHost offers a variety of tools that online boutique owners can use to help manage their business. SimpleScripts includes various Web applications such as Simple Invoices and vtigerCRM for managing customer relationships; WordPress and Geeklog for blogs to update customers on the latest news from your boutique; and Dasda Mail and phpList to manage email groups.

Bandwidth Limitations

BlueHost offers 400GB worth of transfer bandwidth per month. Whenever possible, conserve your bandwidth to avoid overage chargers. Optimize your bandwidth by use thumbnails that customers can click on to bring up larger versions of images, if needed. A practice known as "hotlinking" or eople linking to your images without your permission from outside of your website can affect your bandwidth. Protect your bandwidth and your product images by disabling "hotlinking" from the Bluehost Cpanel.

Growing With Bluehost

If you anticipate that any part of your boutique will regularly generate more than this per month, contact BlueHost customer support and inquire about hosting that can support higher amounts of traffic. BlueHost also offers dedicated IP addresses and additional services for businesses with websites or Web-based application that require a higher degree of support and server access.

References

• Bluehost Help Desk: Getting Started