How to Choose the Best CDN Service for Your Startup?

47% of customers prefer web pages that load within 2 seconds. Not only do they expect, but 40% of visitors will also leave your site if it takes more than 3 seconds to load.

This makes using the right Content Delivery Network more critical for your startup. It helps to achieve quick and secure content delivery.

In the market for a CDN Service? Check out these factors before choosing your CDN service provider.

What is a CDN Service? 

CDN services offer well-connected and optimized private global networks for fast, secure, and reliable delivery of all kinds of content globally. It leverages caching and a geographically distributed network of edge servers.

Organizations bypass the congestion of public networks and Internet Service Providers by using these secure private networks. Instead of accessing the origin server each time, content delivery network service providers serve content requests from local caching servers. This is where the cached copies of the content are stored. So, access to the origin server is severely limited.

Why do Startups Need CDN Services? 

You need to make your services accessible hassle-free to your target audiences. If your website/ app performance is not up to the mark, you will not be able to sustain it. Given the frugal resources, building a full-fledged global infrastructure to accelerate content delivery may not be plausible.

Without the infrastructure and redundancies built into the services, your apps/ websites will slow down when there are sudden traffic spikes. This will only lead to higher bounce rates and customer churn. Buying more bandwidth may solve the problem in the short term. But it is a costly option.

With the right CDN service, built-in redundancies and global infrastructure access can:

• Balances the load on servers
• Reduce latency
• Accelerate app performance

Using a CDN service is a wise choice for startups from a cost and infrastructural perspective.

Not just that, CDN services provide enhanced security when combined with a next-gen WAF.  WAF on the network edge filters out malicious requests before they enter the network.

What Startups Should Know Before Choosing a CDN Service Provider? 

1. Understand Your Website/ App and Web Content

Every website/ application has a diverse range of content – static, dynamic, or a mix of both. Static content includes JavaScript files, CSS files, images, etc. Dynamic content is user-specific and generated in real-time based on users’ requests.

While most CDNs are well-equipped to cache static content, many may not be able to cache dynamic content or when there is a mix of static and dynamic content. If most content on your website is dynamic, you must choose a CDN service capable of caching this content and accelerating your website/ application.

So, knowing your website/ application and the content’s nature helps you choose the right service provider.

2. Where are Your Website Visitors?

Monitoring and assessing the geo-location of users/ visitors tells you where most of your users are. Based on their geo-location, you can choose a content delivery network company with a presence in countries where your web traffic originates. For example, if your traffic originates mostly from the UK, you should choose a service provider with a presence in the UK.

As a startup, you must consider your future growth and the possibility of expanding to more geographic locations. In that case, you must choose a global service provider with a strong presence globally.

3. Cost vs. Performance

How do a few milliseconds of latency impact your website/ application? If the impact is big, you must choose the best-performing CDN service. If the impact is inconsequential, you can choose a service that costs less but offers good performance.

4. Know Your Goals and Priorities 

This is the most important consideration before choosing a CDN service. This will help you to shortlist and choose the right service providers.

Spend time thoroughly analyzing and researching your needs. Once you have analyzed and understood your website, your users, and the cost vs. performance considerations, setting your goals and priorities becomes easier.

5. Customization is Key

To ensure optimal performance and enhanced security of your app/ website, customization of your CDN solution is vital. Choose a service provider who offers customization capabilities.

6. Security Features and Controls

CDNs shouldn’t just accelerate web performance and optimize content but ensure enhanced security. So, always consider the security features and controls your secure CDN service comes with.

7. Test The CDN Service 

Don’t go by the lofty promises made by the CDN company. You must test the CDN, monitor your website, and evaluate the performance. You may also want to evaluate the CDN service provider’s reputation by reading reviews, asking for client references, etc., before making your choice.

Conclusion

Fast, secure, and reliable content delivery is critical for startups. Choosing the right CDN service can drive more excellent value to your business.

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