Check to make sure that they offer all of these services:

1. If you don't know anything about creating a website will they teach you what you need to know to get the site found and achieve the goal you have for the site?
2. Get e-mail through the domain name of your website. It's best to go with a host that provides autoresponders, pop mailboxes, email aliases etc. These services are needed to stay in touch with your visitors, potential customers and indeed your past customers in the hope of back end sales. Using your_name@your_website_name.com also looks more professional and official.
3. Investigate the uploading method. Using an online manager takes a lot longer when transferring large amounts of data. FTP provides more flexibility when managing your website. For the non-techies, always look out for a host that provides a good online manager, too.
4. Track your website's progress with logs. Examples include Google Analytics, AWSTATS and Webalizer. If you are a serious entrepreneur, pay close attention to these. All good hosts will provide you with the ability to access your website logs via download.
5. Leave room for growth with enough space. The amount of space good web hosts provide would matter if your website grows bigger than allowed. But do not overbuy. A common marketing trick of some hosting companies is to advertise huge "packages" such as 25gb or even more. The truth is, the vast majority of web sites will never use more than 1% of that space. It is just puffery. Moving hosts can be a pain. Avoid this with a little foresight and planning. Of course, if you're planning on a simple site, 5GB would be obviously a lot more than enough. Average websites don't even occupy over 50 MB.
6. Seek good customer service with live online chat, telephone support, email support or chat is vital. Avoid a host that has a reputation for poor quality customer service. Check out their average response time and their true uptime guarantee.