Shopping around for a web host is a little like looking for a new appliance
. You need to look into it thoroughly because once you start using it you will not want to give it back and go start up with another one. There are so many to look at and they are all different prices. They have different options that they offer too and you need to understand which is important before you settle down with one.
Price. It would be nice to say that it doesn't matter, but let's face it the bottom line really is the value and cost of the service. But be careful, don't just settle for a web host that doesn't meet your needs to save a few dollars, in the long run this can be a costly mistake.
You can't live without space. You want to have as much as you can possibly ever need. Since you have no way of knowing how much you will eventually need, unlimited is the only way to go. Pictures take up a ton of space. You might start with only a small amount in the beginning of your business, but that will change as your business grows.
Uptime is crucial to running a business. You don't want your customers being turned away from your site because your site is down for whatever reason. 90% should be the least amount of uptime that you accept. If your customers can't get to you they will go elsewhere quickly. This is important for business, if you have a site for fun then it really doesn't matter.
You have to have some tools available to build your website. These are sometimes provided in the price of the site. There are people that have their own and don't feel that they need them. That is OK if you actually have all that you need. There are many sites that will charge you to use their tools. You will definitely need access to some.