Selling web hosting and domains

[owlyco]

Right.. question time.. Is it worth selling hosting and domains? Or is there too many big shots running the show now on the web e.g. godaddy, lcn, heart, 1and1 etc.

If I ran my own web hosting I'd sell it at £1 a month with some good bandwith, web storage and features etc.. How much is everyone paying at the moment? Or are you all on the free web hosts knocking around?

I've googled around so i have an idea but i'd like some general opinions from the acorn masters.

 

[Blossom]

The first thing to do is not sell web hosting at a ridiculously low or free price. It's not sustainable, your host will get pissed off, and you'll attract the kind of customers that are just looking for a cheap way to spam, scam and do black hat SEO.

The best thing to do is to find a niche and market it aggressively, whether it's web hosting for parents or small business owners or particular kinds of ecommerce sites, rather than trying to take on the whole market. Don't be too cheap, and make giving good support a priority.

The other thing to mention is that it's not a forgiving industry. Customers will lie when they get angry, they'll complain about things that are their own fault, and they'll demand refunds and compensation for everything in sight. If you're successful your competitors will steal your ideas and pay people to write fake bad reviews about you. You'll realise that all the awards from web hosting review sites are based on who spends the most on advertising.

I'd never choose a free host, but I have free hosting from a couple of different sources, one being that my affiliate referrals more than cover the cost of my hosting

 

[owlyco]

Thanks for that.. words of wisdom there I must say. I think I'll rethink the idea and get some money together for advertising.

 

[Blossom]

I don't mean to put you off, rereading my post it does sound quite pessimistic!! I'd only recommend it to people who have a lot of free time if you're planning on doing it seriously/developing a brand.

If you're just intending to host a few clients' sites or people you already have a relationship with it should be fine.

 

[owlyco]

I do have a few clients/relationships already from websites i designed. It could be worth doing in the near future. But for now i'll save for my advertising. Again thanks for your comments i didn't take it the wrong way or anything.

 

[diablo]

Right.. question time.. Is it worth selling hosting and domains? Or is there too many big shots running the show now on the web e.g. godaddy, lcn, heart, 1and1 etc.

If I ran my own web hosting I'd sell it at £1 a month with some good bandwith, web storage and features etc.. How much is everyone paying at the moment? Or are you all on the free web hosts knocking around?

I've googled around so i have an idea but i'd like some general opinions from the acorn masters.

Blossom offers some good advice re pricing and markets.

I'd question your business model before saving up to advertise it.

What is your margin on £1 a month hosting?

And what exactly is "good" bandwidth, web storage and features?