Becoming a hosting reseller gives you the opportunity to generate a residual income (or earn enough profits to pay for your own monthly hosting needs) by repackaging and distributing the server resources given to you by your hosting provider. However, many webmasters are intimidated by the seemingly impossible challenge of competing with major hosting companies in terms of reliability, pricing, and plan capabilities. The reality is major hosting companies want their resellers to succeed because they’re not actually competitors, they’re subsidiaries/affiliates that play a very important role in the growth and expansion of the web hosting industry. Contrary to popular misconception, all of the tools and resources needed to create and promote your own hosting business are included within a reseller plan, you just need to know how to utilize them effectively in order to see results. The following four strategies can help any reseller enhance their client solicitation efforts:
Competitive Plan Pricing and Unique Resource Allocation
The two main attributes that customers consider before purchasing a hosting plan are monthly costs and server resource allocation. Most webmasters will shop around and compare plans from multiple companies before making the decision, so it is important to set yourself apart by creating uniquely sized and priced plans that do not conform to the plan structures of your competitors. In other words, you want to create plans that can’t be compared to the status quo so your clients feel as though they’re getting the best value available. Take a look at some of the most popular hosting plans and their prices, then make sure your price is at least a dollar lower, and ensure that your plan attributes are more generous. Sometimes this may mean earning a lower profit than other hosting providers, however in the long-term the increased number of customers will pay off.
Effective Rebranding and Customization
Differentiating your hosting business from that of your supplier’s is essential, as most people would prefer to purchase services from the source rather than going through an affiliate. Fortunately, reseller hosting plans include developmental tools that allow you to completely rebrand your official website, control panel, and plan details. In fact, you can use predesigned templates to design your hosting site based on principles that have been proven to be successful. You can also add your company logo to the backend interface of the control panel, giving your customers the impression that you are an independent entity, rather than just a middleman.
Network Marketing
Because of the competitive nature of the hosting industry it is extremely difficult to rank highly for desirable keywords within the search engines. For this reason, most of your prospects likely originate through a combination of word-of-mouth and networking efforts on forums and blogs, at least until you’re able to build your site’s rankings through long-term optimization campaigns. If you are already a web service provider (i.e. – a writer, web developer, programmer, or SEO specialist) you can network with your existing clients and even offer bundled hosting/service combo deals that provide a seemingly unbeatable value. Offering coupon discounts to reputable members of webmaster forums is a great way to provide incentive for them to write positive reviews about your hosting company. Inserting a catchy hyperlink to your hosting site within the signature of your forum profile is also a great way to attract residual traffic. Ultimately, your goal is to target an audience that is likely to be interested in your services, so publishing backlink-containing informative articles about web hosting/marketing to as many blogs possible is another great way to diversify your web presence and attract visitors that are in need of hosting.
Reliability and Support Guarantees
If you had to perform all the customer service tasks associated with running a hosting company independently you’d inevitably fail. Fortunately, hosting companies give the customers of resellers direct access to their support staff, and the same guarantees offered by the hosting supplier can therefore be upheld by the reseller. As such, it is important to emphasize the 99% uptime/satisfactory service guarantees promised by your supplier, as this will instill confidence in prospective customers. If there is ever a lapse in service or one of your customers is unsatisfied, compensating them with a refund or free hosting for a month is a great way to earn their respect and encourage them to recommend your services to others.