I aquired the domain vivacityhost.com do you think I should start a webhosting business? I have been thinking about it. I would be starting as a reseller, make some banners, link up with web hosting reviewers, and get the name out there. So ... do you think the market is 'too' saturated, or should I develop the domain into something? Other than that, I guess the domain is pretty worthless, unless someone was looking to start a webhosting business. I'm basically looking for opinions here.
If you're a programmer, pm me. We can partner up and if you'll do p/t work, tech support, you'll receive a portion of the revenue each month.
And before you knock reselling, HostGator started as a reseller just a few years ago, a little reseller for hosting. HostGator provides great support, that is why they have been so successful. The template they use is pretty unique, but the staff is on the forum, they talk to people, that is something not many do. Another great advertising trick they utilize is their affiliate program, you have tons of people out there advertising for hostgator.
1.) Unique look.
2) Great custom service.
3.) Staff that are human and sociable.
4.) Discussion forum.
5.) Affiliate program.
Only their prices are so-so, but since customer service is so great, people are more than willing to pay. I saw hosts offering 15c hosting, that's because of the competition, but hostgator never needs to do that, and guess what,
every website needs hosting, just like every person needs housing, so there will be a market for it ...
If you'd like to invest in creating a better webhost, pm me. I'm not looking for huge investments, I don't even need ANY to start, but a nice investment would most definately go a long way. Investment money will go towards two things:
Features; Offering domain name registrations, 24/7 LIVE tech support as opposed to email/forum support, offering more payment options than just Paypal, so we'll be able to maybe create an LLP? I live in NJ, and while I'm not in favor of riding the train before the rails have been assembled, there's nothing wrong with establishing a business. If this were to register as a legal company, then it would assure more reliability, as opposed to the fly-by-night webhosts out there. I'd like a "Tip Box" for customers, so that they could suggest new features, that'd be nice, even forum suggestions, polls, etc. Affiliate program
Marketing; Banner advertisements, partnerships with software companies, submitting to directories,
SEO, webhosting reviewers, special deals, newspaper advertisements, posting in store bulletins, ... there's a wide array of marketing options, I prefer free opportunities to save money, but there's no shortage in paid opportunities available.
For example, we could partner up with ABC Scripts <--- fake company, they create dynamic website scripts, they refer their customers to us for hosting, and a partnership is made. We could also offer free hosting, hosting for proxies, warez hosting, pornography hosting, hyip hosting, and autosurf hosting. If it's legal, then why not? People might feel bad about hosting such websites, but if it is legal, then why should we turn down potential customers? Child pornography, no, definately not, that is illegal, and sick, so don't think I'd ever allow anything like that on the servers! But, like egold, they make ALOT of $$$ because paypal won't allow hyip payments, autosurfs, and other sites, so they make ALOT of money on that, and paypal loses out on alot of revenue. Also, people often switch to AlertPay due to paypal's bad business practices, and it will eventually catch up to them.
I don't have a business plan, but I'd like to dev up this domain, put it to good use ... I think management should be a partnership between me, programmer, perhaps investors, so there would be equal say, and there should be a company account to hold funds, and the funds ought not be controlled by any member, because I don't want anything to go wrong in that area.
So ... I think
atleast 50% of revenue should go back into the business, though, I'd prefer 100%, I believe that's how you create sustainable growth for the long-term. A catchy slogan wouldn't hurt
I'm serious about this. If you're not an investor, there could still be room of the "team" if you're able to tell me what you can offer us, no reason to employ people that don't know what they're talking about.
Once we really begin to grow, the problem is always how to expand. To the contrary, the difficult aspect of business is not always startup, it's expansion, and now falling apart, transition. We must also not rely on simpy paypal to do business, if a business solely runs through paypal, then what if paypal decided to not do business anymore? Imagine how that would impact sales if paypal payer's can no longer pay through paypal, so we do need alternative methods, but that's nothing to rush about.
That's why we should open up a P.O. box, offer checks, money orders, egold, moneygram, cc payments, paypal of course, alertpay, maybe even Western Union. The more, the better, that's my opinion. Some people say that egold kinda 'looks bad', but really, that's pretty ridiculous to think about, it's a payment processor, a legitimate one, why not take advantage of it?
Also, a less popular webhosting for posting, but I think that might look a bit unprofessional. If we stick together and manage the finances wisely, to plan and think each step, there's no reason why we can't succeed. Free advertising is the best, but paid advertising involves more ... thought. Especially the affiliate program, we're basically contracting marketers there, and that's not bad idea. We need to stamp out anyone that wishes to join for the reward, like from those freebie sites, and then they cancel, so perhaps a cancellation fee in the tos.
Also, a big problem is prepaid credit cards, often they're used to just signup, so there should be some future thought on this issue. We might need to work with collection agencies to get what's owed to us, we can't just cancel accounts, this will yield some results, and, of course, the collection agencies takes a cut of what they return. Also, collect email addresses for an email list of invoices, updates, "please come back", "how can we make it better", "why'd you leave" etc Really 'bring it' to the clientele, and THAT is something that your everyday webhosts do not do. We shouldn't compromise with people, but just improve based on why they left, and we should concentrate on beating the competition.
One day we would be very large, dedicated server, maybe even still under a reseller's account, then if it's in our best interest to move out on our own, then we should do so. If it's in the best financial interest, that is. Employment is something that could come ... one day, but I think it might be a good idea to outsource, if we ever need to do that. Or do we? hm. Outsourced customer service is horrible lol So, yes, probably use the services of customer service services here in the States, but who knows. Whatever is cost effective, you know, whatever works, it needs to suit the needs of the customers, an increase in complaints might be a sign to make a change, why tolerate horrible service, I wouldn't, that will cost you business.
What do you think of this idea? If you bite, send me a pm. If you think I suck, let me know lol I tried my very best to make it as presentable as possible! One question: Has a business ever been started when not everyone lived in the same vicinity? People onlinebased? hm
Starting as a reseller is the way to go, it's how you manage your growth, it's how you create gradual growth. Starting with your own server would be expensive [you have to fees every month] and you would need to signup hell of alot of people to start turning a profit, but it's different with reselling. You'll need a t1/t3 line to run your server, very expensive. You'll need to pay rent in the facility, you'll have to pay for it to be managed, things like that. That's why it's not smart to start with your own server, gradual growth would ensure that you're profiting once you purchase your first server.
I can't comment on your customer service, but I doubt it's 24/7 as described.