How About Trying Something Different

C

CodyColby

New member
First off allow me to say that I am aware that there are many hosting companies in which people running them are "less than adults". I personally find it easier to start at a young age and then bringing it up because you do have allot of time before you really need to have a steady income. Now I just wrote that whole paragraph to say one thing that doesn't just have to do with kiddie hosts.

People some times have a "phobia" about talking to strangers face to face about things like this although sometimes it can be the best thing in the world for you to do.

On the topic of looking for customers... this is one which every hosting company faces. I am not sure how long you have been in business and for most hosting companies who just start out or are only a few months in, business can be very slow.

A suggestion would be first to go around to local business and start off by:


Quote:
Hello, my name is blah blah and I want to talk to you about a way to double the amount of sales you get.
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First off, do you have a website?
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If they answer with a no, then find out why. Maybe they say they don't have the time or don't know how...

Then explain what you offer, give them a small pamphlet of info about your company, services, plans, what you can provide to them, and that it can cause an increase in sales and rating.

If they answer with a yes, then maybe they aren't very happy with their current website or what it's bringing in if any. If this is the case it would be a good idea to suggest your services as a upgrade. Tell them you can offer a more professionally designed web site and things like increasing traffic to their site.

Many companies today who go into the business are worried about a saturated market. If you believe their is little space for you in online advertising with the competition then offline advertising is a great strategy. After all, how many hosting companies live in your same city and go to the same businesses offering great hosting and design services?

I hope you have found the information above helpful.
Good luck in your web hosting journey.

Best Regards,
 
Is the hosting industry saturated?

Easy answer to this is NO.

There has always been the big guys like HostGator, 1and1, Godaddy,
etc.

And it doesn't matter!

Why? Because not everyone likes HostGator and not everyone has
heard of them.

I'm willing to bet that if you were to randomly poll 100 people
on the streets, not one person will know what you are talking
about if you mention the name HostGator or 1and1.

With all that said, there are also special tactics you can use
to get your hosting company to stand out in front of the rest.

This has nothing to do with the above but... I personally have no problem with resellers. Although most people think that a reseller is a host that has a reseller plan. Not true. HostGator is a reseller. Most people didn't see that coming, but they are. They are a reseller of the planet and even know they are a reseller, they have allot of dedicated servers with the planet. This shows you that you can make money being a reseller but you just have to play your cards right.

Best Regards,
 
Hello, my name is blah blah and I want to talk to you about a way to double the amount of sales you get.
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I'd be careful about making these sorts of promises to prospective customers. They'll almost surely backfire or cause you to seem like a pushy salesperson.
 
The market is saturated like any other however as the market is global the companies can attack more local markets in order for them to push their global advance. Compared to the traditional struggle of two local companies fighting for the same local clientele, but most will agree a company's local market will and should be its strongest.

Where I would advise against the above is due to our experience, using an aggressive marketing approach by confronting people in the town centre or similar places on a local front is likely to work against you if you market yourself as a sales person as above. All of our local work and clients came from word of mouth based on our service, not marketing ability.We all know what happens if someone approaches you with flyers and similar material when you're out for the purpose of shopping or similar.

Approaching local businesses and schools can be achieved very easily by the "younger generation of hosts" however for most of us it is a more difficult thing but if you provide advice, design and networking suggestions and aid for your local area you will soon find that provided you perform well you will be rewarded for it.

I'm not saying flyers and business cards aren't a bad idea but they are more powerful when distributed by local businesses to the companies and clients they deal with under a recommendation, rather than on street corners and littered about the place.

It is perhaps an unorthodox approach but becoming part of the local community will help you to work well within it, from our experience.
 
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One of the keys in marketing to a local audience is finding newly registered businesses. Even Mom and Pop donut shops have websites, and they're going to host with someone - why not you? Approaching new businesses increases your odds dramatically.
 
This is my next markieting strategy, I just have to get motivated and do it. Thanks for the tips. I am starting lists by looking at area chambers of commerce and checking for websites that way.

Mark
 
Steve-Hostirian said:
One of the keys in marketing to a local audience is finding newly registered businesses. Even Mom and Pop donut shops have websites, and they're going to host with someone - why not you? Approaching new businesses increases your odds dramatically.
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I see that your new to advertising then?

Here is what I would suggest putting at the very top of your list; you will not get customers right off the bat. You may put up 10 ad's one month in 10 forum marketplaces and only receive about 2 customers from that. In fact, in the first month of your company, your very lucky to receive that.

Although, if you have the right devotion into this industry, then you can make it big. It takes time and as said over and over again- WOM which is the best tool for customers I believe.

I hope that you can develop your own strategies as to advertising and not take the road that ever one else takes because that means your just going into something where all these other host's are and where will that get you?

I love this industry. I love working in it. I love paying money towards it because I know that I have the right devotion and I have the right knowledge to pull back what I've put in and more.

So give it time, give it your heart and make it big.

Best Regards,
 
I see that your new to advertising then?
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What? Take a look at our clients page and you'll see that we've build our business to 3 data centers over the past decade by largely approaching local businesses through word of mouth, networking and direct marketing. One part of that campaign has always been direct mailers and follow up with newly registered businesses. On average, there are around 120 newly registered businesses in Metro St. Louis each week.

Forum posting/ads are currently an integral part of most providers marketing platform. Direct mail, email broadcasting, blog posting, article submission, Google Adwords, social media marketing and so on are also important.

An important part of each of these is measuring and tweaking each campaign.

So give it time, give it your heart and make it big.
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I absolutely agree. Your best chance for success is persistence and devotion. I would also point out that working smart is ten times better than working hard (while harding hard is a must).
 
Sorry, the quote was ment for
Steve-Hostirian said:
One of the keys in marketing to a local audience is finding newly registered businesses. Even Mom and Pop donut shops have websites, and they're going to host with someone - why not you? Approaching new businesses increases your odds dramatically.
Click to expand...

I do see that you run quite a nice company. :)

Best Regards,
 
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