Cut loses and leave or long haul it

[shockym]

Will the hosting company ever be anything more than over saturated? I see other companies are becoming like this as well, maybe from the flock of more people trying to work from home or start up their own companies. It makes me wonder when its time to get out or should I stay in for the long haul.

 

[Lesli]

Should you get out or stay in: that all depends on your own client base, profits and loss, available capital, and plans for the business.

This might not be a good time to stay in the business if it is your sole means of support and it isn't profitable, or if you were hoping to build up the client base and company for a quick sale.

However, if you're planning on still being a web host in another five years, why not stick around for the long haul? You'll still have your client base, you'll be learning constantly, and after five years you'll be able to say that you were actively in business that long.

Either way, there are pros and cons. Just - if you do decide to leave, communicate well with your clients about when you'll be shutting down, what they need to do to take their sites with them to their new home, et cetera. Who knows - if you decide to re-enter the market at a later date, some of those clients may remember you and how you dealt with them honestly, and they may come back for your re-opening.

 

[AbbieRose]

I see no reason to get out any time soon. Yes, there are more companies growing up, but plenty of them will fail because they aren't good enough.

Additionally, every day there are more people coming online, more people getting computers and more people wanting to build their own site. Still plenty of room for growth, IF you are good.

 

[davet]

You're going to need a strong passion and solid plan to stay afloat. It really comes down to you, no one else. There are many successes still to be made in the hosting industry. I follow the reports at webhosting.info for many hosting companies and you'd be surprised at some of the small hosts that have drastically increased their customer base in such a short time. Just recently I saw a host go from 500 sites to 2500 in 5 weeks. Another one went from a few thousand to 16,000 in a few months. That type of growth cannot be dismissed.

 

[bobchrist]

It brings more competition that you can take as an opportunity to compete without the worry of whom? Competition makes competitive people grow faster.

 

[chatterbox]

Yes, there is a lot of competition right now because people have learned that it's easy to get in the webhosting business by becoming a reseller and they think they'll get rich doing it. Fortunately for the good hosts, someone forgot to tell these upstarts that there is actually a lot of work involved. Consequently, you will start seeing many of these fly-by-nights falling by the wayside. Plus with the down economy, there will be an increased interest in doing business on the internet as the start up costs for many online business models is so low. If you offer a good service and are willing to do the work, I say stick it out.

 

[shockym]

I guess I should have made a note in my previous post that the post was to be hypothetical instead of real. Its just something that has crossed my mind as I see newbie host up and coming that complain so much of the saturation. I am doing just fine and what better job than a geek one right?

 

[AbbieRose]

Right I would have to agree there. Anything that lets you work by playing with computers, or other gadgets is a good thing, and should be the jobs that we aspire to hold.

At least I'm not the only one who feels that way!

 

[shockym]

I kind of remember what it was like being new years ago and between myself and a couple of others we have many years experience but thinking about all the newbies now makes me wonder their intentions. Will they make it for the long haul and fight it out or not? The joys of being new.........so happy I am a vet now.

 

[mfwl]

Dont give up just yet! Try something NEW

Will the hosting company ever be anything more than over saturated? I see other companies are becoming like this as well, maybe from the flock of more people trying to work from home or start up their own companies. It makes me wonder when its time to get out or should I stay in for the long haul.

From your comments I fear that business has slowed for you!

I think there will always be an over saturated market where hosting is concerned, however that should be left at a pretty steady level seeing that as many hosting businesses fold as are started.

Your profit is what drives you, if you have enough profit to make the work worthwhile then why not.

Concentrate on your customer service, building a rapport with existing clients and then maybe you will gain business through word of mouth, try something offline like approaching computer and IT related companies and shops to build an affiliate network.

If you have a lot of resources offer some free accounts about to local shops without web presence for say 90 days, then when they see an increase in profit they will buy.

All these options work in their small way to help create a larger customer base, just try one of them...

Regards

Matt

 

[mfwl]

I kind of remember what it was like being new years ago and between myself and a couple of others we have many years experience but thinking about all the newbies now makes me wonder their intentions. Will they make it for the long haul and fight it out or not? The joys of being new.........so happy I am a vet now.

Do you prefer looking after animals? I guess hosting wasn't for you hahahahaha (joke)

 

[mfwl]

Right I would have to agree there. Anything that lets you work by playing with computers, or other gadgets is a good thing, and should be the jobs that we aspire to hold.

At least I'm not the only one who feels that way!

What about the age old way of getting out and about in the countryside, fresh air, freedom, plan your own work and timescales...
I know what job I would aspire to having seeing that computers and gadgets are so hair wrenching and frustrating!

I disagree wholeheartedly, sorry buddy!

 

[shockym]

Do you prefer looking after animals? I guess hosting wasn't for you hahahahaha (joke)

A vet does not mean I am out of the game, it just means I know what I am doing and I do it well. No where near the time to retire anytime soon. And yes I love animals of all types, clients, kids and husbands included.

 

[handsonhosting]

Should someone get out or stay in? That's really something that only the person can tell. If you're no longer finding the rewards in running your own business, then it's likely time to seek alternate means. That being said, you said it was hypothetical, so in that case, stay on the boat with the chopper and continue sailing around the word

I do think that there are a lot of people getting into the hosting business, but it's been that way for the past 5 years or so. The advantage of hosting is the ability to provide one on one relationships with customers unlike many of the larger hosting companies.

It's not a losing business (if done right) and new companies breed competition and a drive to do better. Personally I welcome the new competition, many of them fail however and that is a shame! However, anyone running a business as a HOBBY needs to state that up front to their customers, and not claim to be 24/7 when they're just a single person shop or go on vacation etc.