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Starting a Reseller Web Hosting Company

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For successfully being able to run a good reseller web hosting company, you need to have a sound knowledge of the science of computers, besides patience in abundance. After the innovation of the Control Panel, many people may think that a sound technical knowledge is no more the necessity, as the Control Panel makes the job of getting a pre-built server, and thus hosting a site, very easy. But things are a bit complex. Though you can get a dedicated server on lease and after having a good knowledge of Control Panel, you actually can commence hosting of sites, but always keep in mind that certain limitations are associated with the Control Panel.

For a successful run of your web hosting company in the long run, consider the ten steps that are mentioned below:

Step 1: Select a platform which you wish to use

You can consider using UNIX over Windows since the former is an open source program and thus cheaper, apart from having a stable environment for web hosting. Though most of the programs can run on both of these, ASP, MS-SQL, .NET, etc. are supported only by Windows. If you aren't sure about which host you want to use, you can select a web host that would offer both the operating systems under a single plan.

Step 2: Select the Control Panel which you wish to use

Control Panels can vary from the simple ones which are very user-friendly with the basic features along with the administrative ones, to the complex ones like the H-Sphere System.

Step 3: Select the reseller hosting provider

For starting a web hosting company, this decision assumes a very significant importance. Keep in mind that your web hosting company will command equal status as your preferred reseller hosting company. Customers never assume that companies offering cheap packages are better. Some important areas where the company should score include:

• Customer support: Ensure that the company has round-the-clock telephone support for the customers. If not, they should have a good email support with quick response to queries. These factors will give the customers a fair idea of how the company will be able to help them when they need them.
• Control Panel and the platform: Make sure that your Control Panel has many features which you can use.
• Flexibility and features: Make sure that the initial cost that you charge to the customers includes enough bandwidth, not only for them to begin smoothly, but even be sufficient when their business expands.
• Reputation of the company: A good company would have a customer forum, so customers normally check out the forum and interact with fellow members to know what their experience with the company has been.
• Experience of the company in this field: Obviously, the longer the company has been in the field of providing web hosting services, the better it is.

Step 4: Get your hosting plans set up and decide on matters of price

Though you might want to offer a host of plans to the customers, don't overload them with too many of them to select from. For starters, offering three to five plans would be sufficient. Also have a close look at the competitors and keep a check on what they are up to. You can also try finding a niche of the customers that is still left unsatisfied. It is fine enough if you oversell your resources if you can make up for it by charging the individuals with services like web stats, domain registrations, IP addresses, etc.

Step 5: Get a business website developed

Make sure to keep your website as simple as possible, and also ensure that it is user-friendly. Customers always look for something which they want, so make sure that you satisfy their needs. So it would be a better option not to waste time on telling the prospective customers about you. Rather, you can use the space to tell them how you will be able to solve their needs with affordable price and good service. You might want to use as little words as possible, but make sure that the main page has a minimum of 500 words. This would be very crucial for getting results in search engines. You can either design a website by yourself, or hire the services of a professional.

Step 6: Get the site ready for e-Commerce

You will be required to get an SSL certificate, besides a payment gateway and a merchant account, for being able to accept payments online. These are some e-Commerce features which you must get your site ready with.

Step 7: Offer the customers' good support

Customer support is very important as far as web hosting services goes. You can opt for a platform or a Control Panel which has a built-in helpdesk, like H-Sphere. You can commence with supporting those services which you are selling, but beyond this, it all depends on you. You can have a Frequently Asked Questions [FAQ's] which will help the customers solve some of their common problems. Also, you must have a strong email support and a quick telephone support for enabling the customers to resolve their queries in very little time.

Step 8: Setting up the billing of your client

For this purpose, you will require a billing soft ware with a merchant gateway, mainly the one which integrates with your control panel like the H-Sphere. Some examples are:

• H-Sphere: IT includes a full-fledged billing system which gives you full control over all resources and enables you to plan prices which you would like to charge from the customers.
• PayPal: This is a comparatively simpler system which is compatible with most of the Control Panels.
• Authorize Net: This is a flexible gateway system which is compatible with all leading credit card providers, and also with most of the Control Panels.

Step 9: Design a welcome email

A welcome email is a must for your new clients. In your welcome email, you can include the following things:

• full detail of the plan the customer has selected
• the registrar and the DNS changes
• a username along with a temporary password
• a direct link to the Control Panel
• links to the important areas like FAQ's, customer support, etc.

Step 10: Marketing the website

Though it is a fact that marketing a website is a costly affair and consumes a lot of time as well, it is very important since good marketing will ensure that customers keep visiting your site all the time. Keep in mind that website marketing is not a one-time affair, but an ongoing one. Some aspects which you must consider in this regard include:

• attracting search engine results
• affiliate programs and paid advertising
• newsletters

The steps mentioned below are just the basic ones, and not exhaustive. Though building of a web hosting site is challenging, it is not impossible if you are committed to it. Though many new companies are coming up each day, the market is not at the saturation point since there is a lack of good companies. You just need to take care of customer needs - word of mouth will do the rest. Remember, customer is the King!