How To Choose The Right Web Hosting Plan (From A Marketer’s Perspective)

Most reviews on web hosting plans are written by technical experts for technical experts. My discussion today is from the point of view of a marketer. I believe today’s discussion will provide a different angle to this topic.

Generally there are 4 types of web hosting plans to choose from, namely shared hosting, reseller hosting, VPS hosting and dedicated hosting. If you are new, you can see the pricing and detailed descriptions here.

If you are a server expert or you are planning to start your own webhosting service, this article is not for you. But if you are an internet marketer, looking for a web hosting plan that meets your needs, I’m sure my experience in web hosting will help you.

So, which web hosting plan should you choose?

Cheap is better

When it comes to hosting, paying more doesn’t mean you get more. In fact, it’s the reverse. Let me explain.

The cheapest plan is called shared hosting, which usually cost you less than 10 bucks a month. As the name suggests, shared hosting means you are sharing a server with probably hundreds of other users. Because of this, the hosting company has huge liability in these shared servers. It cannot afford to have these servers fail or it will affect hundreds of their clients. As a result, they do regular server updates, backups, maintenance and they provide 24/7 uptime monitoring.

But if you go for other more expensive hosting plans, the servers usually have lesser users and as a result, those servers receive lesser attention from the hosting company. (Most companies will deny this, but that is the truth.)

Take the most expensive plan, dedicated hosting, as an example. Most hosting companies will not monitor the uptime of such servers. Also, they will do lesser system maintenance and updates. Reason? Because you own the whole server and are responsible for the maintenance yourself!

In addition to this, most shared hosting plan offers unlimited disk space and unlimited bandwidth. Yet, almost all other more expensive hosting plans have limits on disk space and bandwidth. If you are using one of those more expensive hosting plans, you have to worry about your disk and bandwidth usage.

Think about it this way. By paying more, you get limited disk space, limited bandwidth and lesser server maintenance. This is what’s happening when you pay more for your web host.

Of course, there are limitations to shared hosting. But that is when you become a heavy user.

As a rule of thumb, if you are simply running niche websites for Adsense or affiliate commissions, shared hosting should be your best choice…… until you max out your shared server.


How to max out your server?

So far, the message I’m trying to put across is get a cheap shared hosting plan because you get the best server support compared to all other hosting plans. But that is assuming you are just a small-time marketer (most people are).

If you are a big-time marketer or going to be a big-time marketer, things may be a little different.

Below are ways in which you can max out the capacity of a shared hosting server.


1) Mass Mailing

One of the most taxing activities in a server is mass mailing. If you are intending to build a list and send out mass email through your own server, chances are, you can’t live with a shared hosting plan, not even a reseller or VPS plan.

Most shared hosting has a limit of 500 emails per hour. This means if you were to mail to a list of say 5000 people, it will take you 10 hours.

If you are using hosted autoresponder services like Aweber, this will not be a concern since emails are sent through Aweber’s server, not yours.

2) Product Launch

If you are planning a big product launch, there is a high chance that you will max out the server bandwidth.

“Kenneth, I thought shared hosting has got unlimited bandwidth?”

Yes, that’s a lie.

Imagine bandwidth as a pail of water. When you are promised with unlimited bandwidth, what it means is you have an infinitely huge water pail, full of water of course. The catch here is water must flow out from a tap. For shared hosting, you’ve got a small water tap. So if there is a sudden surge of traffic to your server, this small water tap may not be enough to cater to that surge. The result is you get very sluggish web loading speed and occasional disconnectivity issues.

3) Video Hosting

If your server hosts a lot of videos and a lot of people are watching it, you will run into the same bandwidth issue, as explained in #2.

Basically, any activity that involves huge data transfer to and from the server will tax on the bandwidth and create potential bandwidth issue.

4) Hosting Too Many Domains

Did I mention that most shared hosting plans allow you to host unlimited domains? Well, that’s another lie.

More...

Also consider the idea of owning your own customer helpdesk, read more...
http://profitsdesk.com


Greg.
Check out my own HelpDesk here.
Visit here for: Online Income, Advertising, Marketing and Traffic Generation Resources
Keywords: Advertising+Marketing, Online+Income
Traffic+Generation, Free+Advertising,

How To Choose Web Hosting Service (If You Are Starting Out)

This week, we are going to talk about how to choose web hosting service if you are a beginner who are starting out, wanting to make some money from the internet. Next week, we will talk about web hosting for advanced online marketers. If you are an advanced marketer, be sure to check out our blog next week.

So, what does it take to make money online? Is it know-how? Is it technical skill? Is it your connection or network?

Well, all of these play a part. But the main factor is Right Mindset + Right Action.

You may wonder what has it got to do with choosing web hosting service. Read on…

Another question. What makes a good web hosting service for beginners? Is it hosting features? Is it price? Is it customer support?

Again, all of them play a part. But the main factor is it should make you money.

When I say it should make you money, I’m not referring to those MLM web hosting systems. I’m talking about web hosting that has a workable system that practically guarantees your success.

Let me share with you my story, one that some of you may be able to relate to……

Many years back, when I first decided to build a website, my first thought was, well, I’ll choose a cheap web host.

I found one that only cost me $35 a year, including domain name and 1 year hosting. So I got a domain, a hosting service and a step-by-step guide that claimed to teach me how to make money online. I can’t remember what I did with the website, but basically I made $0.00 from that venture.

Finally, I gave up on cheapskate solutions and invested in a “guided web hosting system” that claimed to hold my hands and lead me step-by-step to success. The system costs me $300 a year (I think).

But guess what, when your pocket hurts, you work!

I dedicated months to follow the system to a tee, and started making some money and eventually crossed my first $100 a month in less than a year. (As you can see, it was a slow start, but hey, I was a newbie, remember?)

So which hosting is cheaper, the first one that cost $35 a year, or the second one that cost $300 a year?

Remember in the beginning of this article, I said newbies’ success depends mainly on Right Mindset + Right Action?

The $35 a year hosting gave me a cheap alternative, and left me with a ’see-if-it-works’ mindset and a ’step-by-step-but-up-to-you-to-follow’ action plan.

The $300 a year hosting, on the other hand, gave me a ‘I-must-earn-back-that-money’ mindset and a superbly ‘annoying’ system that forced me to do everything exactly its way. And the result was… I was forced to do the right thing and made money!!

Let me share with you what I mean by ‘annoying’. Imagine when you try to submit a webpage, the system will always slap you with tons of error messages, asking you to correct this and correct that. It’s like your nagging parents who insist that you must do things their way. But over time, you mind is slowly trained to do things ‘its way’ and it becomes your second nature. And guess what, that’s how you learn to do things the right way!

Honestly, I might not have the discipline to learn and do things the right way without this system.

But interestingly, I ditched that system after 2 years.

Why?!

More...

Also consider the idea of owning your own customer helpdesk, read more...
http://profitsdesk.com


Greg.
Check out my own HelpDesk here.
Visit here for: Online Income, Advertising, Marketing and Traffic Generation Resources
Keywords: Advertising+Marketing, Online+Income
Traffic+Generation, Free+Advertising,

How To Convert Traffic Into Sales? (Part 3)

In this concluding episode of How To Convert Traffic Into Sales, we are going to discuss strategies to increase the conversion of traffic into sales of your own products.

If you are a product owner, the key to converting traffic into sales is really in the overall game plan, which is made up of the following objectives:

1) Proof
2) Hook
3) Offer
4) Over-deliver
5) Offer again

1) Proof

When traffic comes to your product site, your main objective is to prove to the visitors that your site is a trustworthy site and your product can meet their needs.

This is when you demonstrate your copywriting skills.

Some of the tricks that can help you to achieve this objective include testimonials, case studies, your photo, a video intro from you and as suggested by one of our readers, a link to your Facebook account.

2) Hook

If you can achieve the first objective of Proof, you can basically filter your visitors into 2 groups.

The first group is made up of people who don’t need your product or service at all. This group of people will not do anything regardless of how good your product is. Ignore them.

The second group consists of people who have a need for your product or service, but they may or may not buy it. This is the group of people you want to Hook!

I believe you should have guessed it by now that what I mean by Hook is to get them into your list. Whether they are going to buy or not, you will want to convert them into your list because they are your target prospects now or in the future.

How to convert them into your list is another huge topic. In short, the trick that has been working for me is to provide a free version of the service I’m offering. If you can somehow offer a free version of the product or service that you are selling, I highly suggest that you offer that option. This way, you can capture all the people belonging to the second group.

3) Offer

Once you have a system to Hook your hot prospects, the next thing you must do is to give them a good reason to take action now - i.e. buy your product NOW!

In real life, you don’t propose to your new girlfriend the first day you’re engaged. But in sales, you MUST do so. In Mandarin, we say “Hit The Iron While It’s Hot”.

You can use strategies like “one time offer”, “increasing price strategy”, “limited supply strategy”, “time-sensitive offer”, “fast action bonus” and many other tricks. The idea is to give them enough reasons to take action NOW or they will either miss a great discount or great offer.

Typical conversion rate is about 10%. My best record is 60%, meaning every 5 people who opt-in, 3 are paying customers.

More...

Also consider the idea of owning your own customer helpdesk, read more...
http://profitsdesk.com


Greg.
Check out my own HelpDesk here.
Visit here for: Online Income, Advertising, Marketing and Traffic Generation Resources
Keywords: Advertising+Marketing, Online+Income
Traffic+Generation, Free+Advertising,