Thread: Starting a hosting service/company

A friend and I are planning to joint-venture together to start a small company offering hosting services. We are currently looking at the reseller plans now. I would appreciate if anyone could offer any advice on how do we start a hosting company using a reseller account with our label. Or, if that is not a wise decision, suggest any other alternatives to start this hosting company.

Let me know, thanks!

- MENJ

I'd suggest you start off with an entry level VPS, this way you control how many accounts are on your server. With a reseller account it's a crap shoot how many other resellers and accounts are going to be on your server.

A vps you will not fully control how many are on the server, it however in most cases will be much more stable and faster than a standard reseller.

Thank you for the suggestion about VPS, are there any VPS packages out there that you would especially like to recommend?

- MENJ

Servint is pretty good

Originally Posted by menj

Thank you for the suggestion about VPS, are there any VPS packages out there that you would especially like to recommend?

- MENJ

Originally Posted by Grim

Servint is pretty good

Grim beat me to it. Servint is the best hosting company, I've dealt with period.

i use reseller zoom, for a regular shared reseller pack (on their failover plan). i've never had problems with it. i use it for my personal sites, and hosting for friends of mine.

and if you're going with dedicated, i'd suggest you stay away from rackspace. can't say i've been happy with their services. at work, we're now on servepath, and it seems pretty solid.

Originally Posted by menj

A friend and I are planning to joint-venture together to start a small company offering hosting services. We are currently looking at the reseller plans now. I would appreciate if anyone could offer any advice on how do we start a hosting company using a reseller account with our label. Or, if that is not a wise decision, suggest any other alternatives to start this hosting company.

Let me know, thanks!

- MENJ

There's a great forum posting entitled, "So, you want to start a web hosting business and you don’t know what to do?" at Webhostingtalk.com


I hope this helps.

There are a few different options, each with their own distinct advantages and dis-advantages.

1. Reseller Hosting
2. Dedicated Server
3. DYI (do it yourself)

1. Is the easiest, and the lease expensive. Reseller hosting is an easy way to get your feet wet, with the lowest risk. All you have to lose is time and the hosting fees if you decide it is not for you. With reseller hosting you can easily build up a client base without costly server fees, or power/data fees, etc. The learning curve is very low, as many resellers offer a cPanel, making administration simple for even those computer illiterate. You don't need to know how to program, or edit scripts, etc.. Some disadvantages are, you do not have full control over the server you are on, or the network. You are pretty much at the mercy of your host and the server you are on.

2. Dedicated servers again, are a good way to get your feet wet. The learning curve is a little bit sharper, but again, many hosts will offer a cPanel making administration a breeze. Unlike reseller hosting you have control over your server and can make it do most anything. Something a client wants that you do not have? Hell, just installer it yourself. Costs are a bit higher, and you are still at the mercy of your host as you are not in control of the network. Things can happen beyond your control that force you to rely on your host.

3. DYI, or doing it yourself has the highest learning curve, and the highest cost, but it allows you to be in full control of everything. You are in control of the hosting, the servers, the network, and more. This of course requires you either build your own facility or rent space in a data center. Building your own data center requires you purchase bandwidth, servers, and of course things like IP space. You need to know about BGP, routing, DNS, and other higher end technical things above and beyond just simply selling some space to a guy/gal that wants to host their web site.

My suggestion... Start with the Reseller Hosting and move up from there. Again, lowest risk, lowest learning curve.

Yep, Reseller hosting would be the best option to start with.
It's the most cost effective way without much risk, just start by it and get your hands on how stuff works and try to get handful of clients and learn how to manage them ince you are confident and have a good number of clients then you can move to Dedicated hosting for better performance and hosting experience.

I would start with reseller and then go to VPS if you need to. Its always easy to transfer with the same host.

Menj, When you start your company please inform me about it because I am thinking of making a new website so I might purchase the hosting from you

Have you decided something for your hosting company? when should we expect your new company launch

Menj, if you are looking to hire someone to design a layout for your hosting site, let me know. I'd be happy to take this project on if it comes around.

Originally Posted by jani

Menj, When you start your company please inform me about it because I am thinking of making a new website so I might purchase the hosting from you

Have you decided something for your hosting company? when should we expect your new company launch

Well jani,

If you are really looking for hosting then please let me know your requirements so that i can help you
I am glad to provide you reliable cheap hosting experience with 24/7 technical support and 30 day's moneyback guarantee.

Originally Posted by andyf

Well jani,

If you are really looking for hosting then please let me know your requirements so that i can help you
I am glad to provide you reliable cheap hosting experience with 24/7 technical support and 30 day's moneyback guarantee.

Well, I have not decided that what website I will make but i want to get some small package like

Hosting space: 100-500 MB
Bandwidth: 10-20 GB
Features: cPanel
Price: $10-15 Per year.

Thats it. I just want some small package for small website. If some reliable person can offer me this package I will buy it

Jani, I can supply that for $15.00 per year.
PM me if you are interested.

Originally Posted by iowadawg

Jani, I can supply that for $15.00 per year.
PM me if you are interested.

I'd jump on that deal.. I could not even come close to that...

Originally Posted by jani

Well, I have not decided that what website I will make but i want to get some small package like

Hosting space: 100-500 MB
Bandwidth: 10-20 GB
Features: cPanel
Price: $10-15 Per year.

Thats it. I just want some small package for small website. If some reliable person can offer me this package I will buy it

Hey jani
We don't have any hosting plan for such low rate. Our most basic hosting plan starts from 19.99£/year.

In the interests of getting this thread back on to the original topic, anyone wishing to provide services to menj and/or other posters from this thread can do so in our marketplace.

There are some great suggestions in this thread and it would be a shame if they got lost in the shuffle.

It's all about reputation, word of mouth, review etc. in hosting biz.
Competition is huge, make sure you got it all planned out before getting into it

~MG

Originally Posted by MichaelGoldman

It's all about reputation, word of mouth, review etc. in hosting biz.
Competition is huge, make sure you got it all planned out before getting into it

~MG

I would echo what MG said. There are enough bad hosts out there. The internet doesn't need another one.
Position yourself as a great host with great service and uptime. Soon enough, you will stand out. Word of mouth is key.

Originally Posted by iowadawg

Jani, I can supply that for $15.00 per year.
PM me if you are interested.

I will get your hosting if you APPROVE my design for your Ad Board :twisted:

Ok, Now I am serious: I will contact you when I will have decided that what website I should make.

Thanks for your offer.

Yes, competition is very BIG in hosting business. So, please plan before you start your biz.

All the very best!

The really big money is in having a data center.
See where another new data center in Houston got bought out.
Plus The Planet in Dallas bought out EV1's data center and webhosting.

Anybody got a few million so I can start one?

If you decide to go for a VPS like other members are pushing you to do then make sure its managed. A VPS will require you to know a little bit of linux to operate your server which means ROOT access. It will be your responsibility to do all maintance. I think it would be in your best interest to look into a quality reseller account. The advantages of having a reseller account is to save a little bit of money and not to be worried about if its going to be managed.

Hosting business was never so competative Today many newbies are polluting this market by overselling packages, so better you should have reviews of your host before getting with him.

WHT or DP can be a good place or you can try their own forums and check for support request.

Even the long term big companies are overselling, very few do not oversell now a days.

Originally Posted by iowadawg

The really big money is in having a data center.
See where another new data center in Houston got bought out.
Plus The Planet in Dallas bought out EV1's data center and webhosting.

Anybody got a few million so I can start one?

It is an it isn't.. It's exponentially more expensive as well.. Many go poop, and then get "bought out" like you said, usually at a fraction of what was put into them.

BTW, The Planet and EV1 merged...

Well, if I had the bucks...
The data center in Houston that got bought out, they had just signed up several companies to handle all their computing needs.
That is the time to sell out!

My son worked for another data center for a while, putting in all their servers, wiring, etc.
Then programming them for security (his forte).
Got big mucho bucks for a few months work!
Would still be with them, but the owners sold to someone else who then promptly fired everyone!

Way I read it, The Planet got $165 million cash infusion and with this, bought out EV1.

Originally Posted by iowadawg

Well, if I had the bucks...
The data center in Houston that got bought out, they had just signed up several companies to handle all their computing needs.
That is the time to sell out!

Wanna buy one? I'll sell you mine...

Way I read it, The Planet got $165 million cash infusion and with this, bought out EV1.

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I started my hosting company by getting a reseller account. Now I have several servers that I am in full control of. That was the best and least expensive way of doing it for me. I had very little money to start. When I had enough accounts to get a dedicated then that is what I done.

Ron

A web hosting business is not as easy as it looks. It consists of providing quality customer support at a timely manner and quality solutions.

It takes time, and if your new in the hosting industry, you should know that the busines is far beyond saturated. Hard to compete.

But there is always room for a serious person/group to start up into it if they are dedicated.

Getting a reseller hosting package is a waste of time, unless all you want to do is test the field.

Going with a VPS is probably the best thing to do for a very small startup host. Once you are big enough to cover the costs of a vps, switch to a dedicated host.

In all cases start with a vps, go to google and browse through companies. Their are VPS available for $40. And its best to get cpanel based, because most hosting clients prefer this.

Another plus to getting a VPS instead of a reseller hosting account is that with a VPS you can offer your clients reseller hosting, which will earn you 4 times as much as
shared hosting packages.

Before jumping in, spent some time getting to know the industry, go to webhostingtalk.com or something and stick around here for interesting topics.

Hope this info helped alittle

Hello menj,

If you are new to hosting business then I will recommend you to start with a reseller hosting environment. You will have to do a little research on search engines for the provider who can allow you to have private name servers with the hosting and gives end user support.
Please make this test very efficiently as the all responsibility of your clients will be on the shoulders of your hosting provider

Please let me know in case you have any questions, I will be glad to assist you..

Thank you.

Originally Posted by Hostcoin

Hello menj,

If you are new to hosting business then I will recommend you to start with a reseller hosting environment. You will have to do a little research on search engines for the provider who can allow you to have private name servers with the hosting and gives end user support.
Please make this test very efficiently as the all responsibility of your clients will be on the shoulders of your hosting provider

Please let me know in case you have any questions, I will be glad to assist you..

Thank you.

Most host allows you to have private name servers with reseller account and provides enduser support as we do

Also better check for their quality of support and are they are available 24x7 with easy to communicate medium.

Hello,

I do agree that provider provides end user support as well as private nameservers, as he is a newbie in this business he needs a care taker by all means.

You are right that he needs a quality support but if the configuration of the server is good and if it is optimised I think he never has to contact the support team

Thank you.