This may be a little off our usual topics in web hosting but I really just wanted to bring up the fact that there are LOTS of hosts who willingly consider other hosts as friendly competitors and will look to them for help in various situations. To me this produces a better outcome of all involved. For us personally at HostCaters..there are several inquiries we've received on a specific need, and if we cannot provide that, I do not think one moment before referring them to someone else! An example of this...today I conversed with Steve at Tera-Byte about some of their accounts...I have someone in need of 20+GB bandwidth monthly and is trying to avoid going dedicated at the moment. Steve was very friendly and most helpful. For us..it works..existing clients APPRECIATE any and all effort the host can provide. Our goal...help our clients any way we can...AND if we cant help them we go above and beyond in helping them find the right host...our friendly competitors!

Martie,

Bravo! That's exactly what the web hosting market should be like - competitors helping out each other in times of need, especially if features are different and what not. The 'client market' is large enough to accommodate friendly competition and both clients AND hosts should be the benefactors of such competition, not the hosts alone.

Unfortunately there are enough scummy hosts out there (no names, but we all know of at least 3 or 4) to take advantage of these clients, hence some of the calls for web hosting regulation. But until someone can come up with a method for regulating the Internet, that's not possible in the forseeable future.

I agree, except for one thing. In many respects, the term "competitor" isn't accurate. I prefer to think of it as just being in the same business. Rolls Royce, BMW and Toyota are in the same business too, but are they competitors? I don't think so. They appeal to different segments of the market, just as many of us do.

The auto industry sells parts, engines and even entire cars to each other, and some have built cars together in joint ventures.

Our services are primarily informational, and it is easy to share information with each other. Even if you consider it competition, it doesn't have to rule out cooperation, (and doesn't with some of us).

That is shows alot about the hosts when they help each other..when I first came here I saw friendly hosts and those that were cut throat...As a client I would shy away from the ones who were cut throat, if they treated others in their own field poorly they would treat their clients poorly ..now that Ive been here a while I have found this theory to be true.

*cough**hack*TH*hack**cough*

(not the usual TH we're thinking of) ;)

Originally posted by BC
*cough**hack*TH*hack**cough*

(not the usual TH we're thinking of) ;)

*G* :)

Originally posted by Duster
I agree, except for one thing. In many respects, the term "competitor" isn't accurate. I prefer to think of it as just being in the same business.

I think that's just semantics. The point is people can be competitors and freinds at the same time. Even if people are competetors, they can still refer customers to other companies (makes for good relations with the customer and the other companies). The words competetors and competition should not be viewed as a negative term, as is starting to become PC to do. Competition is what makes the world go 'round.

Friendly “competition” is a very good thing. It is not uncommon for me to refer people to other companies when they ask if we have lower cost packages. I have also referred at least two customers to another host when they needed a feature or server we did not have the capabilities to provide. The most important thing is to get the customer what he needs.

Best regards,
Frank Rietta

Perhaps a better term would be "coopetition". After all, it isn't as if there is some limited pool of people and companies out there who want to get on the web. People will remember the way you treat others, and if you are willing to spend some time to help them - even if you don't wind up providing what they need.

Originally posted by BC
Martie,
Unfortunately there are enough scummy hosts out there (no names, but we all know of at least 3 or 4) to take advantage of these clients, hence some of the calls for web hosting regulation. But until someone can come up with a method for regulating the Internet, that's not possible in the forseeable future.

Careful there, we don't want TH to pop up in here with his usual crap :) Opps, did I say True Hosting. Danny or Denny or whatever he calls himself now.

There are companies in here that always help a client find the right host (martie is one of them), then there are those who just want to push their own business. Overall I think you can tell the competition from the scum.

I agree Mike. However, you'll always have clients who haven't done any research, have been suddenly thrown into the deep end without much resources to go on to, and those 'scummy' hosts are around to bait them at first sight. Those clients are the ones we should try and help as much as possible (while not neglecting others).

I totally agree, I just referred a potential customer to another host a few days ago because I do not have PHP4 yet (being on an "old" Alabanza server) and he was designing a new site with heavy php/mysql usage. Obviously, it makes no sense to write new code using old technology. So I asked around and found a recommendation for a host that specializes in php and codes in it. It's a little more expensive, but will give him better speed.

The goal should not be to have as many customers as possible, it should be to have happy customers.

I am not a host, and I probably never will be. I classify hosts into 2 categories which I have seen posting:

Personal
Scum

Personal: The hosts I see here posting and helping out and giving newbies the right way and helping others out. This is the group I have hosted with right now, and I don't plan on moving.

Scum: There are a couple (I will not name names) that don't care one way or another, and insult people at every chance they get. I wouldn't host with these guys if my site depended on it.

I have sites on 2 different hosts right now, Ultraspeed USA (http://www.ultraspeedusa.com) and The Cool Host (http://www.thecoolhost.com). I like both hosts and don't plan on moving soon. I do have some progects going and will require hosting (no idea what yet) and I have started to put together a list of hosts I will check out. Keep up the good work all of you!

Allyn - http://www.galaxynetwork.net

Yes. I 100% agree to this.
Infact I along with my friends are working on something called a co-operative of hosting companies from many parts. This will help each other to run competitively, bring down costs and make faster progress :)

I was just wondering why dont people think like that. I was wrong. People do :)