reselling hosting is just getting common and common everyday ... as more and more people in the net are looking for easy money... as reselling host is one of it .... easy money in a sense that one doesnt have to maintain the server or it support just advertise your our plans and earn cash simple .... and nowadays hosting providers are providing some really cheap packages and sometimes its so cheap that in the end the provider also gets stuck with high traffic and from them its also hard to maintain so many resellers so always not go for a cheap plan but go for a company that has really some backbone support to it

well i agree that using a reseller plan for quick money is bad.

In fact i think anyone doing webhosting because they want to work for home or work for themselves is also stupid. the thing is now a days u don't need to know a damn thing about this industry to run a company.

Thats the problem, and its not for a learning experience, anyone who says that is one of them and thats why ;)

Would take your car to a mechanic that did'nt know jack about it but instead was learning as he went? Hell now. What makes this industry so different that these things are allowed? I don't know thats for sure.

But i think reseller accounts in general are good and good for many people. Webmaster and web-designers are a perfect example. Then yes, there are some 16 year old kids that are to lazy to earn a buck the real way so they start a webhosting company thinking they are gonna live off it.

However that is topic thats beat to death and i no longer care, i have nothing to do with these kids or their so called companies. Ill just watch them die out.

Here comes the flaming.........;)

i have read alot of posts and people are complaining that their 20 websites are down.. and so on ... the main problem is that people buy cheap services but later on the host provider cannot handle the load and lights are off for the reseller

I think reselling from rock solid companies such as Cartika, PowerVPS, or Pair would be pretty safe.

yes, as they say you get what you pay for.

Hosts B knows that host A cannot really offer what they offer.

The customer however does not, and host A prays he doesnt use all he is promised.

A lot of our resellers are selling to local markets and for them it makes no sense to pay for a $150 dedicated server and then management and such when they can accomplish the same for some $20 reseller account. Some even go as far as to buy multiple resellers so they are spread across numerous servers. For them this just makes more sense since it's all a bunch of local low traffic sites. I mean some over numerous accounts have 100+ domains and you think why are they not dedicated well they have no reason to be.

yes, as they say you get what you pay for.

Hosts B knows that host A cannot really offer what they offer.

The customer however does not, and host A prays he doesnt use all he is promised.
Why pray when they can slap their TOS on their customer's faces with bull **** such as "You are using too many CPU resources" then those poor unexperienced clients want to buy a dedicated server to cope with the CPU resources; just on the word of a host that gave them the boot not because of resources but the usage of the bandwidth.

I am reselling because I am a web designer/programmer who would find it easier if I could setup my clients accounts -- rather than refer them elsewhere. Also, I can make additional profit after their inital web design contract is complete -- thus making it easier for me to be a stay at home mum =)
Eventually I would love to have my own server, rather than reselling-- but I am starting here first until my client needs get bigger.

For client :Quality hosting can't be very cheap!
For reseller: They think it is easy money, but it is not true. Good marketing program for reselled hosting costs some good money.

A lot of people can't handle the support required of hosting themselves.

yes, as they say you get what you pay for.

Hosts B knows that host A cannot really offer what they offer.

The customer however does not, and host A prays he doesnt use all he is promised.
Actually it's a good way of looking at it. Especially if host A is overselling. They will probably be selling 4 accounts each taking the same limitations as to what the reseller is on and just hope that they don't use all their promiced space and bandwidth!

Very good way of putting it Steve ;)

nicely done :)

reselling is not as easy as you guys make it out to be. Ijoined a reseller programm back in occtober and just only recently got my site finished (since last year october!!) It's been a tremendous learninng curve for me and has also costs me lots of $$$ (at least $500) even though the package in itself doesn't cost that much.

The companies that provide their resellers with ready made websites and everything where all they need to do is put in their plan details and costs do have it wrong. I've seen a few of these sites come up and the website template has testimonials from non existent customers.
I know what I've been through to set up my reseller site and I am sure most peole would not invest the time and money I have to get an account running.

Like the saying goes- Easy Come, Easy Go!! - same reason why most resellers fail

So, the general idea here seems to be that the growing number of resellers decrease the quality of hostinbg services in the industry. But there are also pluses about it, the growing number of resellers increases competition, so the quality support is the main commodity. I think all these processes are self-regulated, and as soon as the hosting market gets oversaturated, it will be over.

lorem i think resellers are dependant on the hosting company there can be competition in prices of hosting plans made by resellers but not in quality as it depends on hosting provider what quality they provide to reseller and from reseller to end user.. so basically reseller is a the middle person who just counts cash

Keep in mind most people will go where they will get quality service and have quality products.. I went looking through the reseller programs offerings, I couldn't believe my eyes on the cost for some of those resellers. The question would be how good are those host? You would only look into well known hosting companies for the reselling program. I, myself am looking to get into the web design industry - right now I am running a managed VPS server, but it is too much for me to deal with - I rather just deal with the web site creation than deal with the system administration of the server. Which is why I am looking into the reselling side, I have a few potential customers who are looking to sign up with me, so this would be an extra revenue for me - just doing their site but hosting their site as well. But yes, there are alot of people who will probably look and say "Ummm, I pay 20 bucks a month as a reseller - I sell 3 sites at 10 bucks a month then I get 10 dollars profit then they oversell *if the host allows it* then they make a nice hefty profit but once they (the customer) sees the quality of the service is not up to par they will then move on. So, everyone is always looking for a way to make a quick buck with the least amount of work. Most probably think - well all I need to do is get the server, let someone manage the server for me and I sell sell sell and make all the money using my hosts resources. Which is sad but true - and when this happens it becomes difficult to determine who and who not to trust.

Like I said, reselling is not as easy as made out to be. -Most of the times.

True some companies provide their resellers with ready made everything, but those are the ones which usually fall apart within a few months. Doing everything by yourself and setting up everything is NOT that easy. It takes a lot of research, dedication, time and $$$

Absolutely! NOthing is easy and those who start off and try to build a business just doing reselling and copying some templates will make some profit for a short term but they won't last long. I absolutely agree with you there.

Reselling is a means to an end.

Determine what you need and look into solid reseller accounts.
Good server companies offer Reseller accounts and VPS as well as Dedicated.

If you are a value-added business (web designer or SEO specialist) you may want to consider the Reseller options.

Then when you have a specific need or REALLY BIG client add to the mix a VPS or Dedicated Server.

If you have the Technical Background and are willing to provide personal 24/7/365support then purchase your own server in a data center.

However, the support offered by GOOD server companies really is important if you want to develop many comapny options.

Personally, I'd rather purchase a Reseller account or many Reseller Accounts and leave the Tech Support up to those who have the manpower, time and talent.

:agree: I recommend http://www.KUALO.com as one of those Rock Solid Companies.

:popcorn:

Hi flashedcoder,
Personally i think the main justification of offering Reseller Plans is the gap it bridges between a few domains hosted on a typical single shared Control Panel and a VPS Solution. Many people who are hosting also want to be able to of course offer their clients a control panel so they have less to do in terms of setting up individual email accounts, domains, ftp accounts etc. It is a rather big step to simply go from a basic shared plan straight to a VPS or Dedicated server a step that's all too often difficult for a beginner to afford. It is peace of mind for a bulk host knowing their clients have some concept of Reselling, setting plans and how to effectively make a profit before they opt for a VPS/Dedicated and simply fail due to lack of knowledge or lack of customers to support their goal.