I know it takes patience and all but after about 20 some days don't you think I would be getting somenew sign ups? Even 1? Am i doing something wrong? I have submitted my site to about 20 different hosting directories. Im paying money to get on a top listing on 1 of them. I have submitted my site to all the big search engines. I have spent money advertising on a counter-strike server. Im now starting some advertising on some gaming fan sites. Does anyone have any ideas on what I could do? Im working on advertising localy also. Thanks

-Dan

How many unique visitors are you receiving per day?

Originally posted by Synthetic
How many unique visitors are you receiving per day?

Hey that's your 1234th post....(little things amaze me :D)

but seriously now, i think this time of the year is a slow spot, give it a couple more weeks, and i'm sure you'll find at least one customer...have you been advertising locally?

try advertising a bit

day: #reqs: #pages:
---: -----: ------:
Sun: 12997: 2662:
Mon: 26085: 5281:
Tue: 6735: 1595:
Wed: 4981: 1007:
Thu: 6521: 1462:
Fri: 7123: 1854:
Sat: 16199: 2899:

Those are the page requests for this week.

It could just be luck of the draw. We had our doors officially open for 9-11 days and have about 11 clients, not counting our local clients. All we did was advertise with Google, findmyhosting, and banner impressions go figure...

Sam,
You are offering the farm for cheap,
Chihuahua=$6.95/mo
200MB Web Space
20GB Data Transfer
CGI / PHP / JSP more...



but $7 is a good price, good going, at least its not like $20 a year :)

Not as cheap as AlteraHosting ;) Actually our pricing is based on a average we did of 20 hosting sites before opening our doors. Maybe we picked the wrong 20 :)

But for AlteraHosting here is my opinion just my opinion. Take down the forums wait till you have enough traffic or only make them accessible to clients. It turns me off to see forums with one or two post (even a forum with "installed when you first install the forum...") Your support hours 9-5 when? there are I think 3 time zones.

Your support email would leave me suspicious since I have to send support to a differnt URL then to alterahosting.com.

These are just my opinions take them for what their worth not much since we only have 11 clients but that's how I would feel sitting on the other end of a computer screen viewing your site as a prospective client.

20 days without a 1st sale may not be unusual - so don't lose heart. Starting anything is always the hardest part because you have no history yet for potential customers to draw on.

I took a look at your site. I think your plans are well positioned, so I don't think you have any problems there.

Personally I like your site - it's nice and clean, but it might not be helping you get your 1st sale. Here is some specific feedback

Everything on your home page should have 1 primary focus - to convince the customer that your company is the right company for him/her to go with.
- Having a good deal - you have that.
- Having a nice looking site is part of it - it paints an impression of professionalism. Your site looks good, but probably to the average visitor a bit uninspiring vs your competition.
- A big part of your home page is dates with info, this provides info that the customer doesn't care about - stuff like accepting 15 different types of credit cards in 32 countries - if I am looking at your site deciding to buy or not - I don't care about that. Put this type of stuff on support / updates pages, not on the home page.
- The one item (Aug11th) is good - it is an incentive to buy, but it's not clear what it means & you don't take full advantage of your special offer.
- You seem to have a hint of a focus on a target market - game servers. Perhaps this is what your focus is going to be? - It's good to narrow your focus - but make it a real focus - narrow is good at the start. Also focus your marketing into the target you choose, you will get much better results than a shotgun approach
- Your about us page - You tell the customer you started in July 2002 - No need to tell them you are so new - instant turn off for most customers. Also the line "We will strive to provide top quality support for all of our customers" - why not say "We provide top quality service to all of our customers" instead?

Overall - My input is to work on your message and sales pitch (you need to create one) - it's a misconception that advertising will bring sales on it's own.

I hope this helps - You have a great start & the start is always hard.

I wish you good success with it.

*Raises hand*

Can I get a review like that? :)

dbbrock1 take advantage of all the outside input you get. That way you can further refine your sales pitch and site until it eventually clicks all into place.

I agree with NovaW if you have a target market focus on them first, focusing on the entire world is a broad marketing campaign.

Listen to the findmyhosting guy

he knows what hes talking about :D

Originally posted by dbbrock1
I know it takes patience and all but after about 20 some days don't you think I would be getting somenew sign ups? Even 1? Am i doing something wrong? I have submitted my site to about 20 different hosting directories. Im paying money to get on a top listing on 1 of them. I have submitted my site to all the big search engines. I have spent money advertising on a counter-strike server. Im now starting some advertising on some gaming fan sites. Does anyone have any ideas on what I could do? Im working on advertising localy also. Thanks

-Dan
Start promoting to your friends and family. Then move out to your associates. Then maybe promote in your local area. Promoting locally can be cheaper and there's often less competition, so your prices can be higher. Think in your own back yard first...

Selling to family can be hard.. you might already offer a great discount on services.. yet they want "family rates".. if not, free.


Family can sometimes be the tightest people :(

I think comparing BlueDog and AlteraHosting is an interesting comparison - both have just opened - BlueDog has sales, AlteraHosting doesn't (yet) - of course the period is short so it could all mean nothing - but when you look at the BlueDog site - it says buy my plans

- Design is sharp yet simple - it looks professional - catchy tag lines "We Got The Speed" with an image to match
- The DogPaw and catch line "Obedient web hosting" is different - in a sea of the same - this catches the attention
- "We offer great 24/7 support, a lot of options, our customer satsifaction and 15-day FREE TRIAL no credit card required. All at an affordable price" - Succinct and tells the customer what they want to hear (ignoring the typo :) )
- 15 day Free Trial - reduces customer perception of risk
- Call to action "Get Hosted Today"
- Quick start - TOS, FAQ and Cust Satisfaction Guarantee - all clear and what the customer wants to see
- Then the bit I love - Top Question - "Why should I host with your company" - This is exactly what the customer is thinking & the site provides an answer
- Testimonials - these carry a lot of weight
- Plans easily visible with easy order now "paws"

Contrast it to the AlteraHosting site - the BlueDog site says Buy Buy Buy & actively sells to the customer, the AlteraHosting site says we are new, nothing going on here.

dbbrock1 - the good thing about the web is you can change & experiment quickly & easily.

dbbrock, as much as i hate to say it, nothing in life is easy, get used to it, because life has plenty more in store for you.

NovaW thank you for your kind review. You do not know how much we appreciate your kind words. We ar constantly evaluating our website and appreciate any and all feedback anyone can give.

Also credit must be given to APlusMedia who designed the intial site for us with no input from me :) If you need a designer he's good.

I have to agree with some of the other posts that recommend you advertise locally first. I have a pretty hardcore local marketing campaign currently going on, and I have gotten 10 new signups last week. Try to partner with your local Chamber of Commerce...Join a leads group...Do whatever you can to get your name out in the community.

It may sound funny, but for some reason, local businesses arent all that savvy when it comes to the Interrnet and the pricing structure of various hosting packages. I have been able to sell packages for around $14.95 per month that many people on the WHT would only want to pay $2.95 per month for. Plus, competition isnt as fierce in your community as it is on the Internet (with everyone trying to find the next great "DEAL")

I wish you all the luck and success :)

Trust me 2 weeks is nothing to worry about I waited 2 months before I got my first bite out of the blue.. your setup looks pretty nice so I am sure things will start speeding up once word gets out.. follow the advice of others and target locally.. I did and I am still not ashamed to say I do bi-monthly runs to all the laundrymats, ames, shaws grocery stores etc and put up ad's on the bulletin board's there.. Its the best free advertising you can get and I would say that we have gotten a good 60-75 customers in the past 8 months this way.. its the person who puts out the most effort that comes out in the long run.. also online advertising is good for one thing if any I personally found out. It just gets your name around.. I have advertised on EVERYTHING (not including big buck hosting directories) and never gotten a very good response.. I think mainly because the market is so crowded on the net.. Dont waste your time or money and best of luck to you..