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10-05-2006, 06:44 AM #1Web Hosting Guru
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Reliable host, friendly to very small customers?
It is easy to find low-cost hosting plans, often with "generous" storage space and banwidth with hosts that sometimes aren't bad. But suppose someone needs a really small hosting plan and has a minimal budget; they just need a couple of e-mail accounts and a few html pages, but want these to be always available. Are there hosts who offer such minimal plans and still provide high-quality service, or is the only solution to order an expensive plan with features that would be a total overkill if one wants really good technical support? It is obvious that for most hosts, such small customers aren't worth much, but I am wondering whether you know of exceptions.
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10-05-2006, 06:54 AM #2Junior Guru
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Have you ever thought of contacting a host about maybe getting a free account in exchange for maybe a banner on your site ?
Depending on how many visitors your site will get some hosts do like to do this.
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10-05-2006, 07:53 AM #3Newbie
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There are plenty of those around but never get a yearly contract because there is a discount. Pay monthly - and then suddenly customer service is much much better
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10-05-2006, 09:14 AM #4Web Hosting Master
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In the end, as hosts, people who purchase the small accounts are worth just as much - maybe even more than - people who purchase larger accounts. Why? The less being paid, the more people will want to buy. This is just natural for us. Therefore, you can have 10 people paying $65 for a semi-dedicated, but the 500 people paying $5 monthly for a small hosting plan are what really hold the company together in the end.
That being said, I think you can find small hosts and large hosts out there who are of a high quality, such as HostGator, Web Pro Technologies, Cartika Hosting, and more.
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10-05-2006, 09:31 AM #5Aspiring Evangelist
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Originally Posted by marapets
Do you know such a company? This can't be a smart one since by monthly payments each month a payment processor fee must be compensated. Also I believe that every serious hosting business take care about each customer in view of the fact that it is very hard to win one.Online power for online people!
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10-05-2006, 10:42 AM #6Web Hosting Master
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Probably because for a very small monthly fee it does not compensate the transactions costs. I still can't understand how some companies charge $2.5 per month and they do it in monthly basis
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10-05-2006, 11:13 AM #7We Da Kine!
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Originally Posted by okok
A good host will provide the same level of service to all of their customers.
Let us know who you decide to use.
Regards,
Dave
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10-05-2006, 11:23 AM #8Web Hosting Master
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$2.5 on money orders or checks?
█ Shared Web Hosting - Reseller Hosting - Semi-Dedicated Servers - SolusVM/XEN VPS
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10-05-2006, 11:37 AM #9Newbie
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Well, I do know that certain hosts have good quality of service as well as a very affordable price. Just look around, and I'm sure that you could find one that will fit your budget, simply said it's out there, just have to take the time to find it. :-)
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10-05-2006, 11:44 AM #10Web Hosting Master
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I would take a look at asmallorange they have a small plan that it fairly inexpensive. Its sounds close to what you are looking for.
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10-05-2006, 12:02 PM #11We Da Kine!
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Originally Posted by Jedito
It sounded like a good idea when I first wrote it....
Dave
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10-05-2006, 12:41 PM #12Texas Female
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Originally Posted by okok
The generous storage space, bandwidth offers are very much over-kill. Hosts offer it to compete (I guess?) You see it here daily. Support degrades because no one in their right mind would care to support a client year in and year out for 2.00 a month. Its absurd. This is not the potential client's fault. Keep in mind not all hosts have followed in this direction. Reasonable space and BW do exist.
Just make sure you email potential hosts BEFORE signing up anywhere. Too many people skip that step it seems and they end up sorry for it.
Good Luck!!HostCaters.com - Quality Web Hosting - Under A Gig! - Since 1999
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10-05-2006, 12:58 PM #13Web Hosting Master
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Yes, there are several hosts that cater to smaller sites. Again, the ones that offer rediculous amounts of storage and B/W are overkill, they're usually after the numbers, IMHO. As Martie said, contact a host before signing up and see if they will offer you what you need. I usually suggest picking a handfull of hosts depending on your requirements, then contact each of them and little by little widdle your choice down to the one you feel is right for you.
I'm also going to go against the crowd here as far as always paying monthly. Unfortunately with so many peoples' bad experiences these days, trying out a host for a month or even two is understandable. After that, go for a year at a time, it usually ends up cheaper plus it's a more stable relationship for both parties. For those that do only pay monthly, might I suggest your looking at the wrong type of hosts. If you feel your continually getting screwed by different hosts, maybe up your budget a little and try something reliable. You might just be supprised.Jim - 2Macs H-Sphere Web Hosting
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10-05-2006, 03:10 PM #14Web Hosting Master
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Originally Posted by marapets
If a web host only accepts customers who pay yearly, I think it would be best to find a different web host.
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10-05-2006, 03:15 PM #15Junior Guru Wannabe
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yes, there are hosts out there who offer smaller plans. You have to search more.
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10-05-2006, 04:49 PM #16Web Hosting Master
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Originally Posted by WN-Ali
I believe hosts should offer multiple plans for paying monthly/quaterly/yearly/etc., for a variety of reasons. I just don't believe people should start believing they should never trust any host, or that all hosts are horrible. As in any business and industry, you'll find good companies and bad companies. Here at WHT we all get to hear about the bad ones and the bad experiences people have. That's NOT to say there's no good hosts, there's many.Jim - 2Macs H-Sphere Web Hosting
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10-05-2006, 05:00 PM #17Newbie
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Originally Posted by PowerDot
with a yearly contract already paid in advance, service is poorer because you can't really leave them - you already paid
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10-05-2006, 05:32 PM #18Web Hosting Master
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Originally Posted by marapetsJim - 2Macs H-Sphere Web Hosting
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10-05-2006, 05:43 PM #19Newbie
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Originally Posted by Jim2Macs
Cheap rental but you have to claim it back at the end... if you send your 3rd, 6th, 12th monthly bills to them on your 13th month and you have 14 days AND then they'll send you the cheque
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10-05-2006, 06:00 PM #20Junior Guru Wannabe
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I agree with Ali, stay away from hosts that only accept yearly contracts.
As for what you're looking for, any good and reputable host will accomodate you, or will have a plan that fits your needs. But keep in mind, just because you are using very little server resources, doesn't mean it doesn't cost them anything to have you as a customer. The support and general maintenance costs associated with hosting an account still apply. So don't expect to pay almost nothing!
I wouldn't expec tto pay any less than maybe $4 or $5 a month for the kind of service you are looking for.
Hope that helps, and good luck!█► Server Bridge / Solid Shared Hosting [Comes with a domain!]
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10-05-2006, 06:02 PM #21Newbie
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Originally Posted by Sean K
sorry for the confusion
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10-05-2006, 06:29 PM #22Disabled
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i would say contact some of them too, that way you can see how good their support is too
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10-05-2006, 06:35 PM #23Newbie
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yea contact them with their support email, not their sales email lol
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10-05-2006, 06:49 PM #24Retired Moderator
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Very small hosting packages at very very low prices don't easily make sense. They are sometimes used effectively as loss leaders, just as "free hosting" is sometimes used.
The problem is that costs don't depend only on data transfer/space. Among the bigger costs are payment processing, customer support and advertising. New customers tend to need a bit of support when moving their sites, to configure things, get used to the control panel etc. When the host makes say $.50 per month in profits per account, it can take years to recoup these initial support related costs.
Another thing that hosts sometimes complain about is that the "cheaper" customers tend to need more support. This is probably because they're everyday people, not always techy enough to find solutions alone, even to the simplest of problems.
There is talk about the dissadvatages of yealry contracts, but very low priced packages are almost forced to be on yearly terms, in order to minimize the payment processing fees.
Now, it depends on the person, but $30 isn't such a big sum to risk for most people on a yearly package.
With the general trend in the market, very small accounts tend to lose ground. It's human nature to see much more value in a high data transfer & big space account at $5 or $4 (even though it's heavily oversold), than in a very very small account at say $2.