Web Hosting Talk : Web Hosting Main Forums : Running a Web Hosting Business : Lost almost 900 web hosting clients. Need to get back on my feet

[mm1250]

Hello all,

I started a web hosting company back in late 1999 which during 2000-2002 became very successful. I within a few years had about 1,000 clients. WEll in late 02 I got into the networking business and shoved my hosting business aside. website never updated, not answering support, unmanaged billing...the business went to shambles. Its now 2006 and i'm getting this business back in order.. I'm afraid to say after cleaning out my account list and cleaning out our servers, we are down to about 75 active accounts. Went form 7 servers to 2...

I'm putting the past aside, I know I can bring this business back on its feet again. I've been out of the loop in the hosting business sine 2002 so I know allot has changed.

I need some help in remodeling the business, mostly choosing the right software.

I'm still using Opitgold ISP. --- I have to trash this right away
we use wonderdesk for our ticketing system. .. --- same with this
still running old P4 Servers. --- i'm upgrading all of these boxes
OpenSRS for domains -- they seem to work well ..not fimilar with any others

Anyways,

First step I'm taking is upgrading my boxes, I'm moving to the latest Xeon dualcore 64x hardware with newest Ensim X software. We currently use the V 3.x of Ensim and very happy.

I'm trying to figure out a replacement for our billing/support system.

I did some digging, Is it only Modernbill that interfaces with Ensim? Also, Kakyo seems to interface with Modernbill for login database. I need to build a fully intigrated system.

Here is the new build out.

ENsim,
Modernbill
Kaakyo SUpport
AuthorizeNet for cc billing
OpenSRS for domains.

Any suggestions to how I could change my new system setup would be appreciated. I'm looking for the best of the best software. Price isn't really any issue.

Thanks.

[rnavarro]

Well we use Auracle Support for our support needs......they have a very good support team and very active development team......you would have to ask them to see if it integrates with ModernBill, i'm sure they could cook something up for you....

[mm1250]

also, we currently have our systems with rackshack now EV1Servers.

Are they still a good viable option for dedicated hosting resellers? Have there been any new compaines webhosts are flocking to?

I know the one con with them is the 32ips max per server....Is this still the case?

[porcupine]

Originally Posted by mm1250

WEll in late 02 I got into the networking business and shoved my hosting business aside. website never updated, not answering support, unmanaged billing...the business went to shambles. Its now 2006 and i'm getting this business back in order.. I'm afraid to say after cleaning out my account list and cleaning out our servers, we are down to about 75 active accounts. Went form 7 servers to 2...

.... Ok so you've knowingly, and willingly left your customers high and dry, a problem that most WHT users know a LOT about.....

Whats supposed to inspire the WHT public to help you try to rebuild your hosting company? All of the information you're looking for can be found by using the search function at that.

[valentin_nils]

mm1250 I read your posts above. I am not sure if I should laugh or cry.

If I would laugh its because you are naive enough to believe that leaving your customers in the rain you can come back home later just like nothing happened.

I remember there a nice story some time ago about Cyberwings ... o.k we leave that history for now.

If I would cry its because of the poor customers. I have been many times a customer of "cheap" hosting companies without responsibilities and sincere business manners.

To put it short and sweet I dont go there anymore.

Customer support and reliability are THE keywords.

Not sure what I should advice you. I sincere hope you have grown up and use the money wisely, this time to build a customer base that lasts and where the host doesnt "opt out" when he feels like it.

best regards

[Notts-Promos]

Well this kind of story pops up regular but the best idea you need is get all your servers and software sorted then spend some major money on advertising

[unity100]

Whats supposed to inspire the WHT public to help you try to rebuild your hosting company? All of the information you're looking for can be found by using the search function at that.

i agree with this.

as for the original poster, id say that restart a new hosting company and dont repeat your mistake this time. it would be hard to reestablish your brand as a reliable brand.

[jerett]

OP - all I can say is you have admitted to your mistake and now just move on from there. Many WHT members will be harsh on you and question if you have good intentions and won't leave your clients in the future. I admit - I have those same thoughts. Building up your reputation will be tough and will take some time but it isn't impossible. Keep pushing. One suggestion - try contacting past clients - offer them a few months free of hosting to make up for the mistake. Try to make good with them.

Next - I would suggest MBv4 not 5 (still buggy and no one uses it) or Clientexec.

Kayako is great but can be overkill if you don't really need all the punches it offers. We utilize CE's support system because it handles simple support tickets which is all we need. We then have LORE KB for our knowledgebase and PHPLIVE for our chat. We get the same result at 95% cheaper than going with kayako.

Authorize net continues to be tops. I would also suggest getting Paypal as an option as many enjoy using that still and you can choose to use Authorize net for only your visa and mastercard and let paypal handle the american express and discover without having to pay extra for them through Authorize.

leading CP is still cPanel though many are moving to Direct Admin. Plesk is popular as well.

DC's - people really like Layeredtech or Softlayer. Centrally located - great network and connection.

Good Luck.

[FHDave]

I wonder what company is this. And bravo to the remainding 75 clients who stick with you.

[bwb]

I sure wouldn't trust you after all that, what is the name of your site btw?

[crazyfish]

Originally Posted by FHDave

I wonder what company is this. And bravo to the remainding 75 clients who stick with you.

Those customers should get free hosting for life after surviving that.

Good luck with starting up again. Your brand might be in bad shape though.

[SH-Giles]

Originally Posted by mm1250

Hello all,

First step I'm taking is upgrading my boxes, I'm moving to the latest Xeon dualcore 64x hardware with newest Ensim X software. We currently use the V 3.x of Ensim and very happy.

Careful of Ensim X. It has 2 major issues atm. One being a memory problem with MailScanner. Have a read through the EV1 forum here for user experiences!

I did some digging, Is it only Modernbill that interfaces with Ensim? Also, Kakyo seems to interface with Modernbill for login database. I need to build a fully intigrated system.

I've been thinking of using Kakyo. Please let us know how it goes. I had a few questions to ask them before I purchased their software but had no response yet Descriptions are very unclear!

also, we currently have our systems with rackshack now EV1Servers.

Are they still a good viable option for dedicated hosting resellers? Have there been any new compaines webhosts are flocking to?

Yes very I would say. We've only been with 3 but we've been with EV1 for 5 years now and are very pleased. Especially with the extra management you get with DNS, sub user accounts for resellers etc..

[linux-tech]

Firstly, ditch ensim altogether. It's not even worth using, has caused numerous issues for numerous clients, and is as problematic as can be. Most reasonable providers will offer CPanel, test that out, and you'll find that it's MUCH less problematic than Ensim.

As far as the DC, ev1 is decent, you may want to consider better priced alternatives, however. There are a number of them out there. I'm not saying sub $100 providers, but there are a number of providers who charge better than reasonable rates and provide superior customer service.

As far as the billing client:
Modernbill is problematic at best of late. You might want to consider WHMCS (www.whmcs.com) for an ideal billing client. If you're set on ensim, it won't integrate there, but you can always add clients manually, that's easy.

[hostechsupport]

Hello,

Well, if you woud like to setup the business again then change the entire system of yours:

1. P IV Dual Zeon
2. Cpanel / WHM with fantastico
3. Modernbill integrated with Cpanel
4. Kayako Supportsuite (Ticket and Live chat)
5. Enom / Godaddy / network solutions for domain registration.

If you use above systems then you can get back to your business. Also check if your name in the hosting market has gone down or not.

Thank you.

Regards,

[mm1250]

Thanks for replying. Just to make it clear to some people, I didnt' exactly ditch the clients totally. It was a long-term thing. I had a full-time tech for the hosting division handling all the webservers, tickets, orders tec.. after I let him go, I pretty much was handling the services, well, I never updated our website, (we still offer 20mb of diskspace for $10.95/month with $35setup fee). Its not like I just shutdown all the servers and the clients were SOL. It was support issues taking mabye twice a month for me to reply to. I run billing once or twice a month, wasn't sending out past due notices, being proative, advertising etc.. Really gave it the test of running on its own I guess. I'm still upset that I ran the company to the floor, after all I did invest alot of my time and money into it. It just happened that I had a new business venture that ended up turning into a mega profit center.. Billing $150/hr vs. $150 a year and billing more hours that I could handle. SO I relied on the hosting to run with little attention(hoping it would not really hurt as much).

Why I want back in the hosting market? my hosting company was the first business I ever started. Its like my first born child, There is this connection I have with it and I never want to let it go... Even when I had an offer in 2003 to sell almost 750 clients...I just couldn't do it. Theres something about webhosting that I like...not ever looking at the client, sometimes never even talking with them.. Its a personal thing. BUt nevertheess, I'm going to put this place back in business, the name isnt' as scared as I thought it was, the market is big enough in any case, so I'm keeping the name.

Regarding Cpanel, I remember using it slightly, and from what I remember, it is quite buggy sofware, (wrose then ENsim). Has Cpanel chagned within the last few years?