How to Start a Web Hosting Company
Starting a web hosting company may seem like a daunting task when you take into consideration the required hardware such as servers, firewalls, rack space, warehousing and many other hardware items, as well as the technical know-how to secure your network while protecting your clients. Luckily you don't have to actually buy any hardware or for that matter have any technical know-how in order to start your own hosting company. You simply need to understand how to become a "reseller," which in itself is a simple process.
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Instructions
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Visit one of the popular hosting companies such as Godaddy, Site5, or HostGator (see Resources). These companies offer what is known as "reseller accounts," as do many other hosting companies.
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Sign up for a reseller account. These accounts usually offer different hosting sizes. Start with a smaller package and then upgrade your account as more space is needed.
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Set up different account sizes that you wish to offer. For instance you may want to choose a 5GB/month plan, a 10GB/month option and a 25GB/month option and then choose the bandwidth use for each account.Godaddy offers different account types for each type of account from basic to business. You will want to do the same for your own reseller account. These options can be set in the control panel for your reseller account and vary depending on the company you are reselling for.
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Determine how much space you need for each account. For example, if you are paying $25 a month for your reseller account with 50GB, calculate how many accounts you need to make a profit and then figure out how much space to allow for each account. This ensures your space isn't used up before you turn a profit.
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Create a web hosting website. This website will require you to register a domain name for your account. The domain name can be your own company's name or can represent your hosting companies' name (e.g.,"ShockwaveHosting.com"). Then create a few pages to showcase your hosting. If you want to use a template, search for "web host templates" online to obtain templates that have already been created for hosting companies.
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Market your web hosting company on popular sites such as Digitalpoint forums and Sitepoint. Start with low pricing and work with smaller clients, then work your way up to more clients.
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Tips & Warnings
You can hire a professional web designer to create your hosting website. The more professional it looks, the more likely you are to find new clients.
Use a trustworthy reseller that offers fast servers and a great back end that allows for easy management for when you need to deal with customer questions and complaints.
