Published by John Hoff on 10 Nov 2008 at 03:36 pm

Open Discussion: What Would Make For A Great WordPress Hosting Company?

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General Discussion

14 Comments

14 Responses to “Open Discussion: What Would Make For A Great WordPress Hosting Company?”

1. 

   Cath Lawson
   on 10 Nov 2008 at 7:28 pm #

   Hi John - you beat me to it. I was going to offer to write about this for you. I definitely like the idea of the Twitter type add on.

   Also important is the installation of Wordpress. I tried to install it myself before I switched to my current host and I couldn’t do it.

   I like the idea of your tutorials but what would really swing it for me is the security. I know you blogged about how to do this but a lot of it is just overwhelming for us technophobes. I’d feel a lot more comfortable if you were doing it.

   Also - hosting that could handle a half decent amount of traffic would be good. Every time I get a traffic surge, my blog crashes.

   I definitely shop on value, as opposed to price and I prefer to be able to pay monthly.

   Cath Lawson’s last blog post..Twitter & Stupid Internet Marketing Gurus

2. 

   John Hoff
   on 10 Nov 2008 at 7:47 pm #

   Hi Cath - by all means, blog about it. I believe you have more readers than I do and I’d love to hear everyone’s feedback - that’s the point of this article. You don’t even have to mention me or this article, I just would like to see what your community’s responses are.

   Those security upgrades are something I definitely can do and like anything, once you know how to do it, it’s a snap. I’ll be sure to keep that in the value package.

   Question: Do you like the idea that the tutorials and many of the seo and other tips are discussions open for everyone to participate or should I only give a small taste of them for free but this area is reserved for our hosting customers only.

   It’s the exclusive offer and value vs. it’s free so it might drive more traffic to the site.

   As for the traffic part - noted. Thanks.

3. 

   Susan Greene
   on 11 Nov 2008 at 8:42 am #

   I know your post wasn’t meant as an ad, but it certainly got my attention. I’m planning to begin selling an e-book shortly and debating whether to create a traditional website, a single long sales page, or a blog. What you’re offering as a blog sounds pretty darn good.

   I guess the thing that would sway me would be knowing that I could get a little hand holding. I’ve written literally dozens of websites for myself and for clients, but this would be my first time getting involved in the design and programming end.

   Susan

4. 

   John Hoff
   on 11 Nov 2008 at 5:47 pm #

   Hi Susan. You know - those squeeze pages, though everyone usually says they hate, work pretty darn well, don’t they?

   Thank you for the feedback. Let me ask you though:

   What sort of interface would interest you as far as helping you learn. Video tutorials, picture tutorials, weekly chat, forums, a blog, or . . . ?

   Thanks

5. 

   Susan
   on 12 Nov 2008 at 8:46 am #

   Hey John,

   Thanks for the reply. My preferred way to receive the information would be in a written report (PDF). I’m a reader, and I like following written instructions. Plus, I can go at my own pace. I realize though, that I’m probably in the minority and many people would prefer video tutorials.

   The other thing that I’d find really helpful is having access to you or one of your experts via email. That is, I’d try to do things on my own, but some of the technical aspects scare me. I’d love to know that I could shoot a quick email with specific questions to someone and get a reply (and not a pre-written, generic, canned response).

   Susan

6. 

   John Hoff
   on 12 Nov 2008 at 5:32 pm #

   Hi Susan,

   Thanks for the insights. I’ve been thinking of making both video and written (with picture) tutorials together for the exact reason you mentioned.

   I’m always available via email for help but I was also thinking of including a forum for help as well, maybe even a beginner’s chat? Thanks again for the feedback (John pulls a piece of paper out from the printer and jots down some notes)

7. 

   Barbara Swafford - Blogging Without A Blog
   on 12 Nov 2008 at 10:06 pm #

   Hi John - It’s great to see you writing about this.

   When I started my blog I would have paid big bucks to have someone hold my hand. I didn’t understand any of it and when I called my web host they talked WAY over my head and I would hang up more confused than before the call. Hence, the growth of my blog was s-l-o-w. Needless to say, I spent a lot of time working behind the scenes.

   I like written tutorials, but prefer video ones. If I can “see” how to do something, then I “get it”. I also like when they are done in a non techie language, or in a manner that explains what a word means before going on.

   As for price, I like value, but would be willing to pay a little more if I knew I was getting more bang for my buck.

   I also agree with Catherine with regard to the security issue. Although you explain it well, I would be more comfortable just having you do it.

   Barbara Swafford - Blogging Without A Blog’s last blog post..Are Domain Names Over Rated

8. 

   Linda Abbit
   on 13 Nov 2008 at 1:47 am #

   Hi John,

   I have been blogging now for just over 6 months, and I agree with Barbara about the hand holding.

   All of those wonderful security posts of yours are sitting there with me afraid to touch the technical part of my blog. If your company provided how-to video tutorials on that, I’d probably be more likely to take a stab at it once I could see what is being explained. The techie words on the screen just seem overwhelming, and they’re in a foreign language to me! That being said, if it was part of a package you offered, I’d probably take the easy way out and let your company install the security steps I need.

   I also care a lot about customer service — being available by phone when I have questions and not being condescending if I have to ask the same question over and over until I understand the answer. Aweber is an example of outstanding customer serivce IMO. They incorporate live chat which is another excellent option — and fun to use.

   As for price, I’d be open to paying more if the support services were there.

   I’m not clear on what you mean re a Twitter like service with your company — sorry.

   Linda Abbit’s last blog post..Inspiring Quotes for Caregivers — 11/12/08

9. 

   John Hoff
   on 13 Nov 2008 at 5:43 pm #

   @ Barbara - Ah yes, but you started blogging before me, however my web design background has helped me more on the technical side of things I suppose. Thanks for the feedback and videos are definitely on the list. Not sure I’m looking forward to hearing my voice on the computer, though LOL.

   @ Linda - Thanks Linda for the feedback. I probably wouldn’t be able to do phone support for something like WordPress mainly because of time and money (calls usually aren’t billable). However, through detailed low tech explanations in emails, forum posts, and perhaps a live chat night, I might be able to make up for it. Thanks again for the comment and I’m taking notes

10. 

    Akemi spiritual entrepreneur - Yes to Me
    on 13 Nov 2008 at 9:07 pm #

    Hi John,

    I checked your offering page. It looks good. It looks really good. And the price is the same I am currently paying to BxxxHost.

    So why am I not jumping at this offer? Well . . . (you promise you won’t be upset??) because . . . I already have my blogs hosted at BxxxHost. They are not terrible. They have made this technically challenged woman run two fairly successful websites. I mean, no, I don’t have any obligations to them, but I’m in a lukewarm situation in which I’m not particularly motivated to move. And I’m afraid of moving — change can imply some problems.

    There. I think you might want to really emphasize and market the ease and security of moving. From free B — site or other paid server. Because you are not a big player (yet), pretty much everyone who comes to this site probably have blogs somewhere. You want them to move to your service.

    This is my 2c. To promote your service — do you offer affiliate programs?

    Akemi “spiritual entrepreneur” - Yes to Me’s last blog post..Review: Many Lives, Many Masters

11. 

    Cath Lawson
    on 14 Nov 2008 at 9:18 am #

    Hi John - No problem - I will blog about it this weekend. I’m still not sure whether you’d be offering all the free tutorials and stuff as part of the service, or to attract folk to your site to begin with. It’s a tough choice.

    What Akemi is saying is interesting. You need to make it easier for folk who aren’t particularly unhappy to move. I wonder if you could actually do the whole move for them - moving their blog from their original host. Rather than adding it as an additional service, you could charge slightly more and include it in the service.

    Cath Lawson’s last blog post..Is Your Business On The Brink Of Disaster?

12. 

    John Hoff
    on 14 Nov 2008 at 10:44 am #

    Hi Akemi - I had to remove the ” ” around your name. With those in place your name wouldn’t show in the name field, hope you don’t mind.

    lol I love the BxxxHost reference heheh. I’m sure you’re referring to BlueHost, it’s ok, we don’t fear our competition, we welcome it.

    Our primary target for the direction we’re headed will be for people who want to start a blog but haven’t just yet. Secondary target market would be the individuals who own free accounts and know they need to move to a paid service. Although we would always welcome people to transfer from hosts like BlueHost and Yahoo!, I feel it would be too difficult to attract users who are already situated and happy where they are.

    If someone is unhappy with their web host, then they will go looking and that’s when we want them to find us.

    What I have noticed through my stats is that most people who come to my blog are in fact not bloggers, they are people who have typed a question in Google and have arrived at one of my articles. Typically though, most people who comment are bloggers.

    I like your point about emphasizing “easy of moving”. I will make sure to highlight that. Thank you for your insights

    One question I do have for you, though if you don’t mind. When you mentioned

    They have made this technically challenged woman run two fairly successful websites

    How have they helped you other than providing web hosting? I’m just curious what their strategy is. Thanks.

    @ Cath - I’m not sure it’s worth investing too much time & money in trying to convince people who are happy with their service that they need to switch to us. The new direction will be targeted at newbies and those who need to switch from free to paid. I doubt people who have been blogging for awhile and already know how to upload a plugin, upload a theme, post in WordPress, etc. will find many of the tutorials and other benefits we may offer enticing.

    I think those people (people happy with their current provider) would really only consider moving if the price was extraordinary. What do you think?

    Now if they are unhappy with their current service provider, that’s a different story. What made them unhappy and how can we solve this problem for them?

13. 

    
    on 14 Nov 2008 at 9:43 pm #

    John,

    Well, I guess their offer is not that much really. As I wrote before, the main reason I got into Bluehost is because they offer easy WP installation tool. And on rare occasion when I did need tech support (like when I found that my site was not loading, and once I messed up with a new plugin upload and panicked), there is a human on the phone. That helps.

    Yeah, I think you probably want to emphasize the ease and security of moving if you expect people to move to your service. Again, moving is scary.

    Akemi

    Akemi “spiritual entrepreneur” - Yes to Me’s last blog post..Gratitude For Time For Myself , Gratitude Friday, Edition 17

14. 

    John Hoff
    on 14 Nov 2008 at 10:41 pm #

    Thanks, Akemi. I’m definitely going to incorporate how to move a current site to us - I’ll be sure to set up some test accounts to be sure I’ve got it down LOL.

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