webmaster talk

Considering the exponential rate at which the number of internet users are increasing, what are the chances of Bryan getting an Email Address of his choice? Like most other internet users around the globe, he will in all probability, go for a free email service provider, and end up with an email address like bryan_1984@…, or bry65an@… ! This is because most of the good email ids with all the free Email Service Providers have already been taken.

Bryan and thousands like him, is your target audience for Email Hosting Services! Here’s how- Wouldn’t Bryan, who runs a Used Car business- “Used Cars”, like to go for an Email Address bryan@usedcars.com instead of bryan.0065@****.com or bryan_cars5764@****.com? bryan@usedcars.com not only sounds more professional, but also looks good and is easier to remember. More importantly, it does wonders for his company’s brand image, and increases the credibility of his business.

So what’s actually stopping Bryan from opting for a customized email address?

• Most people perceive getting a customized email address to be an expensive affair.
• There’s a common misconception that setting up your own customized email address requires you to have sound technical knowledge.

Getting Bryan aboard is simple- make him understand that buying a customized email address for an entire year won’t cost him more than a Pizza. Moreover, managing this Email Account is as simple as managing any other free Email Account. Not to mention the benefits to his business, that were discussed earlier. There -you have a Sale!:)

You will come across different types of prospects with varied requirements- students looking for a single Email Account, Small and Medium Enterprises asking for 50-100 accounts, or MNCs and big corporates with a requirement of a couple of 100 accounts. We have therefore created 4 plans under Email Hosting, which will cater to all your Customers’ requirements. With our White Labeled Webmail interface, checking and managing Email Accounts is as easy as any other free email service.

We hope this article has helped you see Email Hosting as a product in a different light. In fact, it could actually be that perfect entry-level product that you were looking for to get your market penetration strategy working.

We have made changes to our Hosting pages on the SuperSite. These should appear without any manual intervention from your end if the respective files have not been modified by you. Incase they do not, then you will need to compare the updated copies of these files with your modified/translated ones and make the necessary changes.

The modified files are:

1. hosting_features.html (tabbed hosting features listing)
2. email_features.html (tabbed email features listing)
3. combined_features_hosting.html (windows & linux hosting features page)
4. email_features.html (email features page)

These files can be edited from your SuperSite Admin interface. Their paths are:

1. Add Modify Content/Themes -> Website Content -> Your Language -> Products -> Hosting -> Web_email_hosting -> Includes -> hosting_features.html
2. Add Modify Content/Themes -> Website Content -> Your Language -> Products -> Hosting -> Web_email_hosting -> Includes -> email_features.html
3. Add Modify Content/Themes -> Website Content -> Your Language -> Products -> Features -> Combined_features_hosting -> combined_features_hosting.html
4. Add Modify Content/Themes -> Website Content -> Your Language -> Products -> Features -> Email_features -> email_features.html

You do not need to reload cache once you make these changes.

Online business will never replace brick-and-mortar, but an online presence will be integral to the business model of any successful business. Already, e-commerce revenues are in the billions, and are growing exponentially. Any business that wishes to be competitive in this new marketplace cannot ignore the power of e-commerce.Perhaps, like many small business owner, you have taken the first step in putting your business online: You have done your research, identified your brand, chosen and registered a domain name that speaks to your brand. That was the easy part.

But after domain registration, what follows may be one of the most important decisions you make for your e-business: finding the right hosting company. This is as important to the quality of your business as finding the right partner, and many people – even experienced Webmasters – find the experience daunting. I would like to share my hosting experience with you, in the hopes that it will make your decision-making process a little easier.

RELIABILITY

Hosting isn’t glamorous, but as you know, it is the backbone of your Web-based business. That is why I refer to it as the “silent partner.” A good hosting company is dependable, with a steady uptime track record. After all, what good is a Web site if it’s down? A good hosting company should operate like the electric company – every day you wake up, it’s there, working. However, even the most reliable companies need to periodically take the system down for maintenance. Your hosting company should inform its customers in advance of any downtime, and should perform its maintenance during off-peak hours – so as not to unduly burden your Web business. The next things to look for are the Four Ss: Service, Software, Support, and Space.

SERVICE

An extremely important (and often overlooked) factor is Service. Unfortunately, many hosting companies end their relationship with you the moment the server sale is made. This leaves unanswered the crucial question, “Okay, I’ve got a server – now what?” This is critical when you consider that some companies are so controlling that Web masters are discouraged from customizing and/or managing sites for their clients! Other hosting companies give you space on a server, but nothing more – you have to configure the server and set up all the back-end functionality manually!As you have probably done this before, I don’t need to tell you what a time-consuming and laborious task this is. You’ll want to find a Web host that is on-call 24/7 to answer questions. My Web host even has discussion boards where fellow customers can offer advice and helpful tips. Good service means providing a community of resources throughout the life of your e-business.

SOFTWARE

In addition to service, the ideal hosting solution also provides easy-to-use Web management tools. This is the third “S:” Software. My hosting company offers tools that are easy enough for a novice to quickly understand, and customizable enough for a Web master to optimize. In my experience, one of the most useful tools is an e-mail manager.The e-mail manager has saved me a lot of time during manual configuration. It allows me to quickly set up e-mail accounts, add or remove POPs, create auto-responders, create aliases, and more. And because the tools are Web-based, I have instant access, no matter where I am. This advantage is particularly useful for people who travel frequently, or whose customer base is spread out over a wide geographical area.

SUPPORT

Even for experienced Web developers, Support is a primary consideration. Questions always arise as you develop sites and add features and/or functionality. The ideal hosting company will be there to assist you along the way, as well as to talk you through any rough spots. Since support issues are rarely constrained to regular business hours, make sure that your chosen hosting company offers support 24/7 (just in case), and also provides several different contact methods, such as telephone, e-mail, and Web-based access.

SPACE

Finally, “Space” refers to how much server room you will need to store and manage your digital data. How much space you will need can be determined by how much content you plan to post, how much data you will store, and how much traffic you are expecting. Ideally, you should find a company that offers both shared and dedicated servers; that way, you can start small, and expand as your online business grows.

Shared servers are simply servers that are shared with other businesses. Most small to medium-sized businesses prefer shared hosting because it is cost-effective and can be scaled to the amount of space that your business needs. Of course, if you require more space, a dedicated server option is likely best for you. Dedicated servers range in size, with my hosting company, for example, offering servers anywhere between 4.2 gigs (the DEDA1) to the huge DEDA5, which has 18 gigs of space.

I hope my experiences will aid you in your hosting selection process. You need to consider reliability, service, software, support, and space. That way, you can wisely choose the “silent partner,” who will deliver steady uptime, sophisticated time-saving tools, and supreme customer support.

This article written by Lisa Schmeckpeper of LRS Marketing . Copyright © 2000 [LRS Marketing].

Listed below are common client goals, and the type(s) of hosting solutions that best match those goals:

Keep in mind budget web hosts cannot always provide all of this, but at minimum all web hosting providers should supply some kind of money-back guarantee and responsive support. Even pure email support can sometimes be quick and responsive.

While there are many specific types of web hosting, all hosting solutions fit into one of these three technical categories:

- Shared Hosting – Shared hosting is when you rent a portion of a server – like renting an office room in an office building. Usually shared hosting packages are sufficient for basic web sites. If requested, your hosting provider will reserve your own domain name (www.yourname.com) and provide you with email at your domain name yourname@yourname.com). Or if you reserved your own domain name in advance, your web host will provide you with the information necessary to “hook it up” to your web server. Pricing in the category of shared web hosting can range from free to over $100/month dependent on the service offerings.

- Dedicated Hosting – This is when you rent an entire server – like renting an entire office building. Once you have your server you can put whatever you would like on it, your choice of applications, your choice of data. You can store whatever you need on a dedicated server with fewer restrictions than that of a shared hosting solution. Low end dedicated servers start around $100/month, and go up from there.

- Co-located Hosting – This is when you actually buy the server, hardware, and software. Your server is then monitored and connected to the web from a data center. This gives you the most control of your server – not only do you choose what to put on your server, but what technology will be hardwired to the physical machine itself. Frequent clients of co-located services are web hosting providers, because they want 100% control and ownership of their servers. Co-located services are for companies or individuals in need of mission-critical hosting operations. Co-located web hosting prices are not usually based on specific pricing plans as the prices vary greatly on each individual client’s needs.