You’ve probably noticed that popular web hosting companies constantly run sales and deals that give customers incredible discounts. Usually, the standard deal is a massive discount of between 30–50% for new customers when they buy 1–3 years of hosting in advance. Other common deals include Black Friday discounts, Cyber Monday savings, and markdowns for almost every major holiday. If you’ve ever wondered why hosting companies offer so many deals, it’s because it’s one of the most effective marketing methods around. Here’s how it all works.
Big discounts capture first-time customers
When people are searching for a web host, they’re going to take price into consideration. Unless a person fully understands what they need and what all the hosting specs are, they’re not likely to choose a hosting provider based on what’s being offered. The only exception tends to be for bandwidth, disc space, and the number of websites you can host. However, many shared hosting plans offer “unlimited” space, bandwidth, and add-on domains.
When first-time hosting customers compare the price of different plans across various providers, it’s usually the company with the best deal that wins. This is why Black Friday deals are so effective. When people happen to be searching for hosting during this time, the company with the best Black Friday discount will usually win the customer. Even when they’re required to pay up front for three years to get the best deal, the price is so low, there’s virtually no risk. If the customer can’t get their website or business going by the three-year mark, they can just cancel and cut their (small) losses.
Big discounts can capture attention from a specific market
Marketing hosting services to the world is fine, but most hosting companies also narrow down their target market to specific groups of people based on the hosting packages they’re selling. For example, many hosts make it easy for people to install and run WordPress, which is excellent for bloggers, and is recommended by The Blog Starter. Anyone just starting their blog who doesn’t know their way around a typical hosting environment, including cPanel, will benefit greatly from WordPress hosting. It’s no different than standard hosting, other than the fact that the interface has been made user-friendly and makes installing WordPress even easier than the quick install apps that come with cPanel.
Large savings can encourage people to switch hosts
Nobody truly wants to switch hosting, but sometimes it’s necessary, especially if someone’s first hosting provider was a bad choice. Typically, people consider switching hosts when they’re upset with their current host for things like too much downtime, bad customer support, or technical issues that can’t be resolved. When a customer reaches a point where they no longer trust their hosting company, they’re more likely to jump ship and find another host.
Other times, people start out with a small plan and realise they need a managed hosting solution when their business brings in more traffic than their account can handle. People also switch hosting companies when they realise they’re paying way too much for the same or comparable services offered by another hosting company. Although the new hosting company needs to be reputable before most people will make the switch.
Hosting is competitive; running deals works
Even though the web hosting industry is highly competitive, all the big companies tend to generate more than enough business on a regular basis. However, they probably wouldn’t do as well without offering discounts. Hosting is a long-term commitment, and running great sales is one of the best tried-and-true marketing tactics around to get new customers for life. Once a customer buys a hosting account, they’re not likely to switch to another company without a good reason because moving hosts is a process. Most hosts offer migration services, but they aren’t cheap.
Once people have a hosting company, even when the price goes up after their initial deal ends and it’s time to renew, it’s easier to pay the higher price than try to switch to a new host just to save $100. Although some people do change hosting companies each year, most people don’t bother. Hosting companies know that most people won’t want to switch, and that’s why they offer such amazing deals up front.
Deals help generate lifetime customers
At the end of the day, hosting companies offer discounted services because people want to save money, and sometimes they don’t know if their website or business will be a success. Offering deals not only saves money, but it reduces the financial risk associated with starting a new online project. Once a hosting company gets new customers in the door, as long as they can keep them happy, they’re more likely to become lifetime customers.
Ellen Diamond, a psychology graduate from the University of Hertfordshire, has a keen interest in the fields of mental health, wellness, and lifestyle.
