HostBidder.com
Your name
Fergal aka HostBidder
What is your web host URL?
HostBidder.com
How long have you been in the web hosting business?
The HostBidder.com web-hosting forum was set up over two years ago, in September 2003. We commenced offering free web hosting services just over one year ago, in November 2004.
What type of hosting do you provide?
Free website hosting. Hostbidder.com is a web hosting community that provides free domain names and website hosting to our members. Our community provides all the advice and support you need to get your website up and running and generating revenue.
Have you ever changed the name of your web-hosting company?
No.
What has been the most important factor in your success as a host?
Providng good quality customer care to our clients is of paramount importance. Clients who are hosted for free still deserve customer support when they need it. We provide support to our clients through our discussion forum at HostBidder.com.
How do you market and promote your web hosting business?
The majority of our new members find us through referrals from friends and through the various search engines. We have good search engine listings for relevant terms associated with website hosting, domain names and webmaster forums.
In your opinion what are the characteristics of the perfect web-hosting client?
The perfect client knows what they want from their website hosting. When the client knows what they require and communicates this to their host, this enables the host to honestly assess whether the plans he / she provides can meet these requirements.
What advice would you give webmasters to help them select the perfect web hosting company?
I would strongly recommend that webmasters pay careful attention to their web hosting company. Website hosting is not a major expense in terms of the time and effort you put into your website. If your website host lets you down or is offline your site is not accessible to your visitors and customers. This can cost you money and result in lost traffic to your site. Try to find a host that has independent monitoring of their website uptime and who will provide you with a quick response to your support issues, when you have questions. If you are considering a particular host email them with some questions and see how quickly they reply. This will help you gauge the level of support they are likely to provide to their customers. It is somtimes very worthwhile to visit a hosts support forum (if they have one) and look through the replies to questions they have received from their customers. Do they respond quickly and in a helpful manner?
How do you see the future of website hosting?
Personally I feel that more and more webhosts will begin to offer a more integrated service as opposed to stand alone website hosting. Hosts will begin to offer services such as web design, custom content management systems and website marketing to their clients. As hosting becomes more and more of a commodity the single biggest factor that will distinguish the successful hosting companies is the level of service they provide to their customers.