Basics of reseller hosting

Reseller hosting involves purchasing a hosting package in bulk from a web hosting provider, and then splitting that package into smaller plans to resell to individual users. The best thing about being a reseller is that you don't have to set up and manage your own server. All the technical details are handled by the web hosting company.

Who benefits from reseller hosting services?

Since it does not involve setting up and maintenance of servers, reseller hosting is one of the easiest ways of getting into the web hosting industry. It enables small web hosts to start offering hosting services at an affordable monthly cost. Once they have grown significantly, they can then set up their own dedicated or semi-dedicated server.

Some of the people who would benefit from reseller hosting include:

• Web hosts who are starting off.
  
• Web hosting providers which are seeking to expand, but are not prepared to set up their own dedicated server.
  
• People who have multiple domain names that they wish to host under one package, instead of opening several hosting accounts.
  
• People who have a popular domain which requires a large amount of disk space and bandwidth.
  
• Website owners who require relatively small quantities of bandwidth and disk space. Many web hosting companies offer large packages which would be too much for a small site to use.

Unbranded selling

There are many reseller hosts who opt to provide unbranded reseller plans (also known as 'private label' plans). This basically means that they offer their web hosting services without revealing their identities to customers. Instead of branding the domain name of their server with their name or logo, they opt for an ambiguous domain name. This way, customers get the impression that the reseller host actually owns and manages its own servers.

Overselling

This refers to a situation where a web host sells accounts which exceed the amount of bandwidth and disk space allotted. For instance, a web host could be allotted 20,000MB of bandwidth and 2000MB of disk space. Let's say the web host decides to offer plans which constitute 4000MB of bandwidth and 400MB of space. This means that the web host can only sell five of those plans.

Overselling is based on the assumption that the individual customer is not likely to use all the bandwidth or disk space allotted to them. As a result, the web host can go ahead to offer more plans hoping that customers don't exceed their allotted limits. Some web hosting companies don't allow overselling, while others give resellers the freedom to choose whether to oversell or not.

Choosing a reseller account

Selecting the right reseller web host can be a very confusing experience for many people. There are numerous resellers out there offering a wide variety of packages. In many cases, what you get is determined by how much you are willing to pay. Besides price, other factors you need to consider when choosing a reseller web host include:

• Uptime
  
• Support
  
• Communication

Take time to carry out some research on different companies offering reseller hosting opportunities. Visit different forums online to find out what other people have commented concerning the services offered by these companies.

One of the things you need to look out for is the uptime guarantee. Find a web host which has a reputation of offering 100% uptime. You could also get in touch with the company personally and make some inquiries. Don't hesitate to ask any questions, no matter how trivial it might seem. For instance, you could ask them about their policy on overselling (even if it is already outlined on their site). From the depth and tone of their reply, you will be able to judge the quality of the company's customer service. It would be advisable to choose a company which communicates in a fast, helpful and friendly way with its customers.