For anyone selling web hosting, one of the key questions to ask yourself is what are the most important factors to customers when deciding which web host to go with? With this knowledge you can tailor all your sales messages (including your website) accordingly, emphasising the most important.

The recently ran a two stage survey in an attempt to find a definitive answer to the question “what are the most important factors when choosing a web host?” We wanted to know which of price, reputation geographic location, technical specifications or customer support were most important.

The process

Rather than ask everyone this question, we ran a screening question to make sure the answers were valid. There is no point asking the question to someone who doesn’t know what web hosting is.

The screening question was “Do you have your own website?” Those who answered “No” were discarded from the survey. Those who answered “Yes” were then asked a single answer question, “What is the most important factor when choosing a web hosting?” We gathered 500 responses from a sample that represented a statistically valid cross section of the UK adult population.

The results

The results were statistically significant, and we would expect to get the same results 95% of the time. In order, we found the most important factors to be:

• Price: 34.8%

• Reputation: 25.6%

• Customer support: 15.6%

• Technical specifications (e.g. web space): 14.4%

• Geographic location (e.g. UK) 9.6%

The fact that price is the most important factor demonstrates one of the challenges faced by web hosting firms to become viewed as more than just a commodity. The perception (incorrectly I might add) amongst many consumers is that all hosting is the same, and therefore they trade on price, as is the case for many buying broadband for example.  Although we know that not every web host’s platform is as stable, secure or fast as another’s, you can’t presume your prospects know as well.  What makes you different?

The results also show the importance of proactively managing your reputation online. We’ve covered this previously on our blog in a number of articles, including “Making the most of customer testimonials for your business” and “Essential tips for selling web hosting to beginners”. Key information to share with prospects includes:

• Customer testimonials/ quotes

• Case studies

• Links to 3^rd party review websites

• Awards

• Positive social media comments

Although a great way to develop a niche market, the survey also found that being a UK web host is the least important factor. This is backed up further when you compare the number of searches for “web hosting” in the UK (22,200) with that of “UK web hosting” (4,400).

In summary

If you are competing exclusively on low prices, then this information will delight you. However, being a lowest cost provider is rarely a strong place to be, as there is always someone else willing to go a little bit cheaper. In my opinion, the key to being a successful and profitable web host,  is to be seen providing a good value service (not cheap – a topic covered in out blog post “Low prices and great value for money are not the same thing”) backed by supporting messages about your strong reputation and customer support.

Click here if you would like to see the result of our previous survey to find out, do people know what web hosting is?