Targeting Local Business with Reseller Hosting
Posted on Thursday, Aug 19, 2010 in "Web Hosting Types"
Much of the internet’s growth can be attributed to the migration of local business to a global marketplace. Businesses everywhere are recognizing the tremendous opportunity that the internet represents, both financially and socially. With the ability to market to demographics that are untouched in certain industries has made many business owners rich in the past decade. Along with this widespread success has come the rapid growth of hosting companies, since every web site ultimately needs a web server to operate. This represents a significant opportunity for hosting resellers as well.
Locating Local Leads
Thankfully, there are businesses in every city in the country that want to bring their efforts to the online community. You simply need to find them and show them how much of an opportunity there is online, the latter is the easy part. Finding them can be quite difficult though, since most business already have a website. One of the best ways to do this is to cross reference the phonebook with online business directories and search engines. Go through your local yellow pages, taking note of each company that may be interested in opening a website. As you find them, search for their company name on Google or within local business directories. If you are unable to find them then there is a good chance that they need a website.
Pitching the Sale
Once you have a solid lead list it is time to devise a sales pitch. Instead of formulating a set script, it’s better to come up with individual selling points that are unique to each business. For example, if you are talking to a boat selling company, then you could create a PowerPoint presentation and introduce the business owner to some of the online fishing and boat forums that are “full of buyers.” Often times showing them an opportunity is all that is needed to close the sale. If you take the time to come up with a unique and interesting sales pitch for each business then your efforts will be noticed by the prospective clients and it will give you instant prestige.
Why Target Local Markets?
Targeting local markets gives you leverage, since most local business owners are not knowledgeable in the internet industry. This naiveté works on your behalf because you can charge more for your hosting accounts, and your clients will still think they’re getting a deal. The online market is saturated and highly competitive, so it is hard to make a profit with global leads. Local leads may be more scarce but more profit can be made from each lead. Perhaps the most appealing aspect of targeting local leads is the fact that you don’t have to live in the area to find customers. You can use telemarketing to apply the same concept in cities around the country!
Conclusion
Although there is more work involved with soliciting local customers, there is also a much higher profit margin involved. If you can build a client list of 200 people, each bringing you $20 profit per month, you can easily make a full time living with reseller hosting. On the other hand, 200 online customers would probably not generate half that amount in profit, because the market is so much more competitive.
