thosepersons

Marketing, and customer retention, strategy(ies) in the hosting market, where the market is saturated and the service is perceived to be a commodity, with a race to zero pricing wise.

Panda Travel is Hawaii’s largest wholesaler of travel product.  Over the past few years, travel product has become highly commoditized, forcing traditional wholesalers and agencies to diversify their products and services.  Small to mid-range travel companies simply cannot compete with direct suppliers (hotels and airlines) or large OTA’s such as Expedia and Travelocity.

In order to remain competitive in the travel industry, I’ve focused Panda’s marketing efforts on service, consumer niches, and the creation of unique travel product you simply can’t buy from anyone else.  Panda Travel doesn’t just sell Air/Car/Hotel, we sell a unique Hawaii vacation experience with the support of a local travel agent who can create that once in a lifetime dream package.

Currently, dedicated hosting provides businesses the most flexibility with managed services and server customizations.  As the hosting industry evolves, business customers will seek services that will provide a competitive edge, reduce operational and over-head costs.

Hosting companies will provide supplemental services to their clientele beyond typical data center services.   These services may include website design, quality assurance, e-commerce support, and community moderation.  Customer service will continue to be one of the most important factors when a customer chooses a hosting service.   Customers should have quick accessibility to support staff through various channels including phone, chat, email, blogs, or wikis.

Through value add services and long-term contract engagements, a hosting company will be able to provide business customers cost effective dedicated hosting, creative services, and the deliver a positive return on investment.

1) The challenges facing the web hosting industry

2) The future outlook of the web hosting industry

Through my experience in the travel industry, I’ve been able to track clear booking trends against current events.   The consumer booking cycle comes in waves, which I believe peaked in summer of 2006.    Basically, my business is affected by the economy, employment, and of course increased competition from other suppliers.

I can draw similar conclusions with the hosting industry.  However, unlike leisure travel, I consider dedicated hosting to be a business necessity.  If the business climate is good, new companies require hosting services and existing companies consider expanding their services.

In a declining market, businesses may choose to cut hosting services back, as we saw in the 2000 dot com crash or consider off-shoring their hosting services to companies in India or China.

From now through 2010, I expect there will be an industry shake out, particularly if the current economic trend continues.    During this time, larger hosting will consume smaller hosting companies and regionalize their business.  Through territory expansion, hosting companies will be able to scale their overhead and equipment costs more efficiently.  By this, I envision a parent hosting company with subordinate hosting companies that are scaled according to the business needs in their respective geographic regions.

This is speculation, but I believe there is an attraction for a larger, mainland hosting company to set up a data center in Hawaii, particularly to create a larger dedicated hosting network.  Developing the business from the ground up could prove to be a costly venture, however there may be acquisition opportunities with local hosting services such as DR Fortress of Century Computers.