Not too long ago, a friend of mine (coincidentally a partner of mine, and what’s more, part of the indiestartups team) embarked on a wonderful journey through lands far and vast – more commonly known as the development phase. He decided, (not verbatim, I can only guess as to what was running through that imprudent man’s mind):

“Why are there no [well off] middle-class web-hosts?”

Some of you maybe confused, but before I dissect this, think about what this statement symbolizes. Yes! That’s right! Exploring the internet-pool-o’-niches. Here are a few questions to ask yourself the next time you may be trying to come up with a niche to strap your idea into:

• “Why does this service not exist?”
• “Well, it exists, but its not worthy of a mention. Can I out-do them?”
• “Would the competition in this market really be all that competitive?”

Et cetera… Great, hopefully I’ve stamped some meaning into a simple thought. Let’s move on to what the sentence denotes. The web is filled with web-hosts, everywhere you look, but typically there are two parts to this. (a) Large company or corporation that has lost track of caring for supreme quality because of the dollar being taken in, or (b) Small startup running a HostDime reseller account and marking up the invoice by 500%. Neither of these options are incredible, nor am I saying that these are the only two types of providers around, rather, I am simply opting that these are the two typical webhosting providers you will find.

David wanted to enter the growing, yet fairly unexplored, ‘option (c)’ or ‘mid-class’ hosting market. After some work, preparation, testing, and a four figure variable ($xxxx,-), it was finally launched. Its called This* Webhost, and its the new trendsetter host. Indie Startups is hosted with This*, and we’re loving it so far. And what’s better? As an IndieStartups exclusive, anyone who signs up with This* can receive a 50% lifetime price-slash off their order, just type in ” INDIE ” when ordering.

Now please, don’t take this as unwarranted advertisement. I’ve mentioned David is part of the indiestartups team, but let me put some thought into this kind of promotion (even more than the quick advise I gave just above). If you have little funds to pump through and into your startup, you may be trying to spend less money to get things done (IE, guerilla marketing)… and I have a micro-tip for you, seemingly a quite obvious one, though I’ve seen it overlooked too many time. If you have a relevant source of traffic on a property you own, or a friend or colleague owns, that you may be able to tap into (even if its at a discount), use it.

Enjoy the discount code, and be on the lookout for more start-ups and advice coming your way. 🙂