A2 Hosting to Grow Market Share

While a number of the big brand web hosts have endured flat to declining market shares, one lesser known brand -- A2 hosting -- continues to grow in popularity.

Over the past few years the entry-level/small-business segment of the hosting industry has continued to suffer from less than optimal market growth as price-conscious consumers, entrepreneurs, and low-budget start-ups move towards popular free blogging platforms like Tumblr, Weebly, and WordPress.com.

One notable exception to this trend has been A2 Hosting. This Ann Arbor, MI based brand has developed a growing reputation for low-cost, high speed hosting. The company is the recipient of numerous industry awards including "Best Web Host" from a number of online review sites.

We wanted know what their secret was. How does an SMB continue to grow while the big box brands suffer? So we took a deeper view at their strategies.

MARKETING

A2 does not purchase 30-second Super Bowl spots. They do not sponsor a PGA golf tour, and you will not find their logo on the hood of your favorite NASCAR driver's car.

A2 Hosting's growth is to a much greater extent, organic. While they maintain a popular affiliate program that pays commissions to referrers of hosting sales, much of their increasing popularity can be traced to the best form of advertising - word of mouth. Nary is a negative word ever spoken about the brand within the cruelest arena of all - the industry forum.

The firm also makes effective use of coupon codes that provide customers with generous discounts on their first billing cycle. These promotional discounts are made available to affiliates and are also posted on A2's website (www.A2Hosting.com).

TECHNOLOGY

One of the first low-cost hosts to provide shared hosting customers with SSD (solid state drive) servers, A2 hosted websites have benefited from big-brand-type server speed. Pages load faster, videos stream more smoothly, and downloads take less time. This difference is not lost on hosting consumers, and has burnished the company's reputation for low-cost, high speed hosting.

SUPPORT

Providing knowledgeable 24/7/365 phone and chat support is likely the most difficult to master and expensive aspect of the web hosting business. Most of the big brands have moved their support services to offshore call centers. This practice is a major no-no amongst experienced webmasters and receives virtually universal disapproval on hosting industry forums. Yet, owing to its cost-saving nature, the practice continues to the dismay of informed hosting consumers.

A2's Guru Crew support team provides 24/7/365, expert, US-based support. This difference has not gone unnoticed and continues to win the company new business.

PRICING

Pricing pressure is greatest on entry-level products and services in almost any industry. Hosting is no exception. While it is certainly possible to purchase a shared plan for less than $5.00 per month from an almost endless number of providers, the wisdom of such an investment could certainly be questioned.

"Cheap web hosting" has earned a well-deserved reputation for being slow and unreliable. Support services are often limited to e-mail ticket systems that operate only during traditional business hours.

Rather than appeal to the lowest of the low-end consumers, A2 Hosting has taken a slightly different approach. Their entry level plans start at less than $10.00 per month and their customers benefit from the added reliability, increased server speed, and premium support services that the company provides to all of its customers.

Further, user costs are additionally offset via the use of the generous discounts provided by A2 Hosting's coupon codes. During this Black Friday/Cyber Monday season, webmasters and small business owners can save up to 60% off A2's regular prices with the right coupon code.