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[Sticky] Hosting & Coaching "Pricing"

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(@partha)
Member Admin
Joined: 8 months ago
Posts: 240
Topic starter  

Hey Everyone, 

So, Andy recently created a post asking about who was interested in hosting

https://digitalmatrixcafe.com/community/all-other-business-and-marketing/whos-looking-for-new-hosting-plans-options/

 

Admittedly, I've had MORE people ask me here than those who have replied to this thread.

 

Look, I'm not looking to bad mouth "anyone", but as an example, I am fully aware of the downtime at a "certain affiliate marketing platform" 🤣🤣🤣 last week, which as always was simply brushed under the carpet, and again as always, had members proclaiming that "SiteSupport are the best" because they "sorted out" the problem.

 

Without putting too fine a point on it, they DID NOT sort out the problem (it was created in the first place DUE to the hosting).

 

Furthermore, and I want you to REALLY THINK ABOUT THIS for a moment.

 

My two largest websites now receive over 1,000,000 MONTHLY VISITORS between them, so that is a LOT of traffic, and therefore you would think, MORE POTENTIAL HOSTING PROBLEMS than "smaller websites"...

 

The last time I spoke to my hosting company was 23rd January 2023, so over 18 months ago,

 

This means I have had NO downtime, NO problems logging into WordPress, and NO hosting issues whatsoever in the last 18 months.

 

Can you say the same about your hosting? (and NO, telling me that the issue was "sorted" in a few hours is NOT GOOD ENOUGH, I repeat, I HAVE HAD NO HOSTING ISSUES WHATSOEVER FOR 18 MONTHS).

 

Anyway, Diane, Andy, and myself have been putting our heads together to offer something in terms of hosting, but we also wanted to offer something a "bit better" that could be viewed as a monthly membership to cover many things you currently have covered.

 

The main idea we have come up with is offering different levels of "hosting service", plus, we're trying to keep it as inexpensive as possible.

 

So, initially, we are looking at just hosting on a per website basis, and at a guess, most of you have between 1-10 websites, and you are either currently paying $49/month or $99/month (if paying monthly), but you also get "additionals".

 

So, for those who are JUST looking for hosting, we can definitely offer something far less expensive than this.

 

However, I also know that many of you have expressed want to leave a "certain affiliate marketing platform" (please be aware, this was NEVER my intention, just because I don't like the place and can see it for what it REALLY is... it's not 2016 anymore... I don't expect others to feel the same), but you are potentially worried about losing out on certain things, FOMO.

 

So, we have also come up with a few other options too.

 

Something we're considering is a monthly membership that will have options, perhaps 3 pricing tiers, which will cover hosting X number of websites, PLUS, coaching.

 

So, as an example, someone may wish to transfer 3 websites over and take up the coaching option.

 

At the moment, even though we're still discussing it, we have come up with a few ideas.

 

Firstly, I have a "coaching questionnaire" that I will send you, which will tell me about what you're currently doing, how much time you have available, what you achieve during that time, what your aims are, what you love, what you hate, etc.

 

Diane would then do an initial check over your website and will point out certain "requirements" that you should have on your website and that are missing, or things that you are doing incorrectly, or shouldn't be doing.

 

Then, from the questionnaire, I will obviously do a website review, and then based on the information you've provided me, I would create an action plan for the "coming month" on what you need to be doing.

 

I will then have one or two more mini 30-minute sessions with you, plus Diane or Andy will act as an "accountability partner" for you, e.g. "Here's what Partha has planned out for you for this week, what are you going to do first, how long will it take, I will check over once done, etc."

 

Now, to give you an idea, if I was to offer a personal one-on-one website review and monthly coaching it will typically cost you MORE than an ANNUAL membership at "a well-known affiliate marketing platform", 🤣🤣🤣🤣

 

But, at a guess, most people won't want to pay $500ish per month for that service.

 

Plus, it's NOT all about you (selfish 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣), think about poor me, coaching 50+ people per month and those people expecting me to do all that for $5 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

 

However, with a monthly membership, it doesn't feel as bad for me, it would basically be a lot of work in the first month, and then simply getting together a couple of times per month for each subsequent month with me giving you tasks, and then Diane and Andy holding you accountable...

 

In a way, I wouldn't make my "usual fee", but over the course of a year with a "membership", it doesn't feel as bad to me.

 

So, here's the REAL QUESTIONS.

 

How many people would be interested in JUST HOSTING?

 

How many people would be interested in HOSTING & COACHING?

 

When it comes to coaching, it will be around ONE WEBSITE or ONE SPECIFIC BUSINESS IDEA, if you want coaching on more than one website, this will come at an additional fee.

 

Furthermore, numbers will be LIMITED for coaching, as I would think for most of you, it's going to take me 8-10 hours in month one, and then probably 2 hours every month thereafter.

 

So, if I want to ensure that the coaching remains of a desired quality I don't want to be doing much more than about 100 hours per month.

 

So, in reality, we want to know

 

HOW MUCH WOULD YOU BE WILLING TO PAY FOR THESE SERVICES?

 

There are NO right or wrong answers.

 

You can obviously say that you'd like 3 websites hosted and you'd like private coaching from me and accountability from Diane and Andy, and you'd like to pay $10/month.

 

However, you would receive a two-word answer to that, the second word being OFF!!! 🤣🤣🤣

 

So be sensible!!!

 

We are thinking about keeping the prices in line with "a well-known affiliate marketing platform" 🤣🤣

 

But perhaps, slightly more expensive for a monthly membership, e.g. $10-$20 more per month MAXIMUM

 

BUT

 

Our pricing all comes down to what YOU think is affordable to YOU.

 

And then we will simply determine what we think we can offer within YOUR price range.

 

We would probably also start a Private Group (just like the Parasite SEO Course Group) JUST for people with hosting or hosting and coaching here, and this will be a place where you can ask all those "how to" questions, get "SiteSupport" ("The Calvinator" is our Carson), etc.

 

At least this way your questions are either answered by mself, Diane, or Andy, or other members of the "small" group (none of this clambering to answer as many questions as possible, whether correctly or incorrectly, simply to improve "internal rank".

 

So, once more, how much would YOU be willing to pay (monthly) for hosting PER WEBSITE and how much would you be willing to pay (monthly) for a joint hosting and coaching membership?

 

The floor is yours (BE SENSIBLE!!! Anyone who says my coaching is worth $1/month gets punch on the cute nose 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 )


   
Roy, Nemira, Rudy and 8 people reacted
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(@diane)
Member Admin
Joined: 8 months ago
Posts: 184
 

Just to add that myself, Partha and Andy have many years of experience behind us, and we all work from home, making our living online, and we have numerous skills between us.

So, this won't be based entirely on affiliate marketing alone, and we will answer all questions and offer advice based on our own knowledge, and not just send you off-platform with a copy-and-paste answer to figure things out by yourself!  


   
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 Nat
(@nat)
Trusted Member
Joined: 7 months ago
Posts: 31
 

Hi Partha,

That sounds great. I actually made my mind to leave in October when my annual membership finish.

Im fed up with so many issues, especially last one took more than half day to resolve. Also, I can't effort to pay the money anymore.

So I found hosting for $3 per month plus domain hosting $10 or $20 per year. Recommended by travel bloggers. I have only one site.

So if you have hosting for this kind of price, I could use yours.

I would think about the trainings in the future as the blog cost me like $3k  and I earned $160 in 3 years. 🤦Now I'm on zero traffic due to HCU.

I was even thinking to give up.

I would like to hear the options once you have them available and ready.

Thank you so much.

 


   
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(@tonyjames)
Eminent Member
Joined: 7 months ago
Posts: 10
 

Clambering to answer as many questions as possible, whether correctly or incorrectly, simply to improve "internal rank" 🤣 🤣  

I know a couple of people that do that 🤔 

Okay, so the hosting and coaching is what I’d be interested in. 1 website and coaching I would be willing to pay $49 a month. Or less for a yearly fee.

I’m paying £240 ($299) a year for hosting 3 websites and all the training (as irrelevant as some of it is for me now!) 

Just a comparison and I know what you’re going to offer will be more relevant than the training offered at “that affiliate marketing place”

 

 


   
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(@noteboom)
Estimable Member
Joined: 7 months ago
Posts: 99
 

I really can´t answer it at the moment. I see that the idea is that hosting is the basic and then whether coaching is necessary.
It is the coaching part that I would be most interested in.

I have big trust in you all (something that normally takes time but I have seen your work and ideology for a long time).

However, I have also been very disappointed afterward about a few important things about WA, and that has hurt.
But at the same time, some things there are very important to me for a while at least, so I would mix them somehow.


   
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(@nemira)
Trusted Member
Joined: 7 months ago
Posts: 31
 

Hello, everybody. Hosting is yes, and coaching is absolutely yes. Is it possible to evaluate the website and then decide on the price of coaching? Why? It can be a terrible situation that may require plowing away this creation and starting a new project. I can pay for the consultation(evaluation) and for plan how to get out of the current situation on the website, and if your coaching price is too high for me, I will wait until I can pay for it. Can it work like that?


   
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(@tracy)
Trusted Member
Joined: 7 months ago
Posts: 36
 

Hi, I am definitely interested in:

Hosting+coaching / accountability for 1 website (as I trust you all) - I would consider $49-69 / month (with a possible annual payment discount)

Hosting for additional websites £10-20 / month depending on the package offered.

Interested to see what options you develop and put forward.

Thanks for all you do (just back from holiday and got lots to catch up on from here but appreciate all the resources!)

Tracy


   
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(@partha)
Member Admin
Joined: 8 months ago
Posts: 240
Topic starter  

Hey everyone, 

Just thinking out loud now, plus, I haven't actually discussed this with Diane and Andy yet (just wanted to be open and honest with everyone).

 

Here's what I thinking:

 

We can offer just hosting (don't forget about domain registrar and domain registration, although I believe that even as a non-WA member you can still use their SiteDomains and point your domains to your "new" hosting, BUT, this is as long as it's "easy" to point your domains, as an example, one of my hosts requires THREE nameservers, but WA only allows you to add TWO in SiteDomains, so you'll need access to SiteSupport to add THREE, BUT, as a non-member, even though you can access SiteDomains, you CAN'T access SiteSupport... therefore, anyone looking to "close an account at WA" will need to think about the potential expense of moving a domain, you'll get charged the annual fee as soon as you transfer a domain, but then obviously you won't have to renew your domain for another year).

 

This hosting can be based on just how many websites you require hosting, i.e. we'll give you a "package price" JUST for hosting.

 

We can offer hosting + coaching, but the coaching would come in THREE levels

Again, just off the top of my head (nothing has been decided yet)

 

Level 1 coaching - website review and action plan for the month EVERY MONTH (Diane or Andy check in on you ONCE in the month as an accountability partner)

Level 2 coaching - website review and action plan for the next two weeks, and then another action plan for the following two weeks, then EVERY MONTH thereafter we do the same thing (Diane or Andy check in on you TWICE in the month as an accountability partner)

Level 3 coaching - website review and weekly action plans FOUR TIMES during the month and EVERY month thereafter (Diane and Andy "accountbility" once per week)

 

We would then figure out a price of the 3 levels of coaching PLUS your hosting based on how many websites you wish to have hosted.

 

And finally, JUST a coaching package, which would cover the above THREE levels of coaching, WITHOUT any hosting (so, would be cheaper than the "hosting and coaching packages).

 

Obviously, we'll have to think through on prices to ensure it is affordable and it will be a fantastic deal.

 

Something to consider, as I've said, month ONE of coaching will require much more effort on my part, full website review, including going through your socials, action plan written up and a quick discussion with you.

 

The above would typically take me about 10 hours to do.

 

How much would YOU expect to get paid for 10 hours work?

 

How much would EXPECT ME to be paid for 10 hours work?

 

And proof of what a great deal we would be offering, I would think off the top of my head, NONE of the above packages would be more than say...hmmm... $150/month (e.g. 10 websites hosted + website review + action plan + WEEKLY coaching and WEEKLY accountability)

The above would be the most "expensive" package.

 

Okay, don't quote me on price, as I say, I haven't spoken to Diane or Andy about this yet, but you can probably tell that something like 3 websites hosted + website review + action plan for THAT ONE MONTH and accountability ONCE during the month is clearly going to be about a third of our "top price"

 

Again, prices HAVE NOT BEEN DECIDED YET, but we'll try to keep it as inexpensive as possible.

 

I was also thinking of offering a FULL coaching service, which would include a DAILY PLAN, but at a guess, you would need to be earning a good monthly income to take this (I would always suggest taking coaching for at least 3 months, because you'll learn things along the way and the aim is to eventually get YOU thinking like ME... without the need for my help), as this would nearer to my "normal price" for coaching, e.g. website review + action plan + daily 30-minute discussions = approx. 25 hours per month of coaching and accountability.

 

Anyway, as I say, I'm just thinking "out loud", nothing is set in stone yet, and even the "most expensive option" would be much more than the price I've mentioned above (at a guess, most people would want the slightly lower levels of hosting/coaching, which "should" be pretty close to what you're already paying anyway)


   
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(@diane)
Member Admin
Joined: 8 months ago
Posts: 184
 

One thing to say, about the Accountability check-in, this wouldn't just be a "hello, how are you doing?" very quick chat. 

We would expect to take a look at what you have done so far, and answer any questions, and offer advice, prior to your next "appointment" with Partha.

We expect the coaching option to be very popular, and knowing what a thorough and comprehensive job Partha will be doing, he's going to be very busy.

Realistically, it would be preferable if you didn't bombard him with PMs outside of his commitment to you. 

Hence, why Andy or myself will be your intermediary, and help you further, and if we really can't answer a burning question that requires Partha's immediate attention, we will, of course, let him know!

I suppose what I am trying to say, is that it would be unreasonable of you to take the lowest-priced option of a once-a-month action plan, but then ask Partha questions every day too!

This may come across as a bit harsh, (hey, it's what I'm known for!), but we want to offer the best possible service for everybody who wants the benefit of the personal coaching, but at a price that's appealing and affordable! 

 


   
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(@ohnoo_not_her)
Honorable Member
Joined: 7 months ago
Posts: 331
 

@partha wanted to quickly chime in here, withouth having read everything. But the last time I transferred my Dutch site to wps, WA didn't WANT to give the three name servers, they left it at 2! WPx went with that, but not sure if that's all right now that you mention this?

 

By the way, if I wasn't with WP already, I would have taken your offer plus coaching, for a price at least per month what WA is charging, because I will be leaving that other platform completely anyway, and I'm sure you guys coaching and keeping responsible for what I'm doing, would be so much better!

( WA will be trying they say, they seem to realize that things will need to change hahaha)

Would be interested though in the coaching section separately, just like you are doing for my Reddit, but then also to go over other socials, like I'm now a bit struggling with fewer views on Youtube.

Lizzy

 


   
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(@tracy)
Trusted Member
Joined: 7 months ago
Posts: 36
 

@diane totally agree. As a therapist / coach I would definitely recommend having a coaching agreement in place. Setting boundaries from the start can seem harsh but honestly it pays off and benefits everyone all round.


   
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(@soraya)
Active Member
Joined: 7 months ago
Posts: 5
 

Hi Partha and Diane - Thank you for including me.
I would definitely be interested in moving the hosting and I would love to be coached by you three but I don't have an affiliate site anymore - it's dead and my site never really was deserving of the label 'affiliate' in the first place, and then the Google core update was its death. But I still have the site. 
It's possible of course that things will change and I will get the coaching too (would be awesome I must say) but for now, for sure, I would like to take up the hosting for 2 sites, depending on the price. I can't offer an opinion on how much I want to pay because I haven't done any research into it yet - as I'm paid up until October. I've been wanting to leave for years tbh but fear of the change over, where to go, how to do it etc - meant I kept putting it off. This year is the year it happens. 
Soraya


   
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(@partha)
Member Admin
Joined: 8 months ago
Posts: 240
Topic starter  

@nemira Okay, I'm going to be so, so, so, so, honest with you now!!!

 

I totally understand your situation, and it doesn't help that I really like you 🤣🤣🤣

 

BUT

 

Here's how I currently feel:

 

I would say that during my time at WA I probably did 200+ FULL website reviews (where I'm taking at least 10+ hours to go through EVERYTHING).

 

I believe that you even read a couple of these that i published to a former MMO website I owned.

 

That's about 2,000+ hours work, that's about ONE YEAR's WORK... and 

I DID IT ALL FOR FREE

 

The worst thing for me was that approximately 40-50% of those people, never spoke to me again, and LEFT WA more or less immediately after they received my review, they realised it wasn't for them or they didn't wish to put the work in that I suggested, but it REALLY HURT ME INSIDE (yes, I am soppy really) that people wuld do that to me (I know YOU wouldn't do that to me).

 

After that, I vowed to NEVER do a free website review again.

 

Now, I would generally charge around $300 for a FULL website review (I've only ever done ONE here at DMC and I gave a 50% discount).

 

I would then also charge somewhere between $300-$500 for monthly coaching.

 

So, my thinking with the coaching HERE @ DMC was to lump it together with hosting and charge a monthly fee, where you get a website review and monthly coaching over the course of a year, it will work out to under HALF the above prices OVER THE COURSE OF A YEAR (So, basically, I'm earning about 50% of what I normally would, but I don't "get the money completely for over 12 months"), this makes it affordable to people and I'm still earning "nearly" what I normally would 9over the course of 12 months)

 

That's fine with me.

 

I noted that there was a comment recently about "some people" potentialy thinking that I have created this forum (and been such a nice guy on WA) in order to start charging people money and making money from them.

 

I can categorically state that helping people and charging them I actually earn LESS MONEY than I would normally for those hours BY DOING NOTHING (don't forget I've spent 16 years building up an online business, so money is on "autopilot" now, so I could spend 10 hours sitting on my butt watching TV and make more than 10x the money that I make actually doing some work to provide reviews and coaching).

 

I've only mentioned the above to say that I'm not simply trying to make money out of people (I earn more money if I do NOTHING with that time)

 

So, I still want to help people ALL THE TIME, the "charges" and fees for things is because I believe people make more of an effort when they have to pay for something, as opposed to getting something for free, plus, I won't feel as bad if I've earned something and people simply disappear on me.

 

That being said, I obviously understand that you wouldn't want to pay $150-$200 for a full review and then decide that from that review you're going to scrap that website (it probably doesn't feel good to YOU to spend that sort of money and then decide not to do anything more with your website, obviously, the opposite can also happen and both you and I feel there is a future for your website, so you carry on).

 

Once more, this was my main reason for wanting to charge a monthly fee for coaching, even if it's $30-$50 per month, you still get a full website review, monthly coaching and tips, and you get to speak with me multiple times per month, it's affordable to YOU and I earn something over the course of a year (basically, you're spreading the cost of a review and coaching over the course of a year, but you would get more help from me than if I just did a one-off review and one session of coaching).

 

I would actually like to say to you "I'll do a website review for free", but then I'll feel bad for the one person I've charged, and I'll also feel bad for charging people in the future (yes, I have conscience 🤣🤣🤣 )

 

So, that's kinda where I'm at.

 

I completely understand from YOUR point of view, but the above is my point of view.

 

And what makes it worse is I DO really like you and a lot of people I did website reviews for at WA I never really spoke to them much and hardly ever interacted with them.

 

So, I don't want to charge you the full fee (and this is why we've come up with this monthly coaching idea, i.e. spread the cost over a year, but get more support from me than if you'd purchased a "one-off review")...

 

Hmmm... let me think about it some more and I'll PM you over the next couple of days 😀


   
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(@nemira)
Trusted Member
Joined: 7 months ago
Posts: 31
 

Hi, Partha and everybody who reads this. I am so sorry for not expressing myself well. Maybe I constructed the sentence incorrectly. I do not want a free review or coaching. It never was the case.  I feel you understand I want a free ride and dinner from a high-end restaurant (my expression in this situation). Nope. Your help is much more valuable and unique to us, and I am lucky to be with this company.

I know that my website lacks many things, and that was the reason I was asking for a review(not for free, but for your decided price). Anyway, I feel like a silly one at this moment. However, I guess you saw many different characters during your online journey.

The monthly coaching works for me. Sorry for repeating myself, but I do not want anything for free. You guys and girls will decide about fees, and I will try my best to get along with that.

 


   
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(@partha)
Member Admin
Joined: 8 months ago
Posts: 240
Topic starter  

@nemira oh Nemira, I'm so sorry my darling, MY FAULT, not yours.

I know you well enough to know you don't want a free ride.

It is ME. who is SORRY.

All it is I was trying to explain was my situation and I didn't do it well, for that I apologise.

Don't worry,

 I'll PM you tomorrow and we'll have a chat.

Please don't feel bad, 💯 MY FAULT, once more I apologise, I know you well enough to know you're a lovely person.

Speak to you tomorrow 😀😀


   
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