How to price your hosting plans

Step 1: your cost per client

Cost per client = your monthly plan price ÷ the number of clients you expect to host.

Our reseller plans start at Ksh 2,500 a month. Spread over 20 clients, each one costs you a twentieth of that. That is your floor: never sell below it.

Step 2: add margin and your time

Hosting itself is cheap; your time is not. Price in:

• answering client questions and email setup;
• fixing small website problems;
• your WHMCS licence, domain and marketing.

Many resellers aim for each client to cover several times their share of the plan cost.

Step 3: build two or three packages

Package	For	Typical limits
Starter	One small business website	Small disk, a few email accounts
Business	Most clients	More disk and email, a few websites
Pro	Online shops, busy sites	Most resources, priority support

Keep the middle one the best value: most clients pick it.

Step 4: sell yearly

Yearly billing gives clients a lower price and gives you the money up front, and our yearly plans cost you less too. Offer monthly for those who need it, at a higher rate.

Step 5: bundle

A package with a domain, business email and SSL is easier to sell than “5 GB of hosting”. Domains come from the free domain reseller program; SSL is free on every account.

Step 6: check the market

Look at what businesses in Kenya pay for hosting today and position your packages around the value you add: local support, quick help on WhatsApp, a website care plan.

Mistakes to avoid

• The cheapest price in town. It attracts the clients who need the most help and pay the least.
• Unlimited everything. Set fair limits so one client can’t use your whole plan.
• Forgetting renewals of domains in your price: they cost you every year.
• No care plan. A monthly maintenance fee is often worth more than the hosting.