iPage is an one-stop web solution provider that first established in year 1998.
The company was pretty popular in the 2000s but went inactive for the past few years. Recently, the company went thru series of restructure and is making a strong come-back (
Sure, iPage doesn’t have strong history background like Bluehost or Hostgator; however their hosting offer are simply too good to be ignored by budget hosting finders. At this time of writing, iPage’s pricing is one of the lowest – .50/mo and they are offering anytime money back guarantee. (
If this sounds good to you, make sure you read this interview with Thomas Gorny, founder and the current top man of iPage.
Q & A with Thomas Gorny, founder of iPage
Hello, Thomas. It’s great to have you here with us! Without wasting any more time, let’s get things started with some introduction. Can you tell us more about yourself and what your role is at iPage?
Sure. My involvement with the company goes back to its roots, when the company began in 1998. The company has evolved since then, and I’m committed to building upon our success as a leading web hosting provider.
Please enlighten us more about the technology behind iPage’s hosting services. What kind of servers and networking systems are you using at iPage?
Our hosting platform consists of a pooled server architecture, which ensures website requests are fulfilled by the first machine available. This type of network infrastructure allows our customers to benefit from faster page loads, reliable uptime, and rapid email service.
I see a huge chunk of tutorials available at iPage that look extremely helpful for newbies. What other help we can expect at iPage? Please tell us more about the Customer Support Team at iPage.
In addition to providing technical assistance, we’ve trained our staff to listen carefully to customers in order to provide effective solutions. Then, after we’ve been contacted about a particular issue, we use follow-up measures to learn how well we’ve addressed it. This helps us identify areas where we can improve training for our entire Support Team, as well as the products and services themselves.
We’ve also included a QuickStart feature in the control panel that helps customers get started by taking them through domain registration, mailbox setup and the web design process.
From the website, I learned that iPage provides eco-friendly web hosting. Can you tell us how iPage has gone green?
Of course. Since generating wind power onsite wasn’t a feasible option, we offset our energy use through the purchase of wind-generated Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs). In other words, for every KWH of electricity we consume, we purchase an REC that’s attributed to the supply of wind energy. As a result, we’ve prevented the annual release of 2,660 metric tons of carbon dioxide in to the atmosphere.
It’s good to see iPage is tailoring a custom hosting plan for bloggers. What choices do we have in blogging and photo gallery software?
The blogging plan provides everything customers need to create a successful blog. Blog and photo gallery options are available for free installation, including WordPress, Gallery2 and more. The plan also offers a free domain for the first year, 10 email accounts, and marketing services that help customers get their feet wet with search engine optimization.
iPage provides more than just web hosting services. How can business owners leverage your products and services to start an online business? And, will it cost a lot?
We’ve structured our e-commerce selection to cover the essentials for a successful online business – a website where visitors can shop and purchase easily, with convenient, secure payment options. Between ShopSite Starter and additional open-source shopping carts available for installation, customers can create an online store at little or no cost. And PayPal is also available to customers, along with SSL certificates, so business owners can provide convenient payment options their customers can trust.
Customers can also take advantage of a free 14-day trial with Doba to expand their product offering. Doba provides access to over 1.5 million brand-name products. Customers decide which products they’d like to sell, and Doba’s suppliers manage the inventory and shipping, requiring payment only after the end customer pays.
iPage considers the Carbonite Online Backup service, free for the first year, as one of its strong selling points. Can you tell us how site backup is done at iPage with the help of Carbonite?
We can’t stress enough how important it is to back up your files, so we offer 2GB of free storage space with Carbonite, for a year. By installing the free application, customers receive an automated file backup service for their website. Carbonite searches for new and updated files, saves encrypted copies, and maintains the files so their ready to be restored should you run into trouble with your computer.
Shared hosting plans are like dedicated web hosting plans back in the year 2000. In fact, there are more and more companies offering unlimited hosting services, including iPage. Should your customers be concerned with overselling?
Our customers should not be concerned. Since our hosting and blogging plans are designed for individuals and small- to medium-sized businesses, the unlimited plans are appropriate for the intended type of use.
As we speak about shared hosting services, can you provide some shopping guidance to our readers? In your opinion, what are the important factors to look for when searching for a shared web host?
From my perspective, the most important things are my website, email and online security, so I’d look for quality website building tools, rapid email service and access to security software. When we created the iPage hosting plan, we focused on meeting customers’ needs in these key areas, offering flexible website building options, email perfected by vigorous throughput testing and an extensive security suite at no extra cost.
Where will iPage hosting be in the next five years? Is VPS or dedicated hosting in any part of the plan?
We’re constantly working on evolving our products and services, but adding VPS is not a specific focus at this time. However, based on iPage’s history, we certainly wouldn’t rule anything out.
Thank you for your time with us. Is there anything you wish to add for this interview?
Thank you. We certainly appreciate what you do for the web hosting community, and it was a pleasure to be here.
Page 29 – Web Hosting Secret Revealed
