Reducing cost and overheads

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Originally Posted by gaybucks_chip

I actually think that in many ways, the adult industry is already controlling costs... design for adult is generally a LOT less expensive

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I have a friend that is doing mainstream sites and he charges several thousand dollars to produce what we would typically only spend $500 on. Same is true with hosting, I have had clients with mainstream sites come to me and ask for a quote and then tell me that there is no way I can offer them service for that price as they are currently paying 3x to 4x the amount for shit service.

I think its smart to cut costs, but not at the expense of quality and/or reliability. For example, going with a dirt cheap host may save you a few bucks every month but that is irrelevant when your sites are down for days on end, or sooo slow that you lost new customers.

cheers,
Luke

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Originally Posted by Chilihost

I think its smart to cut costs, but not at the expense of quality and/or reliability. For example, going with a dirt cheap host may save you a few bucks every month but that is irrelevant when your sites are down for days on end, or sooo slow that you lost new customers.

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I second that! You can probably find cheaper hosting but I prefer great service and reliability and I'm willing to pay a little more if necessary. Btw, Luke actually saved me money. I had several virtual accounts and it was actually a lot cheaper for me to consolidate them all on a Chili dedicated server. Thanks Luke!

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Originally Posted by Chilihost

I think its smart to cut costs, but not at the expense of quality and/or reliability. For example, going with a dirt cheap host may save you a few bucks every month but that is irrelevant when your sites are down for days on end, or sooo slow that you lost new customers.
cheers,
Luke

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Yes, there is no question that cheap doesn't always translate into better.
And conversely, spending more doesn't always translate into better either.

The balance is in keeping all things equal and if one part of the assembly line can't keep up with the rest of the operation, then its time to fix it or replace it.

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Originally Posted by Chilihost

I think its smart to cut costs, but not at the expense of quality and/or reliability. For example, going with a dirt cheap host may save you a few bucks every month but that is irrelevant when your sites are down for days on end, or sooo slow that you lost new customers.

Luke

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I will third this :) I don't get how people will use some eighth-tier provider to save a few bucks, when an hour's downtime could mean hundreds or thousands of dollars in lost sales, and repeated downtime will equal lost affiliates and rebills.

luke's personal service and hosting is really good stuff, but just because a host costs less doesn't mean they're inferior. my host is reachable by phone, has his own NOC with 2 guys in it at all times, and i've been happy there for 17 months now.

on the other hand, those who can't differentiate between good and bad hosting should probably play it very safe. there are some VERY cheap hosts out there who will give you real problems and maybe even kill off all your traffic or get your domains blacklisted!!!

I think i can tell how much downtime my host has fairly easily by looking at my stat counter. I agree cheaper isnt better but if the product or service is upto standard then it is.

Totally. Cost does NOT equal quality. I'm constantly amazed how many people host with Cave Creek, because to me it seems really high priced (competitive for 1997, maybe, but not for today) and as far as I know, they only have two primary bandwidth providers.

On the other hand, my own experience is that Planet, EV1, Softlayer have been rock solid, have 4 or 5 different major providers, and are VERY competitive. Jury is still out on OrangeFiber/AlphaRed, we've only had one server with them for about 3 months now, but so far, they also seem very reliable, have outstanding support, and are dirt cheap.