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MVP: feedback request for WordPress platform startup

MicAtSublimeWP 11y ago
I'm a one man startup with a few remote collaborators trying to make a dent in the high-performance WordPress platform space which at the moment is highly dominated by WPEngine (whose homepage we ripped off as we believe it's a great starting point!) Our value proposition is mainly: "We provide fast WP managed hosting at a reasonable price". Our main selling points over the competition is support for PHP7 (which we are very proud of), fast SSD disks, out of the box VARNISH setup which can be easily customized via the Control Panel or disabled altogether, plus good price point hopefully. The website and control panel are w.i.p and there are a few notable features missing (out of the box CDN support and SSL one-click setup) but before I get into development I thought it might be a good thing to try and experiment in user acquisition... this is where theory meets reality! Any comment, suggestions or advice from fellow startuppers is super welcome! Thanks, Michele
coreymaass 11y ago
My initial feedback on the website is nothing tells me you are a hosting company. I thought it was a WordPress plugin. My second reaction was "what makes this different from WPEngine, flywheel, or any other?". Your value prop is fine, but no different from anyone else. Are you fastER? CheapER? Is your support better?
- MicAtSublimeWP 11y ago
  Hi coreymaass, thanks for your reply. I think you are right, although the title says "SSD Hosting Solution" no one really see web page titles nowadays. Also although the first description says "Achieve more with SublimeWP, the world's first PHP7/SSD WordPress hosting provider", the word hosting is not present in any title, I've fixed that now. With regard to the value differentiating factor the first one is that no other major WP hosting is providing PHP7 nor SSD disks. We provide both. Secondly if you look at what you get for your money you will see that for the same amount you get more disk space, more bandwith, more reinstallations, etc. than WPEngine, FlyWheel and most other companies. We also don't charge you extra for SSL usage/setup and website migration. Which, I hope, for someone going around window shopping for a WP host would be quite clear. Two major things that we provide however is not sufficiently clear there, one is the super powerful Varnish page caching we provide and secondly the VPS-centered architecture and all its benefits as described here: https://sublimewp.com/blog/why-sublimewp-vps-centered-architecture-rocks/ https://sublimewp.com/blog/why-sublimewp-vps-centered-archit... If you read the article I'd love to know what you think of it.
  - coreymaass 11y ago
    What you list are features, not benefits. Eventually everyone will have SSD drives, if they don't already. Eventually everyone will upgrade to PHP 7. But for now, "The world's first php7/ssd wp hosting" is a lot more clear of a headline. Maybe move it above the fold? Built-in caching might be a good differentiator, if you can prove that it makes your sites faster than WPE and everyone else.
    - MicAtSublimeWP 11y ago
      It looks already more promising with the title above the fold. Also I've added a stronger call to action to start the 30 days free trial account which other customers didn't even realize it existed before. I have to say speaking with potential customers in the last couple of days that nobody really seem to be interested in PHP7 that much despite its huge performance improvements. I have even setup google alert to catch news about PHP7 and I have the feeling that people just aren't talking about it as much as we expected.

I'm a one man startup with a few remote collaborators trying to make a dent in the high-performance WordPress platform space which at the moment is highly dominated by WPEngine (whose homepage we ripped off as we believe it's a great starting point!) Our value proposition is mainly: "We provide fast WP managed hosting at a reasonable price". Our main selling points over the competition is support for PHP7 (which we are very proud of), fast SSD disks, out of the box VARNISH setup which can be easily customized via the Control Panel or disabled altogether, plus good price point hopefully. The website and control panel are w.i.p and there are a few notable features missing (out of the box CDN support and SSL one-click setup) but before I get into development I thought it might be a good thing to try and experiment in user acquisition... this is where theory meets reality! Any comment, suggestions or advice from fellow startuppers is super welcome! Thanks, Michele

coreymaass 11y ago

My initial feedback on the website is nothing tells me you are a hosting company. I thought it was a WordPress plugin. My second reaction was "what makes this different from WPEngine, flywheel, or any other?". Your value prop is fine, but no different from anyone else. Are you fastER? CheapER? Is your support better?

MicAtSublimeWP 11y ago
Hi coreymaass, thanks for your reply. I think you are right, although the title says "SSD Hosting Solution" no one really see web page titles nowadays. Also although the first description says "Achieve more with SublimeWP, the world's first PHP7/SSD WordPress hosting provider", the word hosting is not present in any title, I've fixed that now. With regard to the value differentiating factor the first one is that no other major WP hosting is providing PHP7 nor SSD disks. We provide both. Secondly if you look at what you get for your money you will see that for the same amount you get more disk space, more bandwith, more reinstallations, etc. than WPEngine, FlyWheel and most other companies. We also don't charge you extra for SSL usage/setup and website migration. Which, I hope, for someone going around window shopping for a WP host would be quite clear. Two major things that we provide however is not sufficiently clear there, one is the super powerful Varnish page caching we provide and secondly the VPS-centered architecture and all its benefits as described here: https://sublimewp.com/blog/why-sublimewp-vps-centered-architecture-rocks/ https://sublimewp.com/blog/why-sublimewp-vps-centered-archit... If you read the article I'd love to know what you think of it.
- coreymaass 11y ago
  What you list are features, not benefits. Eventually everyone will have SSD drives, if they don't already. Eventually everyone will upgrade to PHP 7. But for now, "The world's first php7/ssd wp hosting" is a lot more clear of a headline. Maybe move it above the fold? Built-in caching might be a good differentiator, if you can prove that it makes your sites faster than WPE and everyone else.
  - MicAtSublimeWP 11y ago
    It looks already more promising with the title above the fold. Also I've added a stronger call to action to start the 30 days free trial account which other customers didn't even realize it existed before. I have to say speaking with potential customers in the last couple of days that nobody really seem to be interested in PHP7 that much despite its huge performance improvements. I have even setup google alert to catch news about PHP7 and I have the feeling that people just aren't talking about it as much as we expected.