Calm Photos

About six months ago I began the process of transferring the web hosting of my primary business website - www.ohiophoto.org and/or www.pictureohio.com - to a new provider, Bluehost.com. I think they had a mention or an ad in one of the photography magazines that I subscribe to and it obviously caught my attention, especially when I looked at their prices listed for web hosting services. It was about one quarter of what I had been paying for the last several years AND with more capacity and a killer control panel.

But what has impressed me most has been the quality of the customer service provided by Bluehost. I couldn’t believe what I was getting for what I was paying, but then again that may have to do with my previous experiences with that “other” web hosting company. I know this sounds like a commercial for Bluehost, but it’s absolutely true.

The CEO of Bluehost.com is 34-year old Matt Heaton. By following the link I’ve listed with his name you will see that he has a WordPress blog. Matt makes a lot of good points and provides some solid advice on business and marketing. You will also notice that his is a business built from the ground-up in Orem, Utah. He’s a natural born entrepreneur. Matt also reminds me quite a bit of another small business owner, David Esrati, owner of the Next Wave here in Dayton. As a matter of fact, I will go out on a limb and say that Matt Heaton is a Utah version of David.

Now here’s my quandary. I maintain my WordPress business blog - calmphotos.com - through the help and support of David and the Next Wave. I got on board after taking David’s half-day course on creating and managing a blog for business. The problem is that David also offers great customer service and support at a very reasonable price, plus he truly enjoys helping people come up the learning curve when it comes to marketing on the web and blogs.
I know eventually I will have to proceed with the next step on the continuing evolution of my e-presence and merge what I’m trying to accomplish through my website (which I still maintain using FrontPage - shame on me) with calmphotos.com. That could mean just one web hosting service.

Regardless, with BOTH ohiophoto.org through Bluehost.com and calmphotos.com through the Next Wave, I’m still paying less than half of what I was paying my previous web hosting provider (who will still go nameless), receiving MUCH improved customer service and support and my exposure and number of hits has dramatically increased over the last three months. At least now I’m moving in the right direction. Check them both out - Bluehost.com and the Blogosopher.