If you're looking to become a web host or reseller, it's vital that you have the right administrative tools. Otherwise, you could find it very difficult to manage user accounts that you create, and your business may fail to thrive.
With that in mind, it's important to consider using WebHost Manager (WHM) to ease the process for you. This is a control panel that can give you access to a range of features that make account handling as a reseller or host a breeze.
In this article, we’ll take a deeper look at what WebHost Manager is, as well as some of its benefits. Let's get started!
An Introduction to WebHost Manager (WHM)
WebHost Manager, or WHM, is a control panel that offers comprehensive support to resellers and web hosts. If you're not familiar with the term, a reseller is an account holder who has permission from their provider to use their allocated resources to host websites for third parties.
WHM is created by the company behind cPanel, and provides similar administrative features on a larger scale. Essentially, it’s optimized to help hosts and resellers manage their accounts, as well as those of their customers:
If you're familiar with cPanel then WHM should be easy to pick up. It provides a similar interface and features, but for your server and client accounts instead of a single website.
This is where you can see the benefits of WHM. Indeed, it can facilitate the creation of cPanel accounts for customers and can enable you to manage key aspects of them with just the click of a button.
With WHM, you’ll be able to create and edit hosting packages. Moreover, you'll also have the ability to manage Secure Socket Layer (SSL) Certificates and your Domain Name System (DNS).
3 Benefits of Using WebHost Manager
If you’re thinking of becoming a reseller yourself, you may want to consider using WHM to manage your client accounts. Let’s take a look at three of the benefits you'll be able to take advantage of if you do.
1. You Can Create Your Own Hosting Packages
We’ve already glossed over some of WHM’s features, but let’s examine this one a bit closer. One of the biggest benefits of this platform is the ability to create your own custom hosting packages:
When reselling, it’s often prudent to have multiple price points available so you can cater to different buyers. After all, not everyone will have the same needs, and each budget is likely going to be unique.
That’s why tiered pricing is such a popular practice in the hosting industry. Compared to other systems, this method could actually help you sell more plans and generate more profit.
Essentially, your most expensive package will encourage customers to look at your cheaper options for something more affordable. Your smallest package will drive them to look at pricier plans in order to access more features.
Therefore, most customers will end up purchasing your middle package. Instead of losing leads to competitors when they find your services too expensive or lacking in features, you can convert them with one of your other plans.
Your tiered WHM packages may vary in price based on disk space, access to email accounts, monthly bandwidth, database size, or number of supported domains. Additionally, you can modify your offers as your brand grows to scale your business over time.
Simply navigate to Packages > Add a Package in your WHM account and fill out the form to get started. You can also use the Edit a Package tab to make changes down the line.
2. It Enables You to Generate Individual cPanel Accounts
With WHM, you'll also have the ability to generate cPanel accounts for each of your customers by going to Account Functions > Create a New Account. The benefits of this feature can't be understated:
By providing cPanel accounts to your clients, you can give your reseller business a distinct advantage. Ultimately, a management interface is key to providing your customers with some autonomy over their website maintenance. This may mean fewer support requests for you, too.
It can simplify server-oriented administration for them, such as file organization, and could provide peace of mind since cPanel can also back up data. Being able to offer these features will help you stay competitive against other resellers and web hosts.
Without backups, you or your customers might experience considerable setbacks, too. Overall, cPanel can make website management less of a hassle, and even seems straightforward compared to more technically involved alternatives. Given its popularity, it's possible your client will already be familiar with how to use it as well.
Moreover, cPanel accounts generated through WHM are fully white-labeled. That means they're brandable. You can stamp your identity, such as your company name and logo, on your clients’ accounts by navigating to cPanel > Customization.
3. You'll Have Access to Comprehensive Account Support
When you use a platform like WHM, you’ll likely need support at some point – not just for yourself, but for your customers, too. After all, if your service goes down even temporarily, your clients could lose precious revenue, which impacts your reputation as a hosting provider.
At Hosting.com, our reseller accounts come with WHM and 24/7 support, 365 days a year. That means no matter which timezone you or your clients are in, if something goes wrong, you can get help immediately.
If your servers are experiencing a problem, or otherwise go down, you’ll need help to get them back up and running for your customers. Extended downtime may cause them to seek more reliable hosting elsewhere.
This not only impacts you in the moment when you're losing clients, but may affect future earnings as well. Should you develop a reputation for unreliability, or leaving your customers without support, you may find it harder to land future sales.
Getting Started with WebHost Manager
If you’ve decided that WHM is the best option for you as a reseller, your next step will most likely be to find a host that offers the application. This could take research since it’s not only a matter of having access to the platform, but what other features the provider supplies.
Of course, you may already have certain requirements in mind. Certainly, it’s smart to look out for pledges regarding uptime and 24/7 support, but also server speed.
These features are particularly vital for delivering quality performance to your own customers, and getting the most out of WHM and your reseller hosting efforts. Furthermore, you’ll want a plan that has scalable pricing options to fit your budget, with room to grow.
At Hosting.com, we offer plans for as little as $9.80 a month, starting with 30 GB of storage, free SSL, and more:
However, we also have plans that go up to 150 GB of storage and 1000 GB transfer, all for only $18.13. Plus, no matter which option you settle on, you’ll also have our Money Back Guarantee.
Conclusion
Whether you're considering reselling or currently are, WebHost Manager can benefit you. With plenty of features gathered together into an easy-to-navigate control panel, WHM could help you manage and organize everything you need to effectively administrate customers' accounts.
Let's take another look at three of the benefits that come with using WebHost Manager:
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You can create your own hosting packages.
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It enables you to generate individual cPanel accounts.
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With help from the right host, you'll have access to comprehensive account support.
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