Category: Strategies

Find the best strategies to get more traffic, sales, and revenue from affiliate marketing, blogging and becoming a leader in today’s world.

  • Web Hosting Malaysia Under RM200 A Year (A Guide for Beginners)

    Web Hosting Malaysia Under RM200 A Year (A Guide for Beginners)

    Web hosting talks. My favorite topic of all time. As an online marketer and serial entrepreneur myself, I had my first real insights on the importance of web hosting in 2014. I was using a cheap web hosting Malaysia and I was having an awesome time in Perth, Australia (7 days trip). Little did I know that my websites were hacked and even after the restoration, there aren’t much things left for me to do, except to start over. From then on, it was game on for getting the best web hosting solution in Malaysia with the cheapest and most affordable pricing.

    As a disclaimer, I am the founder of ServerStack.io, Malaysia first web hosting company that focuses entirely on our clients (server performance, pricing etc.) instead of purely profitability. I launched this company because that was exactly what I was looking for myself!

    In this article, I will be going through some of the best web hosting Malaysia under RM200 a year.

    Running A Business Post Covid-19

    Business After Covid-19

    Business After Covid-19

    I’m not going to lie to you. Running a business post Covid-19 in Malaysia is challenging. Business owners are cutting cost everywhere and they want the best results and fast, minus the large fees.

    I totally get it.

    However, it doesn’t mean that you should be getting a web hosting that costs under RM100 a year a.k.a cheap web hosting.

    I manage a web hosting company mainly for B2B clients (some B2C clients) and trust me, the maintenance for web hosting is high. For starters, you have monitoring tools that you need to pay, staffs salary and above everything, hardware maintenance.

    Web hosting companies can offer dirt cheap web hosting price simply because:

    • Overselling the hosting servers
    • Perform little to no upgrades to their hosting infrastructures
    • Super bad in customer support (I know, right?)

    Reginald Chan

    Find a web hosting company that offers excellent hosting solutions with decent pricing. In Malaysia, you can find a decent web hosting solution anywhere between RM200 to RM500 per year, depending on your website needs.

    Top Web Hosting Malaysia Under RM200

    I know you can’t wait for this. So, let’s dive in, shall we?

    Exabytes Malaysia

    Exabytes is one of the longest and oldest web hosting solution in Malaysia. They offer a wide range of hosting plans and if you are looking to have a cheap hosting under RM200 per year, you can sign up for their 5 years plan hosting plan for massive discount.

    ServerFreak

    When I first started blogging in 2004, ServerFreak was the first web hosting company I worked with. They are awesome people and their customer support is one of the best in Malaysia. You can get web hosting under RM100 with them for a single website without any super long commitments.

    ServerStack.io

    ServerStack.io is the newest web hosting company in Malaysia. The company consists of 7 team members who provides affordable web hosting services in Malaysia to website owners, WordPress developers and web design agencies. Their VPS hosting plans are the cheapest in Malaysia too.

    How To Choose The Best Web Hosting Malaysia Under RM200?

    Web Hosting Malaysia Under RM200

    Web Hosting Malaysia Under RM200

    Web hosting in Malaysia is competitive and there’s no denial. But, there are some tricks when it comes to choosing the best web hosting in Malaysia under RM200.

    Here are some nifty tricks you can use right now (yes, go try them out):

    • Ask questions about web hosting and what to expect
    • Ask for free migration services
    • Ask for free domain name
    • Ask for special discounts (especially NGO’s and charity bodies)
    • Ask for web hosting SLA (service level agreement)
    • Check the duration of refund (some offers 30 days money back guarantee)
    • Check how easy it is to scale up (or down) on a specific host

    Is web hosting under RM200 worth it?

    Well, it depends. There are companies that offers very good web hosting plans under RM200 and some who will charge you for everything to cover back the cost. Well, that’s business to be honest.

    So, be careful for what you wished for. A good web hosting solution can varies by far, depending on what you need. Again, I’m bias but ServerStack.io offers one powerful hosting solutions in Malaysia with a fraction of the cost and with 30 days money back guarantee. 

    And if you need any discount, just ping me up and I’ll be sure to get the team to look at it!

  • Proven Ways to Market your eCommerce Business

    Proven Ways to Market your eCommerce Business

    Marketing is an essential growth aspect of eCommerce businesses. Since you operate virtually, your clients will only know of your progress through your marketing efforts. New clients will also learn about your business through the marketing techniques you adopt. 

    Therefore, you should choose the right channels to market your online business strategically while still saving substantial advertising costs. If you just started an online store, read on to know the best marketing tips you can adopt. You can initiate these strategies on your own, or seek the help of eCommerce marketing experts if necessary. 

    Use Social Media

    Social media has made marketing easy. It connects businesses to a global audience and gives small firms the ability to compete with established firms. Some social media platforms also allow customers to interact with entrepreneurs through live features. The best social media platforms for your eCommerce business could include Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Each platform operates differently and exposes you to a different audience. Understand how each platform works, create business accounts, and market your business. Follow the right people and actively interact with them.

    Invest in Strategic Relationships

    Find the leading players in the industry and connect to them. These could be influencers, established entrepreneurs, or people who have already made it in the industry. Like their posts, follow them, and even retweet their posts. Besides influencers, you might also form a business relationship with reputable marketing sites and agencies. The leading sites use the performance-based advertising model to help you get the best of your eCommerce marketing. You only pay for the results you get, thus allowing you to get the best from the marketing. Find out the best people or sites you can trust, follow them, and find out they can help your business grow.

    Start Your Blog

    Blogging is an exciting way of interacting with your clients. When you start the blog, you will increase your business visibility and gain a competitive advantage. You will only need to start the right type of blog, choose the content wisely, and write informative articles. You may write the articles yourself, or hire experienced freelancers to help in the blogging. For excellent marketing results on your blog, use the content which provokes your readers to reply. Also, use internal links to direct people to your site. The right content will keep your readers informed and will also help in marketing your eCommerce business.

    Invest in a Website

    Your online business should have a good looking website. The website should contain all the business information products and services offered. Your website should also include the strategies you use to satisfy your clients. You can create the website on your own, although a web designer would do it better. The designer should add the right features that make the site attractive but also informative as well. If the site is well developed and designed, it will look trustworthy and attract more clients. Don’t forget to include the CTA section to help your clients contact you with ease. The CTA should be short and informative.

    Encourage Reviews

    Many customers consider the site reviews before they make a buying decision. This means that a business with many reviews gets more traffic compared to those without reviews. A site with reviews also shows that the company is trustworthy, and the products are credible. However, many customers may not leave the reviews, unless you encourage them. When you transact, encourage them to leave their remarks regarding the product and services. Appreciate the positive reviews and reply to the negative reviews well. Also, do not hide negative reviews. Let them stay on your site, provided that you have given the right replies. Learn from the reviews, too, and make the necessary changes.

    Improve Your SEO Strategy

    SEO improves the visibility of your online store if you use the right keywords. You should find out the standard terms your clients use when searching for products online and add them to your content. For instance, if you sell shoes online, your content should mention your shoe business, location, etc. You might not readily guess the right keywords, and that’s why experts advise entrepreneurs to use the keyword finder apps. When you use the right keywords, you will enhance your visibility, increase your traffic, and boost your eCommerce store’s profitability.

    Optimize For Mobile

    You should improve the responsiveness of your website if you wish to attract many people. Today, the number of people with smartphones and other mobile devices surpasses those with computers and desktops. 

    Consumers, therefore, get online by using the handiest tool- which is their mobile phone. Therefore, your site should be easy to access via the mobile phone to win more people. Optimize the right features too to simplify the user experience.

    Consider Pay Per Click Advertising

    Probably, you are wondering why you need PPC marketing when you have great keywords. The PPC ads support your SEO and make your business more visible. The best way to gain from PPC marketing is by using Google AdWord or the other tools which display the ads. You will not pay anything if people do not click on your ad. If you choose the right keywords, more people will click on your ads, and you will increase the exposure of your online store.

    Email Marketing

    You may also advertise your online business through email. To start, you will only need to collect your loyal customers; you can also ask your new customers to leave the emails. Create a solid list of the emails, and send them regular updates regarding your business. For motivation, you may include coupons, discounts, and other lucrative deals to the customers who leave you emails. Alternatively, you may ask them to subscribe to your email. In this way, you will keep them attached to your business, and you increase the success of your business.

    The eCommerce world changes daily. The techniques which work for you may not be valid tomorrow. To stay relevant, you should adopt the changing technology and adjust your marketing strategies accordingly. Work closely with digital marketing experts and follow the above tips to enhance your online business’s success.

  • How To Get Free Email Hosting With Your Own Domain In Malaysia?

    How To Get Free Email Hosting With Your Own Domain In Malaysia?

    You probably aware that having your own domain is an important step in branding especially in Malaysia. But how about using a branded email address for your business? Using a branded email address is important because it creates a form of trust. Instead of sounding cheapskate, scam or simply ineffective with a Gmail, Hotmail or Yahoo email account, a branded email address offers more advantages than disadvantages.

    The question that I would love to highlight today is how to get free email hosting with your own domain in Malaysia?

    Carry on reading to learn more.

    What is email hosting?

    Business Email Hosting in Malaysia

    Business Email Hosting in Malaysia

    Before we even start with email hosting and how to get email hosting free in Malaysia, let’s talk about email hosting.

    What is email hosting?

    Email hosting is a service in which a hosting provider rents out email servers to its users. While there are free versions available with many hosting companies, many businesses take advantage of the flexibility and power of professional email services.

    Here’s the problem.

    Don’t go cheap on email hosting and please, don’t go for free email hosting in Malaysia (or any parts of the world).

    Ever heard before “good things not cheap and cheap things not good?”

    I bet you do, especially you are a Malaysian!

    Professional email hosting in Malaysia is all about ensuring emails land in your receipients’ inboxes, getting high delivery rates and avoiding the spam folders. 

    Trust me. You ain’t getting good results if you are using Gmail, Hotmail or Yahoo and that’s for sure!

    How to get free email hosting with your own domain in Malaysia?

    How To Get Free Business Email Hosting In Malaysia

    How To Get Free Business Email Hosting In Malaysia

    Now, let’s get down to the juicy part of this story today. There are two parts to this — so pay close attention to get this right the first time.

    There are two simple ways to get free email hosting in Malaysia:

    • Through an existing domain hosting
    • Using a professional email hosting solution

    Option 1: How to get free email hosting with an existing domain?

    Let’s say that you have a website registered under your business and you are currently hosting in Exabytes Malaysia (it’s the best hosting company in Malaysia and you can check out their latest deals right here). You should be able to see the option to create email addresses and accounts on your cPanel.

    Here’s how it looks like:

    Email Hosting Creation In cPanel Hosting

    Email Hosting Creation In cPanel Hosting

    SImply click on the Email Accounts and you can create one or more email accounts in just a few seconds.

    Create Email Accounts

    Create Email Accounts

    Take note on the numbers above (from 1 to 4) as they are indicators for easier navigation.

    REGINALD CHAN

    If you have a web hosting account, you should be able to create one or more email addresses based on your domain name. This is how you can get free email hosting with your own domain name in Malaysia without spending any extra money. If you are not sure, I recommend you to reach out to your web hosting company to get some clarifications.

    Option 2: Use a professional email hosting solution in Malaysia

    Now, what to do if you don’t have a business website (yet) and looking for professional email hosting solution instead?

    Here, I want you to understand that I don’t recommend you to get Microsoft365 or GSuite if you have limited knowledge. Setting them up can be tricky and more importantly, these are international businesses. In other words, you won’t be able get instant help and support in case you hit a deadlock in email hosting.

    The quickest and most reliable solution is this: Using a professional email hosting solution in Malaysia.

    Of course, this leads to another question.

    Which is the best business email hosting solution in Malaysia?

    My honest answer would be Exabytes Malaysia (here’s the link to know more about email hosting).

    Business Email Hosting Malaysia

    Business Email Hosting Malaysia

    Now, how to get a business email hosting with Exabytes? Well, it’s fairly simple to be honest. Here’s how it is done the right way (and under 5 minutes).

    Step 1: Head over to Exabytes (click here) and click on Email Hosting. Adjust the slider to determine the number of email addresses (users).

    Email Hosting Creation Using Exabytes

    Email Hosting Creation Using Exabytes

    For sample, I selected 10 email users and the price will be updated on the right side. It costs RM32.39 for 10 users if you host your emails on Exabytes (that’s RM3.24 per month and per user which is very affordable).

    Step 2: Here, you need to determine if if you have a valid domain to point your emails to. In other words, I need to have the domain reginaldchan.net in order for me to create an email support@reginaldchan.net.

    Selecting email hosting domain

    Selecting email hosting domain

    Step 3: In this step, you need to configure the email hosting plan a.k.a. selecting the duration of the service. If you are going for business email hosting Malaysia, you won’t be changing domain name or business name anytime soon (it’s fixed). So, getting the longest term would be the best value for you since you will be getting tons of discounts.

    Configuring email hosting plan

    Configuring email hosting plan

    By now, you should have everything pretty much set up right. 

    Did you notice the domain pricing in the order summary? You need to purchase the domain if you have yet to. That’s the only way to send a branded email through a business domain.

    At this point in writing, Exabytes is offering anywhere between RM 20 to RM80 per year for domain name registration. It’s pretty cheap and way cheaper than GoDaddy to be honest.

    Summary: How to create free business email hosting with my domain?

    I certainly hope that this article gives you some light in how you can create free business email hosting with your own domain name.

    Need help? Hit me up in the comments or contact me for more assistance!

  • Quality Content is King – Here’s Why

    Quality Content is King – Here’s Why

    Whenever you are looking to create a business or any type of website online, there are several things that you have to consider. First of all, what kind of content are you going to put onto your website? This will dictate which type of audience will visit your website. 

    Secondly, it is important to consider how you plan on optimizing your website. Failure to optimize your website means that it will be lost and forgotten amid the other websites. Finally, it is up to you to create quality content that will be meaningful and interesting to other people.

    It does not matter if you are following the trends and creating a website featuring popular topics. If the quality is not there, you will not have a sustainable website and your traffic will decrease. Fortunately there are easy ways to get better at producing quality content and keeping your business and website running. Here are the main reasons why it is important to have quality content.

    Quality Content Results In More Sales

    If you are a business looking to sell a product, you have to do your best at informing your customer about what they are getting. This can be done by giving a full proper description of whatever products you are selling, along with stating their uses.

    One of the big things people look into when looking to buy a product is customer reviews. These can help guide a buyer and lead them towards your products. Unfortunately, if you are just starting out as a company however it can be rather difficult to get reviews onto your website.

    Another thing to look at is guest posts on your website. The more posts they are on your website, the more likely people are to see your business as a legitimate one. Once again, if you are a startup company this can be extremely difficult to get. However there are plenty of services available allowing you to purchase these posts on your website. Soon after having them posted, you will find more people visiting your site and purchasing your products. This is why guest posts are important for any website.

    Sure it might cost money to get these reviews and guest posts onto your website, but think of these as an investment towards the future. When future consumers see these, they are more likely to purchase from you and leave further reviews. This way you eventually build a large following.

    Other ways to use quality content to create more sales would be in the use of videos. While pictures and screenshots are great, people want to see the product in action and see what it does. You can purchase reviews that include videos in them, detailing to your potential customers exactly what it does. This is much better than a standard review as they can see the product in action.

    Always remember that while creating high quality content takes time, effort, and sometimes even money, it is well worth the investment towards making your business successful. If you want to sell more, ensure your website is of high quality.

    Quality Content is Search Engine Optimized

    When first starting any website, you can expect to generate little to no web traffic. This makes doing anything online extremely hard, as someone finding your website online is the equivalent to finding a needle in a haystack. Fortunately for you, there are methods you can employ within your content to ensure you get discovered.

    Search engine optimization, or SEO, is a useful tool that allows you to rank higher on search engine queries. This will result in an exponential increase to your traffic. What does quality content have to do with this though you might ask?

    Quality content naturally employs these techniques as it will make good use of select keywords, links, and layouts. This is why it is important to put time and effort into your website and blog posts, as they can push you above the rest of the competition. Along with this, as you grow as a website and increase your domain authority, other websites will begin backlinking to you, increasing your authority even more. Your content is not of a high quality unless you’ve optimized it for search engines.

    Quality Content Will Be Shared

    If you are creating something truly insightful in the form of a blog post, or selling a product that is truly revolutionary, you can expect your website to be shared. Those that make the time and effort to do this with videos and images can expect results.

    With social media having such a huge impact on the online world, you have to cater to it and find your strengths. Every day, thousands of images, videos, and articles are shared across Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and much more. If you are not creating quality content that can be spread across these platforms, then you are hurting your potential market and limiting the amount of traffic that you will have.

    How do you ensure you are creating quality content that is worth sharing? Always ensure that you are taking a look at current trends on the market and on social media. If you sense an upcoming trend, make a post or video about it. If the trend explodes, so will your piece of work and people will be rushing to share it across the platforms. This can make a huge difference on your sales. Always make sure you are creating content that can be shared across multiple platforms.

    Quality Content Strengthens Your Message

    Finally, no matter what you are trying to promote on your website, having quality content ensures that your message will be delivered in an effective manner. This does not just mean the writing however. Taking the time to craft simple yet interesting website designs can go a long way towards creating visual appeal for your customers. If the website has a professional look to it, they are much more likely to stay on it.

    Therefore, consider your website as a whole and not just the content you are putting onto it. Every aspect of it should be well thought out and designed, giving the whole site a boost. This will make everything you say more trustworthy and people will be much more willing to revisit the website. Ensure that you are putting the time in to have a quality design on your website.

    Creating a website and a business is not an easy task. It can take months or even years to generate stable traffic even if you employ the proper techniques. Failure to provide quality content will result in another website being lost to the online world forever. Do your research, take your time, and create something that is truly great!

  • The Marketing Huddle — Top Marketing Blog for Small Business

    The Marketing Huddle — Top Marketing Blog for Small Business

    We are in the post Covid-19 era and let me be really honest with you — Marketing is no longer the same. Many of us are affected badly with the turn outs from Covid-19 and we even see many small businesses closing down / downsizing across the globe.

    I’m going to sugar coat it because it is already bad. There must be something that small business owners can do right now, right?

    The truth is, yes. If you are affordable, you can work with digital marketing agencies with your marketing needs. Or you can spend time and effort to learn more about digital marketing.

    Either way, you need to do something and right now … to keep your business afloat long enough.

    Introducing The Marketing Huddle

    I came across TheMarketingHuddle.com in expired domains and I was intrigued to build my blog database. What other thing can I do than to create a marketing blog dedicated for small business owners?

    The Marketing Huddle Marketing Blog for Small Business Owners

    As you can see, this blog is brand new (with less than 10 posts) and I have no plans to place any ads on it for now. Yes, a few affiliate links and that’s much about it.

    And hey, it is not running on WordPress!

    The Marketing Huddle is created on Ghost CMS (works just like Medium) and I’m loving it right now.

    What can I expect from The Marketing Huddle?

    The Marketing Huddle is created as a marketing blog for small business owners. As a consultant myself, I came across dozens of entrepreneurs and business owners who are struggling to keep up with the latest marketing related news.

    The blog serves as a free publication site focusing on marketing related matters with some detailed case study write ups (like this case study on WaaS business model).

    Apart from that, there are also free content such as daily, weekly and monthly online marketing tips specially crafted for small business owners.

    It doesn’t matter if you are doing it inhouse or want to train your team, this is one blog not to be missed!

  • What To Do If Your Employer Goes Bankrupt

    What To Do If Your Employer Goes Bankrupt

    Life is full of uncertainties, but sometimes, we are caught off-guard. Take the example of your employer declaring bankruptcy. Most of the time, nothing prepares an employee for their employer to go out of business. When this happens, employees are left wondering what they should do moving forward. The good news is that as an employee, there are steps that you can take when your employer is affected by insolvency proceedings. It pays to be in the know, and this article helps you understand the steps you can take when your employer declares bankruptcy.

    What Happens When an Employer Declares Bankruptcy?

    Bankruptcy occurs in a situation where a company or employer can no longer pay its debts. The debtor can voluntarily declare bankruptcy. Alternatively, they can be forced into it by one of the creditors of the business. If this happens, they hand over their non-exempt property to a licensed insolvency trustee (LIT) who is tasked with selling and distributing the money to Creditors.

    A majority of bankruptcies fall under consumer bankruptcies, meaning that most of the debts are not business-related. If the debtor’s assets are worth below $15,000, the case is processed under summary administration. This kind of situation is easy to handle because creditors do not need to meet. Creditors cannot take a debtor to a court or continue any hearings if the case is dealt with as a summary administration. Secured creditors can take ownership of assets that they hold a security. While there are clear paths for creditors to follow when dealing with a bankrupt business, many employees have no idea where to go if their employer declares bankruptcy.

    What Happens to Employees?

    Before a company considers filing for bankruptcy, the employer must have gone over a list of options regarding what they can do. Many companies consider finding a trustee that will help them evaluate their situation, so they know what they will lose once they file for insolvency. With a trustee, the employer understands what will happen to their employees and even the contractors in detail.

    The first step that takes place once an employer declares bankruptcy is that a trustee is appointed over the company that faces insolvency. This trustee has several duties, including liquidation of the employer’s estate, so that the creditors can be paid. The creditors are notified of the bankruptcy as well, and the assets of the bankrupt person are protected. The trustee then runs the company, even though it is insolvent. Many times, contracts with third parties and employees end up terminated. Interestingly, some key employees may retain their positions or get rehired because they are essential to running the company or safeguarding their critical assets.

    What Should the Employee Know?

    As an employee of a bankrupt business, you are protected under the Wage Earner Protection Program. Debts are paid to creditors according to the federally legislated BIA. If the employees have a wage claim, they are considered to be creditors. The steps to be taken next depend on whether these employees are in a union or not. If it’s there, they will be represented by the union, and the matter is solved. If the employee were not part of a union, the employee would have to deal directly with the trustee appointed for the company.

    The Wage Earner Protection Program is responsible for the reimbursement of eligible employees for any unpaid and deserved monies including wages, vacation pay, termination pay and severance pay that the employer owed them after the declaration of bankruptcy.

    As an employee, the first step would be to file a proof of claim with the company’s trustee, and the request should be filed with Service Canada within 56 days of the bankruptcy date. Service Canada is the body responsible for making payments under WEPP. The trustee is not liable to make any payments to the employee.

    Service Canada is also entitled to the dividend payments that the receiver or trustee makes to the employee on the amounts paid by Service Canada. The federal program compensates employees for amounts of up to $3,000. Wages include salaries, commissions, vacation pay, compensation for services, and severance pay. Payments that fall within ss 81.3 and 81.4 of the BIA should be considered when considering employees who should be compensated upon bankruptcy.

    Declaring bankruptcy comes as a shocker for many employees. It is mostly unclear to the public about what should happen to the employees once their employer declares bankruptcy. While the stipulations are clear for creditors, it is not so clear for employees. In this article, however, an employee learns how the law protects them and how they can claim compensation that should be theirs.