
MVP: feedback request for WordPress platform startup - MicAtSublimeWP
https://sublimewp.com/
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MicAtSublimeWP
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

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coreymaass
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
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-
archit...](https://sublimewp.com/blog/why-sublimewp-vps-centered-architecture-
rocks/)

If you read the article I'd love to know what you think of it.

~~~
coreymaass
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
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.

