Vietnam: Shared Hosting and the Rapid Growth

Shared hosting tips in Vietnam: the hosting marketing, customer service, Vietnam's Internet sector discussion with Phung Xuan Tien, CEO and Founder of Tothost, and Filip Borcov, Incredible at Site.pro.

Vietnam and its Fast Internet

During his recent trip to Vietnam, Filip Borcov met with Phung Xuan Tien, CEO and founder of Tothost, one of the country’s largest hosting providers. The two talked about Vietnam’s digital landscape, pricing, customer support, infrastructure, and the broader future of the Vietnamese Internet sector.

Vietnam’s Digital Landscape

Vietnam is home to approximately 100 million people, a notably young population with a strong base of technical talent. Tin emphasises that this demographic provides significant potential for cloud services and other digital-first products. He notes that the country has many skilled engineers, which creates favourable conditions for developing and supporting advanced hosting services.

Hosting prices in Vietnam remain low thanks to Vietnam being a developing country with a young workforce and abundant technical resources. Local prices are considerably lower than in Malaysia, China, and Hong Kong—sometimes six to eight times lower. The average hosting package costs between 2$ and 3$ per month, and in some cases less than 1$.

Local domain names vary: a .vn domain typically costs around 20$, while .com and other international domains generally range from 7$ to 10$.

Language support and market reach

Tothost supports Vietnamese and English, and also offers assistance in Chinese. One of Vietnam’s advantages is its demographics and geography — the population is large (bigger than multiple European countries combined) and young, and foreign languages become progressible more widespread. English and Chinese languages are very common and provide opportunities to reach out to global audiences.

Payment gateways

Popular payment options in Vietnam include PayPal, local bank transfers, and domestic systems such as Momo and ZaloPay. QR-code payments are particularly common in everyday use. Most customers prefer fast online solutions, like Momo, and not direct bank transfers.

Customer support and AI

Tothost provides 24/7 customer support and uses a third-party AI chatbot to reduce workload and improve response times.

The company uses both an internal ticketing system and live chat on its website. Policies and general queries are directed to the chatbot, while technical issues are handled by human support staff within the internal portal.

Website Builders in Vietnam

Website builders are still relatively new in Vietnam. Few local companies offer such products, which Tothost sees as an opportunity to stand out. Tothost aims to be among the first to integrate our website builder.

Meanwhile, big website building and hosting platforms like Wix, Shopify, and GoDaddy are actively advertising in Vietnam. It’s worth noting that click-through prices here are significantly lower than in Europe or Dubai, where advertising has become extremely expensive. So, the Vietnamese market holds a lot of potential for international companies for cheap and effective advertising.

Cloud or On-Premises?

Vietnamese businesses use both cloud and on-premises solutions. Local laws require certain data to be stored domestically, but cloud services are essential for scalability and serving large numbers of customers. Tin believes usage is roughly divided, with each approach chosen based on specific needs.

Internet Speed and Coverage

Vietnam offers strong internet coverage and speed at very low prices. Monthly unlimited traffic costs around 20$, a contrast to many European nations where prices are rising. Even in remote regions such as Hạ Long Bay, coverage is reliable, and the speed is fast.

The country’s numerous international connections ensure high speeds for global services. So much so that users can even access fast domestic speeds through VPNs when travelling abroad.

The Roots of Tothost

Tin is a software engineer who previously worked as a developer. His work on applications led him to realise the importance of reliable infrastructure, which inspired him to create a service offering PaaS and IaaS solutions. He began by investing in servers and hosting equipment within a major Vietnamese data centre, gradually building Tothost into a large-scale provider.

Lifehacks From Tothost

Tothost focuses on both new and existing customers, offering promotions such as a 25% discount on services. This consistent approach helps build brand awareness and customer loyalty. They are efficient and focus on customer experience. Positive reviews from customers result in

Learn from Failures

Without a solid customer base and brand recognition, global growth becomes difficult, if not impossible. It’s definitely worth experimenting and trying to widen it after you initially built your first small audience. Traditional methods might not have worked, but Site.pro will continue to search for new marketing ways.

Vietnam’s Future Potential

Vietnam has a long history of foreign oppression, the country has faced countless challenges. It’s amazing how rapidly it is developing, with the national infrastructure being very high-quality. Admittedly, Vietnam is less popular compared to some of its neighbour counties, but that doesn't stop it from growing. Vietnamese hosting providers truly represent their country as ambitious individuals offering quality service for competitive prices.

Vietnam has a highly promising future. The combination of low prices, strong infrastructure, a skilled and motivated population, and excellent service culture positions the country for significant growth in the digital and hosting sectors. Vietnam may be one of the most promising markets in Southeast Asia.