Costco Connection - October 2008

inside costco

Picture your business on the Web

A PIC TURE, THE SAYING GOES, is worth a thousand words. That’s certainly the case for Katy and Trey Bader, Costco members and owners of Cedar Beetle Land Clearing in Concan, Texas.

The Baders set up a Web site for their two-year-old land-clearing business, and response has been very positive. Prospective customers can go to the site ( www.cedarbeetle. com), see pictures of jobs the Baders have done and get complete details about the company’s services.

“It’s been great,” says Katy Bader. “After people see our site, they call back and almost

always want us to do the work. It’s a wonderful way for us to show our business.”

The Baders created the site with Value Web, a Hostway company, offered through Costco. Bader says she was able to do all of the work in creating the Web site herself, choosing a predesigned template through Value Web and following online setup instructions. “It was extremely easy,” she says.

Value Web offers an easy, affordable way for business owners to establish a presence on the Web. Users can choose one of Value Web’s

A Web site is proving to be a valuable marketing tool for Trey Bader, left, and Cedar Beetle Land Clearing.

predesigned templates for a site (as Bader did), or use a Value Web professional designer to create a site, based on their specifications.

Executive Members who use the template option pay a $10 setup fee and a monthly hosting fee of $14.95 per month (for Gold Star and Business members, the setup fee is $20 and the monthly fee is $17.95). The fee for using a ValueWeb professional designer to create a five-page informational site is $275—or $699 for an e-commerce site—plus the monthly hosting and credit-card processing fees.

“This Costco member pricing is established exclusively through Value Web and represents a savings of 80 percent for our members, compared to Value Web’s professional hosting package,” says Ed Murphy, who oversees the program for Costco. “It represents a great value for our members.”

“We’re extremely happy with our site,” says Bader. “It’s very easy to update. I can log on anytime and put up new pictures, and it’s immediately updated. We have used the Value Web tech support and they’ve always gone above and beyond the call of duty.”

For more information, visit costco.com and enter “Value Web4236” in the search box, or call Value Web toll-free at 1-866-803-2812 and give referral code 4236.—Tim Talevich

The mortgage and refinancing program is administered by
Lending Tree, LLC. (formerly known as Lending Tree, Inc.),
located at 11115 Rushmore Drive, Charlotte, NC 28277.
Costco member benefits are only available through costco.
com or by calling 1-800-496-8733. All Lending Tree, LLC
required licenses are held in the name of Lending Tree.
Mortgage and Refinancing program is not available in
Alabama. Lending Tree is a duly licensed real estate broker
and mortgage broker as required. For a current list of
applicable state licensing disclosures, see costco.com or
call 1-800-496-8733. Lending Tree is required to disclose
the following licenses by state law: AZ Mortgage Broker
License #MBBR-0102663; Licensed Real Estate Broker,
CA Department of Real Estate, (916) 227-0931, License
#01230150; CA Finance Lender; CT Mortgage Broker
(not a CT Mortgage Lender); GA Residential Mortgage
Licensee; IL Residential Mortgage Licensee, License
#5433; KS Licensed Mortgage Co., #99-827; Licensed
Mortgage Lender, MD Department of Labor, Licensing
and Regulation, License #4737; MA Licensed Mortgage
Broker, License #MB1942; MS Licensed Mortgage Co.;
MO mortgage broker license 05-1261 with an office at
10805 Sunset Office Drive, Suite 312, St. Louis, MO 63127;
Licensed by the New Hampshire Department of Banking;
LT Technologies, in lieu of true name Lending Tree, Inc.,
Registered Mortgage Broker - NYS Banking Department;
Licensed Mortgage Broker - NJ Department of Banking
and Insurance; OH Mortgage Broker Registrations, MB
3006 & MB 3007, 37812 Second St., Willoughby, OH
44094; Licensed First Mortgage Broker, PA Department of
Banking (also licensed pursuant to PA Secondary Mortgage
Loan Act); RI Licensed Broker; Licensed by the Virginia
State Corporation Commission MB-1120. In California,
this solicitation is made by Costco Financial Services, Inc.,
which is licensed by the California Department of Real
Estate (License #01235998). Costco and its affiliates do not
negotiate, arrange or make loans.
* Savings based on historical comparison of rates, fees, and
points for a $185,000 30-year fixed rate loan, comparing
loans obtained by Costco members through Lending Tree
from January 1, 2008, to April 30, 2008, to the national
average provided in the Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage
Market Survey (PMMS) for the same period. Individual
savings may vary.
** Offer valid for current Costco members who fund a
loan through the Costco and Lending Tree program and
are issued by Lending Tree 6 - 8 weeks after closing.
Amount of Costco Cash Card varies by membership type
and loan type.