Vendio, a provider of sales management and merchandising services for online sellers, expanded its service platform Thursday by launching Vendio Web Hosting (www.vendioweb.com).

A recent survey conducted by Vendio showed that nearly 50 percent of its sellers are looking to build upon their success in online marketplaces by creating branded stores from which they can sell through multiple online channels. Vendio's entrance into the shared hosting market answers this anticipated need, while positioning the company to take advantage of a new market opportunity.

"Since 1998, Vendio has provided services to help hundreds of thousands of merchants successfully build businesses on eBay and other marketplaces," said Rodrigo Sales, CEO of Vendio, in a written release on Thursday. "Over that time, we have built our brand as a leading provider of reliable and affordable services that have scaled with the growth of our customers' businesses. With Vendio Web Hosting, we are extending Vendio's services to meet the growing demands of online merchants and all individuals and businesses who require an affordable and trusted partner to host their online presence, content or service."

According to the company, Vendio offers a selection of personal and business plans designed to give individuals and small businesses a simple and affordable solution to serve any of their online needs — from file and photo sharing, to online applications and information, to complete websites and online stores. Plans start as low as $3.95 per month, with up to 4 GB of storage, 100 GB of traffic, unlimited email, and eCommerce available. Customers who sign up for a 12- or 24-month plan receive a free domain and account setup, and all plans come with a satisfaction guarantee.

Vendio says its services will make creating and maintaining websites and online content easier for all users, including those with limited or no knowledge of HTML. For merchants using Vendio's services to sell online, Vendio will also integrate custom stores in the Web Hosting environment with its online sales management service, Sales Manager Inventory Edition (SMIE). This integration will enable online merchants to make their goods available for sale wherever buyers may be shopping online. Through one central inventory, checkout, and post-sale management and communication system, sellers will be able to leverage marketplaces like eBay, Yahoo, and Amazon, as well as search engines like Google, and comparison shopping sites.

Vendio Services, Inc. (formerly known as AuctionWatch) was founded in January 1999 and is headquartered in Silicon Valley with offices in Eastern Europe.