Author / Matt Seaton

by Matt Seaton

Making Directories Work for You

On the web today, there are tens of thousands of business directories, allowing any type of organisation to register for a free or paid listing. This is perfect for getting links to your business out on the net, with minimal effort. Being listed in many different directories ensures your companys name, contact information and website are floating on the world wide web in as many locations as possible. But is this really going to work for you? Will this pull in greater revenues and ensure more impressive profits? It is highly unlikely. Whilst some would consider this a form of e-marketing, it is more a simple blanketing exercise through which your information is seen by few people – even fewer within your target market.

So how can directories actively work towards forming a solid foundation for an online marketing campaign?

For starters, free directory listings will only get you so far. Whilst its good to be listed in all the major commercial directories for your area/country (i.e. Yell.com for the UK etc), it makes more sense to focus on industry-specific directories. Pick as many as you can for free listings, ensuring all information is short and detailed enough to attract clicks. The main problem with free listings is the fact that they tend to get filed in long behind paid listings, and receive no further notice through being featured or highlighted. This essentially means that free listings should only be used to supplement a primary directory/set of directories that you employ as proper marketing tools, through full paid listings. Free listings only really exist to serve the off chance that customers will stumble upon your listing without real care being taken to search specifically for what it is that they want.

Paid listings are the key to making directories work for you as traffic-driving marketing tools. Pick your primary directory/directories carefully. They should be industry specific, ensuring the money spent here is not wasted on traffic not interested in your product/service. Paid listings will allow your business to be seen by far more people than an equivalent free listing, as it will often be featured and can contain far more detail. Securing a solid relationship between you and your directory representative can also help to earn free incentives to stay with them, such as free homepage exposure and advertising space.

Netwise Hosting have been in a long relationship with Serchen, the worlds largest hosting and web services directory organisation. They run a number of industry specific directories which significantly boost traffic and revenue for those service providers who choose to employ their services. Our relationship with our representative has ensured our ability to gain key advertising space and homepage exposure with interviews and awards.

Take time in developing a directory strategy, and do not think your work is done when your business is named in every free directory on the net. You get out what you put in, and unless you are operating in an industry which is highly driven by customers finding you directly, paid directory listings are the only guaranteed way to ensure directories actively work for you; instead of you working for them.

by Matt Seaton

Resellers in Business

Resellers are nothing new – particularly in the hosting industry. Many sectors of business run schemes whereby goods are sold by proxy through a third party, with branding, pricing and other variables passed onto the reseller. The manufacturing industry uses an OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) system, in which products are outsourced to third parties and rebranded for resale.

The hosting market is not far different in its approach to reselling products; and of course with the business being fully deployed online, the reseller flexibility makes potential profitability very attractive.

Resellers can take some of the leg-work away from the hosting provider, by passing marketing, account management and revenue onto a third party. This essentially means that a reseller in the hosting industry can run a successful business using products hosted with the original provider. This means that the reseller can take on the responsibility of securing customers without worrying about the management of server technologies – whilst the provider can concentrate on running industry-beating technology without having to spend excess time on marketing and other related subactivities.

Netwise Hosting currently have a number of active international reseller contracts. These have proven to be highly successful, with both parties very happy with the significant returns seen since the beginning of each relationship. These relationships develop and expand over time, ensuring business growth is organic and steady into the future.

If you are at all interested in becoming a reseller with Netwise Hosting, feel free to contact us. Visit the website for relevant contact information.

by Matt Seaton

Live Support Implementation

Within the next few days here at Netwise Hosting we will be rolling out our new Live Support feature on the website. This will aid in contacting customers on a more direct level, and break down some of the interpersonal barriers that can potentially exist in the online marketplace.

Live support systems have been used in the industry for a number of years now, and although very popular, we never really saw the need to implement a system of our own. Recently however, with the advent of advanced traffic statistics and online user tracking, it has become apparent that operating a live support application can dramatically improve conversion rates. Some industries are able to report 100% conversion rates when in direct contact with clients live over the web.

This is of course a highly attractive prospect, and the team here at Netwise Hosting are very much looking forward to implementing this new system, and to building newer more personal relationships with our site visitors.

by Matt Seaton

Off-Site Backups – Important Or Not?

Whenever I speak with business owners (whether medium-sized local firms or large national corporations) I ask them if they employ any data backup solutions. Their automatic response is always ‘yes’. They are telling the truth. They do backup their system. They often have a perfectly adequate hard drive, hard drive array or even a tape drive storage unit. Fine in most situations of course.

I then ask what they plan on doing when they lose all of their sensitive business and customer data in an office fire, in the middle of the night. Or a severe flood. Or even in an office raid by thieves for information gathering or simply for the value of the equipment. It is about now that they realise their current system only secures them against a local system failure. Let’s face it, system failures are not nearly as common as they used to be – and even in the event of such a failure, recovering data is not too difficult regardless of how robust the local backup solution in place may be.

So the true answer to my question, in most cases, should be ‘no’. A solution should be in place to prevent problems. A real solution should prevent all possible problems.

So off-site backups. What are they, and are they really that important?

Well I think the question of importance can be answered almost immediately. Yes they are, very important in fact. As a business, keeping your customers happy ranks highly in the upper echelon of factors central to ultimate success. Is it likely that customers will be happy hearing that your business, in the event of an office fire or such event, will lose all of your information; and be entirely unable to recover it? I’m guessing not. This will cause inconvenience for both the customer and the business. Not what you want on top of dealing with a major crisis like those mentioned.

Peace of mind is also important in running a smooth business. Knowing your data is safe off-site, regardless of local issues, is essential in your ability to relax as a business owner. Being safe in the knowledge that your back is covered should the unlikely happen is very reassuring.

And what are off-site backups? Well, I’m sure you are able to gather what they are from the name, or by deciphering the meaning through the above passages. In a nutshell, off-site backups are identical to backups – except of course that they are not stored locally. And if you don’t know what backups are, they are simply copies of all system data that allow the system to be recovered back to its last healthy state in the event of an emergency.

Now back in the infancy of IT in the workplace, off-site backups used to require a man in a van driving to your office and picking up your tape drives to be stored in a large warehouse somewhere. Handy, but expensive, and not entirely effective. Pick-up intervals varied, meaning the last backup could be weeks or even months old. Not massively helpful then. But it worked, and when you don’t know any better, you can complain.

Then the internet got fast. Not overnight, no, but it did. This revolutionized the backing up of data. Well, it revolutionized almost everything on Earth, but that’s for another lifetime of writing. Backups could suddenly be completed remotely, with highly compressed packets of data sent over the net to the designated off-site backup site. This could happen at the end of every day, or even every hour if it is felt absolutely necessary. This data can then be recovered remotely should it be required. Simple.

Yes, backing up your critical business data is very important. All businesses should practice this technique, and with so many hosting firms offering cheap, scalable solutions to this problem, there is no excuse. Secure your business data today, before it’s too late.

by Matt Seaton

The Young Entrepreneurs Dream – Finally a Reality

Can the youth of the UK help drag the economy out of freefall?

The hosting market is a tough nut to crack, regardless of age and experience. With many of the UK’s current hosting provider’s already large multi-million pound organisations, Matthew had a daunting task ahead of him in ensuring new business proposition was to become a success. Remaining undeterred by the state of the current market, the young entrepreneur forced his way into the industry by setting a new benchmark for low pricing strategies. His unique and fresh outlook on the handling of dedicated servers and the interpersonal relationships between supplier and customer have pushed his company into the lime-light, with awards already received from large independent hosting directories.
Based on the outskirts of London, Mr Butt’s operations are impressive to say the least. Visiting his large facility in South London proved a sobering experience, considering the incredible success this young man has achieved in such a short space of time. It is very easy to forget just how young Matthew is. Immediate from the second you set foot inside the perimeter wall is just how secure the large building is. Having reviewed a number of hosting company’s in the past, the importance of security with regards to customer satisfaction is always of pressing concern. Matthew has addressed this issue with every aspect of a secure facility covered in full. CCTV, card access and keypads come as standard, along with the conventional lock and key. Stepping inside any data centre is an exciting experience for most, and the secure server rooms inside the main building did not disappoint. The humming servers are only audible once the main doors are open, and the chilling breeze from the cooling system is immediately felt on entering the rooms. The corridor of servers stretches on and on, with the flashing lights of traffic passing through the system, a hypnotic sight.
Whilst the technology is impressive in its own right, it is the scale of the business operations as a whole that take the lead in terms of overall impact. Offering well over 200 unique dedicated server packages from launch is no small feat, yet the team at Netwise Hosting have managed to bring this vast product line to the front-line of the industry without breaking a sweat. With reseller deals in China and the USA now on the table, expansion seems set to explode in the closing months of 2009.
But it hasn’t been easy for Matthew. The idea behind Netwise Hosting and indeed the Netwise Group as a collective was but a dream just a small time ago. It is the hard work of Matthew and other related staff that has lead to the success of the business, and the continuous efforts of all members of the group that ensures the company remains a solid contender in this cut-throat market. Being able to sit down and speak with some of the team proved invaluable in gaining an understanding of how the business is run, and what plans are in motion for the future.

Matthew seemed happy to discuss the impact his age has had on the business.

“Being so young does often become a barrier when dealing with people in business, but so far I haven’t encountered any problems. Some people are surprised to discover that I am 19 [years old], but many just accept it and get on with business.

“I would certainly hope my age is not a reason for customers to go elsewhere. We offer a robust and secure network in excess of many of our closest competitors, and strive to be the best in every aspect of our industry.”

Matt Seaton, a systems administrator and close-tied associate/assistant to Matthew, described the efforts of the young business magnet as “very impressive, and I am very proud to have been a part of the conceptualisation and launch of the business.”

“I know how difficult it can be to break into the world of business, and I hope Matthew [Butt] can be considered a role model to our generation and generations to follow.

“I also think it is a kick in the rear for many larger businesses run by older professionals. Seeing the rise of Netwise Hosting must come as a shock to many of the market leaders. I do honestly think they have reason to be concerned!”
Stephen Raferty, an IT professional closely linked with Netwise Hosting, holds the business in high regard, having worked with many other professionals in the same industry.

“It’s hard to manage large numbers of servers and deal with many customers at one time. I take my hat off to Matt[hew], he knows what he is doing and this is a prime example of what a young person can achieve in the UK when they put their mind to it.

“I enjoy working with the Matthew and his team. Although very young, they are incredibly professional, and work harder than most. I would love to see more young entrepreneurs emerge in the next few years. It does seem that the likes of Alan Sugar and Richard Branson will be very hard to replace within the current generation, but this is a flicker of hope.”

Matthew has expressed his desire to motivate his generation into being more proactive, describing the younger generations as “the key to ending the credit-crisis for good”. Activating the minds and desires of the next generation is of key importance today, and his business achievements stand as impressive examples of how effective a simple idea can be when executed with passion and drive.