It pays to be at the centre of attention

Jonathan Bowers, October 20th 2008, 5:13PM

Rural communities in the UK have come to the end of their tether with broadband providers and their deceptive claims, reports this week say. Broadband firms overstating the ‘speed’ of their packages is not new and the fact the rural communities always seem to feel the most disgruntled is also not new. However the critical mass of calls for the authorities to do something is novel.

Countryside dwellers, such as those in Huntingdon, Cambridge, are hitting back with concerted pressure on the Government and Ofcom to bring the misleading broadband providers to heel.

The classic problem is the ‘up to’ capacity advertised by broadband companies. Most, not surprisingly, state the maximum speed available on their network prominently. Meanwhile, talk of possible geographical limitations is relegated to the small print. The result is disappointed customers in areas that are a long way from the main local exchange, such as any rural community.

Residents in Huntingdonshire believe that instead of the 8MB broadband that is promoted, they are in reality only getting 512KB, one sixteenth of the headline speed.

All this grief and disappointing performance is because Huntington is not located on a broadband superhighway and that got me thinking about the parallels to the ecommerce industry. Quick and reliable service is essential for any Web business. Customers will not wait for slow loading sites.
Furthermore, Google rankings partly rely on speed ratings, so again slow websites will lose out due to poor Google listings.

So the lessons for ebusinesses are to ensure that their server power is up to the job and that their hosting company is located on a major hub of the broadband network. ISPs, such as UKFast, who occupy a position right on the broadband superhighway can offer more.

So to be in the ecommerce fast lane make sure your hosting provider is right in the middle of the action.

Tags: broadband, e-commerce, google, hosting, internet, websites
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Internet can be a remedy to the credit crunch

Jonathan Bowers, October 10th 2008, 2:59PM

The latest figures for online ad spend are an eye opening read. According to the Internet Advertising Bureau, internet advertising expenditure increased by 21% year on year in the first half of 2008, while the total ad market fell by 0.7% in the same period.

Now these figures do cover a period before the credit crunch truly kicked in but the slow down was already starting and confidence was already falling, so they do reflect behaviour in belt tightening times.

The main headline is that when the advertising market as a whole is cutting back, internet spend continues to rise. And why is this? It is because companies know that online advertising is affordable, accountable and effective.

Online ads have the potential to reach a world of consumers and many online ads only cost per click, so you don’t pay for ineffective advertising. Meanwhile, pay-per-click campaigns and banner leads alike can be monitored to record the direct correlation between advert - interest- spend, so scrutinising management boards can see the tangible results of advertising on the net.

So even when businesses need to cut overheads they have learned that to do so online is a false economy. In my view, if cuts can be concentrated elsewhere they should be because a continued investment in an online presence will always deliver a strong return.

In fact, a bold policy of actually injecting extra online advertising investment now could be the best business decision an MD makes all year. Imagine having your brand all over the internet when your rivals are hiding behind the office photocopier.

And those with an online business should be equally bold. Promote your business and be prepared for extra traffic by ensuring that your hosting solution is up to scratch. Don’t run the risk of downtime when the online marketplace is at the fore. Invest in a dedicated hosting solution to ensure that you are equipped to beat the crunch.

Tags: advertising, adwords, brand, e-commerce, hosting, internet, marketing
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Beat cyber attacks with prudent vigilance

Jonathan Bowers, October 6th 2008, 12:13PM

An article last week about Princeton University research into the sophistication of cyber attacks reminded me just how important it is for online businesses to take their security seriously.

The great strength of the internet is its accessibility but unfortunately the trade off is that this can also be its vulnerability. Providing access to legitimate Web surfers also means potentially providing access to those who would wish to do harm. So it is vitally important for any online business to ensure that they are doing all that they can to protect themselves and their customers from malicious cyber attack.

Most of you reading this blog will probably be thinking that you are totally covered, that you have the right level of protection in place. However, I’m sure that this was what global business giants ING Direct, New York Times and YouTube were thinking as well. According to the research from the Princeton group, all three were found to be vulnerable to attack because of weaknesses in their website coding or configuration.

A common theme to the problems the three websites experienced was data extraction. Cyber attackers were able to obtain important information of visitors to ING Direct, The New York Times and YouTube, which could be later used to obtain further crucial private information.

The realisation that such major organisations can become open to attack is very troubling but by taking the right precautions you can stay ahead of the online criminals.

The first piece of advice in such a situation is always - be proactive. Keep up to date with cyber attack trends and technological developments. Review your security software to ensure it is up-to-date and equipped to deal with new styles of online attack. Old security software is a waste of time.

Second, make sure that access to your website is properly monitored and protected. You obviously have to allow online traffic access through your server portals but procedures can be put in place to block tell-tail unscrupulous originators. Arm yourself with effective zero day protection systems.

Finally, talk to your hosting provider. All good hosting companies have comprehensive security procedures in place to ensure that their clients are fully protected. Make sure that your provider is delivering the protection you need, including appropriate security shields such as Cisco Guard.

It is a constant battle to defend your website from the attacks of online criminals but with proper attention and the right hosting support you can win the fight.

Tags: coding, consumer_confidence, cybercrime, internet, online fraud, phishing, security
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