When we set up UKFast in 1999, no one really knew what to expect. There was huge excitement at the birth of a new industry which was reflected on the stock exchange and the first internet millionaires were created without really producing any viable products. A massive downturn ensued and people thought, that was that. Back in 2001 after the bubble burst, no one could have predicted how technology would evolve at such a pace. In a decade everyone’s lives have changed. The internet is bigger than TV, Radio and Press put together and it’s just the beginning. Google came out of nowhere, (or rather a garage in San Francisco) to challenge Microsoft with alternative ways to search the net providing innovative ways to advertise… Read the Rest »
Is there a recession? Was there ever a true recession like back in the 90′s? For me it seems very different. Back in the 90′s everyone was effected. I don’t remember anyone escaping the pain inflicted by the job losses and hiked interest rates. The recent recession which was announced by Tony Blair officially before we actually were in one has felt very different for me and a great many of my customers. Yes people do seem slightly more cautious. But this is partly to do with the fact we were told we were heading for recession. I remember backing out of a property deal after the Nothern Rock crisis. Thank goodness Gail and I plucked up the courage and pursued the deal, it was… Read the Rest »
What is hosting? It is a good question. I often wonder how and why I ended up in a career so similarly named to one I had been involved with in a previous life. As an event organiser, I essentially hosted parties for businesses. It involved the ultimate in commitment and service, a degree of attention to detail you seldom see and passion to keep you striving when the going gets tough. First up, last to bed….. it is a thankless task behind the scenes of a busy event. The business I had that specialised in this field I sold to Granada at the end of the 90′s. they did me a massive favour. I stayed and learnt so much about bigger business, “how to… Read the Rest »
I was recently asked by the TechTrack or FastTrack what was the most challenging thing that faced our business over the past decade. It is a difficult answer and to define one event as anyone in business will know it is a fast paced journey of peaks and troughs and no 2 days are alike. The most difficult challenge I face and continue to face is the pace I am required to develop. 10 years ago the skill set I had to set up a small business was very different to the one I now have running a multimillion pound organisation. That in itself presents challenges year after year. I know if I’d walked into a business the size of UKFast 10 years ago, I could not… Read the Rest »
When you’re choosing a server to boost your business you should be thinking about your server’s capabilities as a marketing tool. A couple blogs ago I wrote of the importance of a speedy dedicated server to build your brand online. Since then I’ve been asked several times whether a Linux or Windows-operated server is more beneficial to the marketing of your business. The key to a successful online marketing campaign is a fast server, so which operating system offers the quickest service? In actual fact there is very little difference in the speed of Linux and Windows servers. Speed is largely based on the quality of the hardware. So, if your online business resides on a Quadcore Dell or HP, with a high level of… Read the Rest »
Did you know the speed and reliability of your website is a massive factor in the stickiness of your site, for both human visitors and search engines? For the ever demanding customer, website response rates have to be immediate. How long do you spend on a slow page which doesn’t load properly? My guess is not long at all. And neither do your potential customers. For slow websites the click-away rate is often incredibly high – and what do web users do when they’ve clicked away? They go to the next search engine listing, which just happens to be your fiercest competitor. Speaking of search engines, many of the top ones use website response rate and server speed as part of the ranking process. When… Read the Rest »
On Friday 14th March at UKFast we won our fourth ISPA award for best hosting – an achievement I am immensely proud of. UKFast smashed industry records by winning the award for four years consecutively. Being recognised and praised for the hard work we have put in to the company is a wonderful feeling. I sincerely hope our victory proved the importance and necessity of excellent customer service as well as top of the range dedicated server hardware. However, I for one am not willing to rest on my laurels. That’s not the attitude that has got the company this far. So this year we’re going to keep pushing. As a company we’re growing very quickly in size, knowledge and experience. The boundaries of the… Read the Rest »
Well it’s been some time since I last posted. I have had my hands full, with the birth of my second daughter Poppy. I timed it to perfection as we moved house and picked up a couple of puppies all on the same day. So after 2 weeks paternity leave I have returned to work for some peace and quiet! I noticed that Graeme Hastings from Harper James suggested I elaborate more on the hosting issues and the connections between fast well written sites and successful ones. There is no doubt that speed is now a major issue on the internet, you only have to look at how our obsession with bigger and faster broadband connections is evolving to see how high up the list… Read the Rest »
