This is a question that has nagged at me for quite some time – and to be completely honest, since I did not have an answer for this up until recently, I never did start this blog – even though I have been thinking about starting this up for the last few years.
The answer to this question is 4 fold really:
- Originally I just didn’t have enough time. Growing a business, hiring staff, buying equipment, wearing every hat imaginable within the company, keeping up with my personal life (which includes an entire array of activities, spending time with my wife, my pets, etc) – it just didn’t seem reasonable to take the time to discuss my business or my life when I hardly had time for either. After a period of sleepless, painful growth – and finally having enough simply wonderful staff in place to manage the day to day operations (ie Server Admins, Support Staff, Developers, Designers, Billing Staff, Sales Staff, etc), I was able to set a “normal” schedule and focus on activities that will both further the growth of my company and allow me to get some sleep occassionally – so, I once again have returned my attention to these sorts of activites. (plus, I feel I actually have something of value to share now
) - The hosting industry is dynamic, fun, explosive – and contains all of the challenges someone like me requires to be sharp and motivated – having said this, there is also a dark side to this industry – and one doesn’t need to scratch to deep beneath its surface to find it. For those that know me, you will know I have spent a significant amount of time on forums, on the phone, in board rooms, etc discussing this industry, discussing its practices, discussing the differences in business models – and I have always been adament in my beliefs that the internet is quickly becoming (and has already become) a mission critical medium. I believe it is vitally important to discuss, digest and ultimately understand what drives this industry and why. Once consumers understand the dynamics of this industry, they will save themselves 100′s to 1000′s of dollars simply by making the correct purchasing decisions based on their needs and expectations. In some cases, a provider like us can save a company ALOT of money. In other cases, a consumer would be silly to choose us and would be much better served purchasing a very low end and high resource allocation provider.
- I wanted a medium with which to explain various technologies, explain some of our offerings, etc – and I do believe in the power of this sort of informal, conversational (and potentially collaborative) discussions. I will make no qualms about this – I do expect this blog to have commercial ramifications for our business (hopefully positive ) – and intend to do some creative things like link from our website offerings to specific posts in “Andrew’s (CEO) Blog” in order for consumers to gain perspective on why we are offering certain items, why we are hitting certain price points, etc – and as well, will be looking for feedback on these items from both current and prospective customers.
- I am a pretty out spoken person on several topics (business, society, sports, etc) and sometimes I just feel the need to express my pleasure or frustration or shear aggravation with something. What better way to get something off my chest and hope that a few may stumble across it and read it
Well, that’s it. I am not certain I can be any more transparent than what I have written above. My chief intention with this blog is to be blunt, honest and heck, even sometimes a little confrontational if it gets my point across – however, the key points are blunt and honest. I have always lived my life this way (for better or for worse) and I have no intentions of changing now. Hope who ever stumbles upon this blog enjoys – and please – don’t hesitate to fire back if you disagree, have a different perspective or just think I am flat out wrong – my only request is to do so professionally and intelligently – and you will receive the same respect back from me.
