2008
Research reveals hosting is often a last minute consideration
April 7 2008
Research has revealed that hosting comes bottom of the list when it comes to allocating time in any website design project, leaving award winning design and leading edge applications at risk of failure.
Independent research commissioned by NetBenefit and The British Interactive Media Association (BIMA) has revealed that new media agencies spend 26% of their time creating applications for their clients’ sites and 27% of their time on design but only 10% on the hosting infrastructure that will enable the website, online application or digital campaign to be seen by its target audience.
Of the agencies that took part in the research only 17% thought that hosting providers always understand what their client’s website is trying to achieve, suggesting the two key suppliers in the delivery of websites, online applications and digital campaigns are not working closely enough together.
The research was conducted in late 2007 amongst a cross section of new media agencies, with 10% having more than 50 employees and 85% less than 20 employees.
Commenting on the findings of the research, Jonathan Robinson, COO at NetBenefit, says: "Partnering with a managed hosting provider supports agencies in focusing their time on designing and creating great campaigns whilst benefiting from the experience of a specialist. If a hosting expert is brought in at the beginning of a project, they will be able to build the appropriate capacity and performance into the hosting infrastructure to ensure the website remains available irrespective of traffic peaks and number of hits. Agencies and hosting providers should work together throughout the project – a common mistake is to put off a project’s hosting considerations until the last minute when the design and application has already been created and opportunities missed."
In response to the research, NetBenefit has put together a list of ten tips for agencies to think about when selecting a managed hosting provider:
1. Flexibility to provide hosting solutions to fit individual client requirements.
2. Ability to design and deliver a solution that can scale as the campaign or website grows.
3. A hosting provider that has the capacity to scale with your business’ needs in terms of datacentre space and support.
4. Professional technical support 24x7.
5. Flexibility to always deliver required bandwidth.
6. Proven experience in working with agencies.
7. Focus on managed hosting rather than wider range of IT services.
8. Dedicated account managers with a good understanding of multiple agency projects
9. A Service Level Agreement that provides the guaranteed level of network uptime, replacement services and support to provide peace of mind.
10. Guaranteed levels of network uptime to ensure your client’s website or digital campaign is available.
For further information about the research please contact Emily Gallagher or Jonathan Bawden, Portfolio Communications – 0207 240 6959 or netbenefit@portfoliocomms.com
