Have you ever thought about how current events might affect your bandwidth needs? I was reading an article on CNN’s website about the untimely death of Michael Jackson and the effects it had on Internet traffic. CNN claimed to have had a fivefold increase in traffic after Jackson’s passing. They reported 20 MILLION page views the HOUR the story broke. 20 million, in one hour. It made me think how an unforeseen news event could impact a business’ bandwidth needs.

Google, which has one of the largest infrastructures on the Internet, reported that news.google.com users were complaining that the service was unavailable for a length of time after Jackson’s death as well.  Google news was down; something that I didn’t even know was possible. Twitter also crashed.

What if your cousin is on the news and mentions your website? Do you have enough bandwidth to take advantage in a giant spike of your web traffic? Would you even know what to do? How quickly can you react to avert a problem?

Planning after the fact means you missed an opportunity, or worse, let your customers down. My point is: are you prepared for an unplanned event, good or bad?

Most customers that I speak with daily at VISI ask about how we plan for the worst case scenario. They rarely ask about the best case scenario. What happens to your business if there is a stampede to your server?

Will you be ready?

When VISI decided to transition completely into Exchange 2007, I thought the move was fantastic. It was the best thing for a business with all of its new functionality and options that were not available with Exchange 2003. Then I had an unexpected series of hectic phone calls, which changed my viewpoint of who should use Exchange.

We all live hectic lives. The more successful we are, the less time it seems we have. This was the case a few weeks ago when I got a phone call from a gentleman–let’s name him Bob–who first called me from the middle of a shopping mall during his lunch break. He was multitasking–trying to find information on Exchange 2007 while picking up his dry cleaning. He learned a few pieces of Exchange and SharePoint information before having to hurry off.

The next day, Bob called me from his kid’s soccer game, just before parent/teacher conferences. He wanted to know if there was anything missing from his knowledge of Exchange and its benefits to his small company. We were discussing web-based Exchange and calendar options when he had an epiphany. Bob realized he could use Exchange on his family domain in order to better organize time with his kids. Family means a lot to Bob and now that he is on Exchange, he is happier than ever. He uses the calendar and meeting functions to organize who has sports practice and recitals when, and even to ask his kids to meet up for some family time over dinner. Bob has found a way to utilize the many new technology options to bring him and his family closer together than ever before, while de-cluttering life a little.

Bob, thanks for opening my eyes a little more.

Jason Baker, Chief Technology Officer of VISI, will be presenting this Thursday at TechPulse 2009 on the topic of “Essentials of Cloud Computing”. 

Essentials of Cloud Computing

The move to cloud computing is changing the landscape of IT in significant and far-reaching ways. This quick overview of cloud computing gives you the facts you need, so you can separate the facts from the hype and understand how your company can utilize cloud computing to reduce infrastructure costs while dynamically increasing or decreasing those resources as your needs dictate. 

You can learn more about the event and register for free at www.techpulse2009.com.

The TwinWest Chamber of Commerce has named Mike Sowada, CEO, VISI, as its 2009 Entrepreneur of the Year. Way to go Mike! 

The honor was given at the Small Business Awards Luncheon today emceed by Fox 9 News anchor and reporter Jeff Passolt.

Watch the video below to hear how Mike “jumps in” to take care of business and keeps VISI “fit”.

Each year hundreds of community members gather over lunch to celebrate the entrepreneurial spirit of fellow TwinWest members.  On May 21st, at the TwinWest Small Business Awards Luncheon, they’ll announce the winners of the Entrepreneur of the Year and Emerging Entrepreneur of the Year.  We’re honored to have our own Mike Sowada, CEO of VISI, as one of the three finalists for the Entrepreneur of the Year award.   Each of the finalists offered their tips, techniques and strategies in the latest issue of the TwinWest Directions.

The keynote speaker for the event this year is Bahram Akradi, founder and CEO of Life Time Fitness, Inc.  He will share his vision of taking entrepreneurial fitness challenges.

You can find more details and registration for the event online.