Prepare for your new Hostway communication solution.
OX App Suite is almost here, and all current Hostway email and web hosting customers will be upgraded. This new solution will give our customers a more efficient portal, a better-performing platform and an improved user experience. Users will simply need to click on the link provided in the launch email to access OX App Suite.
Customers who need more than our basic OX Mail offering can sign up for some advanced features with OX Collaborate, including Shared Contacts, Calendars & Tasks, ActiveSync Files, and Online File Storage & Collaboration.
OX App Suite provides a modern, feature-rich, centralized email and collaboration setup for small to medium-sized businesses:
OX App Suite gives you an enterprise communication platform for all devices, enabling you to bring your digital lives together.
If you’re already a customer on this product, be on the lookout for an email containing details about how to login to your new email solution.
Learn more about all the elegant features included in this new solution by attending our live demo of your email solution on August 20 at noon CT.
Email remains the king of business communication even as the way employees connect with their resources changes. Now, almost half of all emails are opened on mobile devices, according to Litmus Software research. This represents a staggering increase in just four years.
In addition to largely ditching the desktop in favor of mobile device capabilities, users are also demanding more from their email services. It's not enough to simply send and receive messages. Users require access to their accounts from any device, at any time, and security is paramount.
For all these reasons and more, email hosting has become a critical part of enterprise communication infrastructure. But what's encouraging businesses to switch to hosted solutions?
Crafting a brand image
There are more than a few free email services out there that seem to have all the basics covered. These might suffice for the run of the mill user, but businesses need something more robust.
Using a hosted email service helps convey professionalism, and builds brand trust. Hosted email enables users to leverage specialized IDs and branding so that the company's name is prominently featured. This goes beyond a simple signature, and can assure customers that they are working with a well-established brand.
Is hosted email more secure?
Data protection is a top priority in nearly every industry, and users are utilizing email to send increasingly sensitive materials. This translates to boosted security needs to ensure that company-owned resources and information remain protected.
With a hosted email service, administrators can worry less about what details or attachments they are sending and focus more on their essential business processes. Hostway's hosted email, for example, includes firewall protection, secure HTTPS connections, SSL encryption and spam and antivirus filtering to help ensure that even the most determined unauthorized user is kept out.
Never run out of inbox space
We've all been there: The available space in the inbox is filling up quickly, but you have important information and files stored there. You have to decide between deleting messages, storing data elsewhere or finding another solution entirely.
Hosted email services help put this problem to rest with scalable resources that can be increased on demand. If you're nearing capacity, you can simply reach out to your hosted email provider to increase the available space. It also means you can keep all those important work files, as well as all the adorable cat memes your co-worker likes to send.
Can hosted email be accessed from outside the office?
Hosted email also includes the added benefit of anywhere, anytime access. With a partner like Hostway, administrators can rest easy knowing that their email resources will always be available. This not only alleviates downtime concerns, but also empowers staff members that work outside the office. The hosted email service is easily accessible with the proper credentials, ensuring workers can operate from their home office or the road while keeping data secure.
Go beyond messaging
We all know what a powerful tool email can be. But today's users need to do more than just send messages. Thanks to robust platforms like Microsoft Exchange, employees can boost their efficiency and productivity through a range of beneficial tools. These include the ability to schedule meetings and share a whole host of materials like important files, contact information and calendars. No more silos here: just one, streamlined platform that addresses all your communication needs.
To find out more about how hosted email can benefit your business, contact Hostway today.
Application hosting has been around for a number of years now, and many of its benefits are widely known. Current and prospective customers know that application hosting can save money and boost productivity. But, there are still a few facts and advantages that you might not know about.
Today, we will take a look at the lesser-known side of application hosting, including the benefits that are not often mentioned, current market conditions and capabilities that help further a brand's success.
There is very little risk with application hosting
Many companies considering application hosting are under the impression that once a contract is signed, that's it, they are locked in for the duration. While this may be the way a small percentage of vendors do business, many providers offer trial periods or pay-as-you-go plans, providing companies with more flexibility. This way, enterprises and their IT teams can test the waters to make sure that the style of application hosting they have chosen will be the best fit for their organization. No buyer's remorse here.
Application hosting allows for faster software deployment
Another advantage of application hosting is that this arrangement can enable speedy and streamlined deployment of new platforms through the cloud. When compared to rolling out new software in an on-premises environment, hosted applications win the race by a mile. A cloud-based, hosted app can be implemented and made accessible in a matter of minutes. An on-premises deployment could take hours or even days depending on the complexity of the company's IT environment. Especially in the case of a new critical app, speed of deployment is key.
Other solutions can be easily integrated
Hosted solutions are often viewed in a vacuum. However, this is not how they will exist within the enterprise. Siloed systems can cause considerable hurdles for users needing to access and leverage disparate technologies. Hosted applications, on the other hand, can easily be integrated with other solutions – even legacy systems leveraging an Internet browser can be linked. This offers a unified, integrated solution set for employees, making it easier to complete critical tasks and do their jobs.
Small businesses are increasingly looking to implement application hosting
Many smaller organizations may still believe that advanced technologies and emerging strategies were simply out of their reach. Now that solutions like application hosting have developed and become more popular, even SMBs are reaping the benefits. WorldCloudNews noted that the SMB industry is increasingly seeking out application hosting services, illustrating how this approach can be advantageous in nearly any setting.
Hostway is a leading provider of application hosting services
It is always important to have a knowledgeable, professional partner by your side, especially in the case of application hosting. Hostway is a leader in the application hosting space, differentiating itself through unmatched experience, reliability, customization and support. Hostway offers a range of options to ensure that every business's need is met, including those related to software-as-a-service, custom applications and legacy systems. Hostway prides itself on providing the right environment to suit any company's unique situation.
To find out more, contact Hostway today.
Previously, we outlined how to evaluate a company's compliance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. In this piece, we'll take a look at the essentials to keep in mind with communication solutions, and in particular, email.
GFI noted that several industry regulations and governing bodies — including the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, HIPAA, the Food and Drug Administration, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority and the National Association of Securities Dealers — have special requirements when it comes to companies' email solutions. Each of these necessitate that businesses have a searchable email archive to ensure transparency in connection with corporate communications and other dealings. For this reason, organizations operating under or in conjunction with these rules and groups must have specialized email systems in place.
Here are a few crucial factors to consider when it comes to compliant email and communication solutions:
Protected communications archive
As noted above, firms must have a searchable archive of their communications on hand, both to comply with industry standards, and to provide for auditors. When an audit takes place, the company must prove they have followed regulations. Having an archive of all communication including all emails and messages sent and received streamlines the audit.
However, storing this information can offer a valuable hacking target. Thus, the archive should be protected by authentication credentials — two-factor where possible. This can ensure that only authorized viewers are able to see the records.
Security for each message
In addition to protecting the message storage system, company managers should also adequately secure each individual message being transmitted. A best-of-breed email platform will have advanced encryption in place at the point of sending, which can prevent messages from being intercepted. Hosted email systems, such as the compliant-ready solutions offered by Hostway, have this capability built in.
Encryption is particularly important considering the incredibly sensitive information corporate emails can contain. For instance, employees may need to send a list of customer details to another staff member or partner. As the list may contain names, email addresses or payment information pertaining to consumers, protection — which falls in line with industry regulations — is needed to ensure the safety of this data.
Compliance when sending commercial emails
In addition to considering emails sent to and from the company's employees and its partners, decision-makers must also take into account the messages they send for marketing purposes. According to the Federal Trade Commission, these must follow the CAN-SPAM Act, which provides rights for the recipients of commercial messages.
As email campaigns become more prevalent, it is paramount to ensure compliance with CAN-SPAM. When sending out emails for marketing purposes, senders must maintain the following requirements:
Overall, taking these items into consideration will help guarantee that messages are secure and compliant with the regulations governing the organization's industry.
Communication is a cornerstone of corporate activities in any era or industry. Co-workers, partnering organizations and customers must be able to reach out and connect with one another in order to ensure smooth transactions and other business dealings. Although there is little doubting the importance of being able to communicate both internally and externally, many companies are still facing significant issues when it comes to this all-important function.
The problem's nothing new, either: A 2012 Forrester study underlined the obstacles that many firms deal with when it comes to communication, particularly with integrating and using new platforms to connect with stakeholders and consumers. In fact, Forrester found that, at the time, many organizations still used legacy communication technology for their main purposes.
"[A]ll are worried about smart devices, pervasive video and social media that give new power to customers — allowing them to interact easily with customer service agents, pass information electronically and complete business transactions on the run," Forrester stated. "[T]here is a disturbing communications gap that is getting worse by the day…[L]egacy systems that still dominate communications as a significant barrier to support modern communications."
While aging technology platforms are a serious hindrance, they aren't the only communication problem companies deal with.
Study shows common business communication pain points
According to Entrepreneur, there are several pain points that the majority of companies — from large enterprises to small- and mid-size organizations — face when it comes to their communications:
1. Waiting for the proper information to be communicated
2. Dealing with unwanted communications
3. Dealing with inefficient communications
4. Addressing barriers that hamper communications
5. Dealing with customer complaints
This study also found that the 70 percent of SMBs that experience these issues also see 17.5 hours of unproductive work time during the average week, translating to an approximate total loss of $26,041 each year. This time comes in direct connection with these pain points, illustrating the damaging effect insufficient communications have on a typical organization.
"SMBs need to enlist the most efficient and value-added technologies to enhance their business," noted a technology report from TDS. "Just because a communications system isn't 'broken' doesn't mean that it is working. Now is the time to look into leveraging resources with business communications technologies to gain increased productivity and create an integrated system for communication with employees, vendors, prospects and clients."
Addressing pain points through new technologies
As noted previously, many companies' communications are held back by legacy technology. Upgrading such solutions can be a crucial investment, but communication technologies rapidly shift, making it difficult to determine what your company might need. According to VMblog contributor Curtis Peterson, 2015 will bring a number of communication changes that businesses must be ready for, including:
• Reduced use of desktop and laptop computers
• Increased utilization of cloud-based applications
• Increased use of virtual meetings
• Company-provided mobile devices for employees
• Strengthened security for BYOD
• Reduced utilization of on-premise technologies
In this way, many corporate communications needs will revolve around ensuring staff mobility through hand-held devices and cloud applications.
"The cloud has more than changed business in 2015, it's completely restructured the way we work, access information and perform business tasks on a daily basis," Peterson wrote. "The growth of the Internet of Things and the rise of the mobile workforce will only continue to spur this rapid change."
In order to deal with these changes, companies should leverage the services of an industry-leading cloud and communications provider like Hostway today.
Modern businesses simply cannot do without the applications that keep processes humming along. These programs can encompass a whole host of operations – from inventory and supply chains to client relationship management – but each app needs the proper support.
When decision-makers examine their options for hosting applications, whether in-house or outsourced to a service provider, several considerations should guide their choice. Because applications play such a critical role in today's business processes, factoring in these key aspects is absolutely critical.
1. Current and future storage needs
With application hosting, one of the first factors is how much storage the company will need for its programs both now and in the future. TechTarget contributor Kackie Cohen noted that administrators should ask themselves a few key questions to get an accurate outlook on storage requirements:
Answering these queries can help companies ensure that they have enough space in place, and are not paying for unneeded or unnecessary resources.
2. The level of control
This is an especially important issue, particularly with outsourced application hosting. When a vendor provides this service, they are also responsible for the maintenance and upkeep of the system and the content living there. Mike Maguire, ConvergEx Group managing director of global communications, noted that it is essential that decision-makers understand just what level of control they will have within an outsourced application hosting environment.
"[Y]ou may not have control over maintenance schedules and the like," Maguire wrote. "Make sure you choose a provider who can be flexible given your business requirements."
3. Disaster recovery and business continuity requirements
Businesses should also look into the business continuity plan for disasters or events that might interrupt services. Administrators should have a scheduled backup plan in place with their service provider to ensure that, in these kinds of instances, they will have access to the most up-to-date content possible. Cohen also recommended asking what the process is if the vendor's data center is totally unusable or inaccessible and what the continuity plan would be in such a case.
"Define what is expected to be backed up, how often and when," Cohen advised. "Include files, databases and BCVs. Don't forget to determine how many snaps a day are required for each BCV, and when snaps stored to disk are to be moved to tape."
4. Security needs and protocols
It is also important to note that certain applications, depending on the information they house or are able to access, will have different security requirements. Programs containing lists of client information, for example, should be properly safeguarded to prevent any unauthorized access or data leakage. For this reason, administrators should also consider the security protocols in place within the hosting environment. This is particularly critical with an outsourced provider as decision-makers must make sure that the vendor has protection measures that fit the business's requirements.
5. A complete picture of availability
A hosted application is only useful as long as it is available. Due to this fact, company leaders must also factor in the availability of the environment and any chances of downtime that might be incurred. Cohen recommended looking into every aspect connected with uptime to ensure a complete picture of service availability.
"Key performance indicators are great, but only if they show what is important to you," Cohen noted. "Be sure you define all areas of availability that are important to your organization, including not only the overall level of availability but the core hours during which availability is required."
6. Help desk support
In the event that service is down or users run into another issue with their hosted applications, the company should be sure that they have support resources that they can turn to. The business should identify who is able to call the help desk and who they should notify to report a problem.
With these issues addressed for each potential solution, businesses should be able to make well-informed decisions on housing their applications.
Software as a Service has been around for more than a decade, whether users realize it or not. As company leaders have become increasingly aware of cloud computing and the advantages that hosted infrastructure can offer, SaaS solutions have become more popular. The market has grown considerably over the past few years – and is expected to continue to expand – as more individuals in the corporate space become aware of the range of benefits a hosted SaaS architecture can provide.
ZDNet contributor Charles McLellan noted that, though SaaS is now viewed as a mainstream technology, it wasn't until the launch of some of the widely-utilized systems around 2000 - including Salesforce's flagship customer relationship management system - that the movement began to take hold.
"Software as a Service (SaaS), the best-known branch of cloud computing, is a delivery model in which applications are hosted and managed in a service provider's data center, paid for on a subscription basis and accessed via a browser over an Internet connection," McLellan wrote.
SaaS market by the numbers
As SaaS solutions become commonplace in several industries, the market has felt the effects. IDC research shows that SaaS technologies are projected to constitute a quarter of all new enterprise software purchases by 2016, while PWC estimates that SaaS delivery will make up approximately 14.2 percent of all software spending. Overall, the entire SaaS market is projected to expand at a compound annual growth rate of 21.3 percent over the next two years.
However, because SaaS solutions include such a wide range of systems, it is also valuable to examine these individual sections of the market, which are experiencing varied rates of growth. According to Reportlinker.com, the global CRM SaaS market will expand at a 20.83 CAGR until 2018. During the same time period, the global enterprise resource planning SaaS market will grow by 13.80 percent.
Some of the most significant growth will come during the next year, according to Gartner findings. According to PCWorld, researchers estimated that the SaaS sector will be worth more than $22 billion through 2015. This is a considerable increase from 2012's $14 billion value.
Trumba noted that Bill Gates once called SaaS the "next sea change [that] is upon us," and it seems that others have taken notice of the emerging trend as well and will continue to contribute to its growth.
SaaS advantages: The reason for the change
As companies continue to shift away from application providers and toward hosted SaaS solution vendors, it is interesting to examine the benefits offered by SaaS systems are the main reason for this change.
"Why this shift – some analysts describe it as a 'tectonic shift' – from licensed software that organizations install and maintain on their own computers to web-hosted solutions to which organizations subscribe?" Trumba asked. "The shift is occurring because organizations like yours benefit when vendors offer software as a web-hosted service."
So what are some of the benefits SaaS solutions can offer?
However, SaaS solution benefits are only as good as the provider offering them. Company leaders should rely on a trusted SaaS vendor like Hostway. We can guarantee that all the advantages SaaS solutions have to offer are always available to you and your organization.
While a range of avenues have cropped up in recent years that allow people to connect with one another in new ways, hosted email solutions are still considered the king of business communication. Hosted email is such a critical part of a company's contact infrastructure, yet many continue to downplay its role, or leverage a new system instead. While there are no doubt several different options when it comes to business communication, email is still oftentimes the best.
Demand Media's Kristie Lorette pointed out that there are specific situations where email is the ideal form of communication to deliver the needed abilities and benefits. On some occasions, text messages and free mail solutions just won't cut it; the user needs a reliable communication avenue that will ensure supported collaboration between the sender and receiver.
The best situations for email
When it comes time to send blanket messages to an entire staff, no other platform is better suited than email. Additionally, this form of communication can provide added advantages in this type of setting as well.
"Sending simple messages to an entire workforce with just the click of a mouse is fast, easy. convenient and can save the company money," Lorette wrote. "If saved, the email can function as proof of a message sent or received, and is easily accessible to remind the recipient of pertinent information."
Top benefits offered by hosted email: Instant communication
But the advantages of a hosted email system in a corporate setting don't end there. Demand Media's Kyra Sheahan also noted the reduced communication timeframe offered by email systems. The technology has all but eliminated fax as a means of sending documents due to the speed and ease with which such tasks can be carried out. Furthermore, in many cases, it is much more professional and reliable than other avenues, like SMS or free mail messages.
"In just a click of a button, businesses can send time-sensitive information to anyone in the world and the recipient gets the message almost instantaneously," Sheahan wrote. "This type of fast, effective exchange allows people to stay on top of projects, respond to communication requests with more efficiency and be more productive."
Mobile workforce accessibility
Hosted email is also the preferred communication platform in offices supporting remote workforce members. These are a unique breed of workers that need to remain in constant contact with their colleagues and have to reliably access mission-critical materials at all times no matter their location. What other system can provide these abilities like hosted email? With a hosted email solution in place, even the most distant staff members can remain in the loop with the rest of the company. And with a hosted email solution provider like Hostway on hand, administrators can be sure that the system is always on and always accessible.
Marketing potential
In addition to replacing aging technology, email has also taken the place of many by-mail advertising campaigns. Instead of creating a costly, physical ad to send out to individuals by snail mail, companies are now more often engaging in email ad campaigns. As users now have the option to receive nearly every message digitally, this is a smart move on the part of these businesses. Not only are email campaigns more cost-effective, but they also have the potential to reach a larger portion of the market.
This is the third blog of "Staying 2 Steps Ahead of the Performance of Your Magento Site," a series of five entries from Hostway partner Cynch, an expert on optimization and a leading migration and IT management agency.
Many bootstrap organizations are familiar with the endless perks of using Magento as their preferred e-commerce platform. But, as we all know, these businesses are also usually “strapped” for cash in their infancy. In many cases, they initially choose to deploy their websites on economical shared hosting solutions, dedicating a similar monthly budget to hosting as they might to their coffee supply.
There are two scenarios that generally cause you to consider upgrading to a dedicated hosting solution: increased products or increased traffic. Growing into a dedicated server deployment gives you a lot of flexibility and benefits:
No More Noisy Neighbors: Shared solutions host lots of other websites. Those have the potential to be stingy with system resources, get a ton of traffic, have security holes in them, and so on. When looking out for the success of your online presence, it’s better to be a hermit and not play at the same playground as your neighbors – there’s less risk and more guarantees that way.
You Can Be a Control Freak: I’m sorry, but website hosting isn’t like your favorite baseball cap: one size doesn’t fit all. As the other Cynch blogs in this series have indicated, the benefits of tuning your service stack are endless. Your shared hosting provider has to accommodate the masses, so chances are they are not going to cater to any special requests.
Prepare for the Rush: Once all the hard work and money you’ve poured into social media, advertising and content creation pay off, the last thing you want is to be unprepared for higher volumes. A shared hosting solution can only be economical to its provider if they either place quality of service restrictions on their tenants or simply let every one run rampant (refer to the first point in this discussion). You will hit a ceiling with what your shared hosting solution can handle – don’t wait too long to decide to move.
The moral of the story: drink less expensive coffee, and spend that money on a dedicated server for your growing Magento e-commerce website.
We hope you are enjoying the series so far. In our next installment, “Making the Move to Split Web & Database Servers,” we will discuss the advantages of splitting those servers, and how to get even more speed out of your configuration.
Businesses are increasingly migrating to the cloud because of the flexibility, cost savings and other related benefits. Cloud adoption figures are already high and are projected to rise further. IDC predicts that in 2014, cloud spending, including cloud services and the technology to enable these services, will surge by 25 percent, reaching over $100 billion. Moreover, Gartner predicts that from 2013 through 2016, $677 billion will be spent on cloud services worldwide (figures include cloud advertising, which accounts for about half of that growth).
But before business owners sign on the dotted line, they need to understand their objectives, the expected ROI associated with moving to the cloud, and the risks that go along with it. Doing so will increase the chance of not only a successful migration, but also long-term success. Finding the right balance between reducing risk and maximizing value is important, but not always clear-cut. There are several questions businesses should ask themselves before determining if they're ready to go to the cloud.
1. What is my expected ROI? Return on Investment (ROI) is the savings expected to result from moving to the cloud compared with a company’s existing costs. A thorough analysis is needed, taking into consideration the following elements:
2. Which of my applications need additional protection? Many companies haven't thought about classifying their information assets, but it's an important part of moving applications to the cloud. Identifying, classifying and protecting information at all levels will facilitate the move. This includes taking into account requirements for physical and technical security, as well as procedural and legal requirements.
3. Have I thought about how my applications with perform in the cloud? Although businesses may adopt new applications when they move to the cloud, it's likely they will first look to migrate existing applications. Existing code may need to be refactored because of the differences in the underlying architecture of cloud-hosted applications and systems. Code refactoring is often done to optimize the performance of a cloud application and needs to be considered when changing to a different infrastructure architecture.
4. Who will monitor the performance of my applications? Testing and monitoring does not stop after a successful deployment to the cloud. If the performance of the application or system affects your business, monitoring will remain a critical part of your processes. You can continue to monitor those assets yourself, or utilize the capabilities of your cloud provider.
5. What will I do if something goes wrong? You test and test, and everything is fine. But your planning needs to consider how you will respond if you deploy an application in a cloud environment, it experiences issues, and you have to roll it back. It happens, and how you respond is critical.
Despite all of the positives associated with moving applications to the cloud, it's not for every business. However, by asking the right questions as part of the planning process, and carefully weighing the risks and rewards, many businesses will see a tremendous benefit from cloud adoption.