Many of our readers have years of experience in their respective business and they’re successful at it. For some years they have heard about the importance of being “online” but many are scared to leap into this as they don’t really understand it.
We interviewed Ing. Antoine Sciberras, who holds a business advisory role at Melita, and who, together with his team, assists business customers on a daily basis – from corner shops to multi-national companies – to put their business on the internet super highway.
What are the technology considerations that a business owner or manager should consider when taking a business online?
A good starting point is to understand that an online business runs on principles very similar to the traditional bricks-and-mortar retail business. First and foremost you want to make sure that your “shop” is as close as possible to your customers. A business owner also wants to ensure that his outlets can handle the traffic, especially when very busy, without affecting the customer experience.
So, when taking your business online it is important to choose a hosting provider, which would be referred to as a data centre or co-location service, that ideally stands as close to your client base as possible. If you’re operating in Malta, your clients will have a better experience if the website is hosted locally. The provider you choose should also be robust and large enough to handle your traffic – online visitors don’t have the patience to wait for minutes until your page loads. Everything needs to happen in less than seconds.
Ultimately it’s about delivering a quality customer experience which is fast as well as safe so as to maximise your revenue opportunity.
Is it just about the technology?
As always, the technology is an enabler. But you do need to make sure you choose a provider that can understand your requirements and provide you with a platform that enables your business, and does not inhibit it.
On the high street, you have to make shop windows as attractive as possible. Online, you use things such as videos, images and integration with social media like Facebook. The online consumer wants to have a fast and reliable interaction, an online experience which helps their purchasing decision. This experience also needs to be safe.
The provider you choose to deliver your services should have enough internet capacity and connectivity to deliver a smooth experience to the online user. The location where your data and that of your customers is stored needs to be secured and in a monitored and protected environment.
Do the technology decisions change if our readers are planning on exporting their business through use of online presence?
If you’re catering for an international audience you want their experience to be as quick and smooth as possible. In this case the operator you choose should have as big an international reach as possible and connected to the best “internet highways”.
How does Melita fulfill these requirements?
Melita has been around for over 20 years now and continuously invests in its internet connectivity and infrastructure. In the last years we have seen the deployment of nationwide fibre-powered broadband ensuring ultra-high speed connectivity to the Internet with speeds of up to 100 megabits per second. This infrastructure ensures that there is always enough local capacity to ensure a smooth experience for your local online clients.
Similarly Melita has invested in state-of-the-art data centre services, which, coupled with nationwide fibre optic connectivity, are able to provide high resiliency to businesses seeking to fulfill business continuity and disaster recovery requirements. This also ensures that local customers get to your online presence as quickly as possible.
Melita is also connected directly in Milan to a Tier 1 international operator – Level 3 – just one of six in the world – ensuring a high-speed, low-delay connectivity that delivers an unparalleled experience.
These factors are coupled with the continuous presence of Melita’s business advisory team and years of experience in the field. Our team supports businesses throughout the complete relationship, starting off with the initial discussion about the company’s technical and commercial requirements through the delivery process and throughout the lifetime of the relationship.
About the Malta eBusiness Seminar
CSB Group and MIM (The Malta Institute of Management) have joined forces to co-organise the first Malta eBusiness Seminar. The event will be held at the Westin Dragonara Hotel on 2 May.
Businesses of all sizes in all sectors are using the internet in many different ways – to work with partners and suppliers, for procurement, for internal activities such as knowledge-sharing, new sales channels and new product development, among others. This seminar explores the benefits and challenges of ebusiness.
For more information about The Malta eBusiness Seminar, registration and sponsorship opportunities visit www.ebusinessmalta.com or contact MIM membership executive Nicola Mizzi on [email protected] or CSB Group marketing executive Diane Borg Bascetta on [email protected]