10 New Year's Hosting Resolutions

It's the first month of 2008 and you know what that means. Instead of naming off goals to lose weight, stop smoking, eat organic, and run every morning at 6:30 A.M. what about our tech resolutions? Here's my list for you.

10.  Organize: If you never clean out old directories and files from your servers, what better time than now to get started? Go through your website error logs to clean up files which no longer exist but are still requested, change graphics that may have old dates or other inaccuracies, give your web presence an overall spot check and you will be amazed at how inspired you'll become during the process. As you go along you'll get new ideas of what new features should be added to your site. Do a spot check and brainstorm each month this year and you'll have the most organized and easy to use website ever for your customers. (And how about cleaning up your own desktop? Sheesh... look at all of those icons.)

9.  Apologize: Let's admit that we made mistakes last year. Did you not announce a few things that happened with your company? Did you postpone a feature for too long? If your hosting company has a blog, why not make a post that simply says you are sorry for the downfalls of the previous year and you are committed to setting everything right in 2008. 

8.  Ask: Through polls, blogs, forums and newsletters, ask your customers more questions. Get to know them and see what they think is missing from your services. In this process you will see what they do value the most already and you can work on completing the picture this year. 

7. Give: You do not have to give an iPod away with each dedicated server order, but give back to your customers more this year and show them that you appreciate them. Have contests and giveaways to connect your customers and reward them at the same time. 

6.  Focus: As the day goes by, it's easy to lose track of your ideas, especially when issues pop up with servers or customer situations. Even though we proclaim to be the geekiest of the geeks, it is not a bad idea to keep a notebook or organizer around and actually use a pen sometimes! I have personally found that writing down notes on paper and crossing them off is better than a text file. It's easy for a little text file to get lost behind thirty other windows (which seem to get all of the attention). The paper is always there by your mousepad and you will constantly be reminded it's there. Or, maybe get one of these:

5.  Listen: This goes along with "Ask" but sometimes you have to focus more on hearing what people have to say instead of injecting your own comments. You may miss something important if you are too immediately concerned with what you think about it. Let's say a customer is upset and has sent you a long ticket which makes you feel terrible, do not think of the ways they may be wrong, think of the ways in which they are truly right. Act upon it patiently and in the future, proactively.

4. Progress: Take a look at the features you offer. What have you changed or added in the past two years? In the past year? If you cannot make a list of at least 10 major changes/additions, then it is time to rethink your offerings and create excitement this year.

3. Help: Do you ever find yourself sending a customer a link to a blog post or tutorials site for help with a question? Sure that's the great part about the wealth of information the Internet makes available to us, but you should also create a massive amount of resources on your own site. Not only would this help your customers in-house,  it can also improve your own search engine rankings.

2. Lead: Your customers largely depend on you so this year become your own tech warrior. Be on the lookout for the next big thing, the next best applications, and your customers will benefit like never before. And they'll appreciate your hard work and dedication for bringing them the best new services and features.

1. Relax: It is hard to pull ourselves away from the computer (or stop carrying the laptop everywhere) but if you do not take the time to sit and read a book, take a walk in the park, all to have some quiet time in your mind, you may miss a revolutionary thought. You know, they can pop up at the strangest times! Let all of your experience quietly guide the way into something wonderful for your company in 2008. 

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