Eco-Office Gals» customer service

Your Hosting DOES make a difference!

Jen — Sun, 20 Jun 2010 17:33:30 +0000

Web Hosting is on my mind this weekend. I’ve been dealing with a few different web hosting companies that clients are already signed up for and I’ve had numerous issues. Big Mistake: Don’t just go with the company that charges the least. Bigger mistake: Don’t assume the companies that charge more know more. Read reviews, ask around. I’m going to give you to examples today, I will hold the name of the hosts, I’m not THAT mean!

Example #1:

This was only a minor thing, but it’s causing an issue. Host #1 has already rolled out WordPress 3.0 in it’s script. Although WP 3.0 hasn’t seemed too troubled, plug ins and themes are just not ready yet. So, the issue, I am testing a theme for a client and the header is not showing. Said theme admin is telling me it’s a WP 3.0 bug that they’re working on. No big deal, hopefully they fix it quick and we can move on. However, Host #1 jumped the gun a bit and others may have bigger issues then I.

Example #2:

This case is a HUGE issue. POOR CUSTOMER SERVICE! I spent 3 days dealing with CSR’s that were clearly guessing when trying to resolve the issue at hand. They were re-doing what I had already done just to confirm what I already knew to be the issue, then they had no solution! A “ticket” was made to a higher level service request with the promise of a response of 24-48 hours… What?! When a site is down you don’t just tell me you’ll get back to me in a day or 2! I will not take that back to my clients and be ok with it! They’re service is cheap and they’re knowledge is cheaper!

Example #3:

Client or Terrorist? One of my clients was hacked by very proud radicals for the SECOND time this year. Apparently, it wasn’t just the client but ALL of the sites hosted by host #3! Instead of family friendly recipes the site proclaimed to be hacked in the name of Allah for a day and a half. For this to happen 2x in one year host #3 is clearly not run on a secure system!

The Solution

There are some affiliate I stand behind 200% and one of them is my hosting company – Host Gator. I have had them over 2 years now. In 2 years, I was hacked once, but HostGator had me up in minutes, we changed a few passwords and set a tracking on my site so they could catch the IP address, should the culprit try to attack again. Knock on wood, I have not had another issue since. Second, their uptime is phenomenal, I have only had the site down 1 time, at 3am for server service and not for long.

Ongoing praises bring me to their Customer Service, 24/7 I know I can call them and get the answers I need by someone that knows what the problem is and how to fix it! They’re not going to pass me down the line for a few days until they may or may not find someone that has a clue.

I did my homework when I was looking for a host. I knew I wanted a green host and HostGator is 130% windpowered, but I knew it had to go beyond just the turbines. I know I picked a top notch company when I picked HostGator and I am glad I shopped around.

Not happy with your current host? Consider moving to HostGator with 99.9% Uptime Guarantee, No Contract with a 45 Day Money Back Guarantee, Free Website & Domain Transfer, you will have a company you can trust!

Use Coupon Code: ecoofficegals for $9.94 off the package price.

Post from: Eco-Office Gals

Your Hosting DOES make a difference!

Green Options: Web Hosting

Jen — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 15:23:16 +0000

Hosting websites takes HUGE amounts of energy. You may not think of it when you sit in your home office and your host serves is located in some other state. However, if you ever have a chance to go to a corporate office that has their own servers, take a walk in the room. I guarantee…. it will be sub zero in there, bet you thought I would say hot right? No, they keep it climate controlled at super cold levels so the servers don’t over heat.

Many people choose their web host for various reasons. Cost, uptime, features available, etc. Although, you may not take the time to consider where the energy comes from when you are deciding.

There are several options for green hosting, here are a few for you to check out:

HostGator: When I started Eco-Office Gals, HostGator was recommended because I was going to be using WordPress for my platform. However, when I checked out the site and saw they had recently made the move to wind powered hosting, I felt it was a good fit for me. My choice has been very satisfying, they have top notch customer service and were quick to follow me on Twitter and offer assistance when I sent out a question to my followers!

The basics:

130% Wind powered from local Texas wind farms. They’re not just neutralizing our environmental impact, they’re reversing it!
Green-e Certified RECs: All of HostGators REC’s have been registered, verified, and retired from the market.

Flaunt It! Monday Sponsorship

Jen — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 18:10:51 +0000

What is it?

Eco-Office Gals is always looking for small businesses growing green. The Flaunt It! Monday series is where Eco-Office Gals reviews your eco-friendly product and business and offers a giveaway for readers to get to know you, your product and your website and enter for a chance to win your product. I do not take payment for these reviews and giveaways, I may include certain facts at your request about your product but I will not lie or give an opinion that is not my own. It has yet to happen, but should I completely dislike your product I will contact you and give you the option of not having me post the review and giveaway.

Please see detailed Giveaway Guidelines.

Who makes a good sponsor?

If you have a TRULY green product and want it flaunted, you make a good sponsor. If you want an honest, unrehearsed review of your product, you make a good sponsor. My reading audience is mainly female, moms, small business owners, and greenies but we also have a readership of all genders, age range and backgrounds.

What do I need from you?

I need you to contact me with your product or site information. If your product is a good fit you will send the item agreed on to Eco-Office Gals for review. If I do not feel your product, company, organization or group is eco-friendly and something readers would like to know about, I reserve the right to not accept your product and will not do a review or post on my site.

When Eco-Office Gals flaunts you and announces the winner (giveaway runs for 3 days), I will then forward the winning email to you. You will then be responsible for getting the prize out to the winner promptly. Products sent to me for review will not be returned or forwarded to the winner.

What’s in it for you?

You will be flaunted for 3 days. Eco-Office Gals submits the giveaway to various online giveaway sites, twitter and other social networking groups. I drive traffic to your site by asking the reader to visit your site as part of the entry. They will be asked to comment about their favorite product, facts about your product or business or find a location where your product can be found in their area. You are given a 125×125 ad spot in my sidebar for the entire month of the giveaway. I link back to your site several times within the post. My site receives 500-600 unique visits per day during these giveaways. I have a 4/10 Google PR and 210,754 alexa rank. I review not only your product, but your site, customer service and anything else I feel worthy of mention.

My goal for Flaunt It! Monday is quite simple, word of mouth is the best advertising. I want to get my thoughts out about your product. If my readers know about your product they will, hopefully, use the greener choices you bring to them the next time they need to make a purchase.

See previous Flaunt It! Monday Posts.

Grow Green!

Post from: Eco-Office Gals

Flaunt It! Monday Sponsorship

Tweetin’ Twitter

Jen — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 13:34:03 +0000

So, today I bring you my thoughts about Twitter… you’ve heard me speak of it countless time. I’ve found several great green businesses, clients and so much more on Twitter. My relaunch was almost completely brought together by Twitter followers! My Flaunt It! Monday series continues to be sponsored by people I have found or have found me on Twitter. An estimated 50% of my growing traffic comes from Twitter.

So, What can Twitter do for your business? It can make or break you, it can put your business on the hot seat in an instant … No, I’m not kidding! Heard of the Motrin Moms? Or the Chris Brogan and the Kmart/Izea uproar?

On a smaller scale I had some issues with Direct TV about 2 weeks ago, I called, I complained, I got no where. Meanwhile, as I complained on the phone I was complaining on Twitter… it was 6am and they were saying I owed $260 for 6 days of service and had cut me off, I was not a happy camper. So, a few hour later Direct TV was following me and within 24 hours and several tweets back and forth my account went from $260 to -$4.22… now THAT is customer service! Thank you!!

So, what can you do today to grow your business green? Get a Twitter account! Find great green businesses and tweeple & learn from them. Say no to paper fliers, say no to business cards, forget newspaper ads and articles! Grow your business online through social media! How? Start by reading 50 Ideas On Using Twitter For Business.

After that… Follow me!

Grow Green,

Jen

Post from: Eco-Office Gals

Tweetin’ Twitter