A SCOTTISH entrepreneur is embarking on a new mission: to explain ‘the cloud’ and convince small businesses to use it.
It’s something several companies have had a go at, lately.
But Graham Duncan is making more progress than most.
His recently-launched ‘Broadband Cloud Solutions’ has hit upon an innovative idea to get its message across: hand-drawn animated videos explaining cloud computing.
“How do you explain our products such as Hosted Desktop, Hosted Voice and Hosted Apps in a plain, simple and memorable way? They’re actually not that complicated but I’ve seen peoples’ eyes glaze over when I use the ‘techy’ jargon so I wanted to come up with something different to launch this new company. It was actually my daughter who suggested the series of ‘Doodle Ads’ and they tell the story perfectly.”
Duncan commissioned a team of animators to create a series of three, two-minute cartoon videos explaining how BCS products can help small businesses. They are voiced by broadcaster, Colin Kelly, who’s a firm advocate of ‘the cloud’.
“It’s always a shame when something that’s supposed to help people can’t get noticed because no-one understands it,” he says. “Broadband Cloud Solutions cuts through the mystery and jargon and makes it very clear: products like Hosted Desktop, Hosted Voice and Hosted Apps save businesses time and money and the cloud is not something to fear.”
Duncan goes further. He thinks storing business documents on remote servers is actually more secure than most businesses’ current set-up.
“How many stories have you read about people leaving laptops and memory sticks on trains, or in the backs of taxis? What if someone breaks into your office or home and steals your machine or portable hard drive?
“Or you click a link in an email that appears to be from a friend and end up with a virus?
“Using the cloud eliminates these common risks. I totally understand people are concerned about security. But what systems do they have in place to protect their data right now? I’m confident we’ve gone further than they ever will.”
Duncan’s referring to the company’s security system which he likens to Fort Knox.
“Security is actually one of the main reasons customers give us for switching to products like Hosted Desktop. It’s right up there with the ability to work anytime, anywhere. The whole system is built with security at its heart. ISO 27001 and two factor authentication mean only your organisation and even specific people within it can access your data. The robust network features enterprise grade firewalls, anti virus software and intrusion detection.”
That already puts the vast majority of home office and SME set ups to shame but Duncan goes further.
“We hope it never happens but Broadband Cloud Solutions services are designed to be completely secure. I’ve been in this sector a long time and I know it’s not always easy for businesses to make a change, even when it’s clear it’s going to save them time and money.
“So we also physically secure the servers, there is additional hardware to prevent unauthorised access and biometric scanning before anyone can gain access to the server rooms.
“Then there’s climate control, fire suppression and power fail safe systems. If your office suffered the worst-case scenario everything your business has in ‘the cloud‘ would be entirely unaffected. Climate change should make businesses sit up and think about how vulnerable they might be if disaster struck.”
Duncan makes a compelling case for what he hopes will be a shift in the way businesses operate. And he’s adamant his company stands out in what is a competitive market.
“Sometime soon, it’s going to reach critical mass. Most of us are already comfortable using products like Google Mail, iTunes and Amazon. People use ‘the cloud’ everyday without realising. It makes sense to do business there too.
“Think about the amount of time you waste waiting for anti-virus software to update, or new versions of software to download. I’m aiming at businesses employing up to 15 people and our price plans allow them to pick and choose exactly what they want.
“But what really makes us different is the support and customer service we offer. We’re devoted to this. Cloud services is all we do. We’re not trying to sell other products off the back of it like our competitors.”
Duncan has spent a lifetime growing technology companies and hopes Broadband Cloud Solutions will become a leading player in its sector over the next couple of years.
He’s urging any remaining ‘cloud sceptics’ to spend a couple of minutes watching the animated videos which can be seen on the Broadband Cloud Solutions website at www.broadbandcloudsolutions.co.uk and its YouTube channel www.youtube.com/user/broadbandcloud.
But his team will also physically reach out to businesses at this week’s New Start Scotland and Scottish Business Exhibition event at the SECC in Glasgow.
“We won’t be on a stand,” he smiles cryptically. “But we’ll be there. Floating around.”
ENDS
For further information and to arrange an interview please contact Colin Kelly on 07758 211 585 / 01505 863 990 or email colin@colinkelly.net
MEDIA RELEASE posted by Colin Kelly Media. You too can post a media release (aka a press release) on allmediascotland.com. For more information, email here.
Contact: Colin Kelly
Phone: 07758211585
Email: colinkelly2007@gmail.com
Website: http://www.colinkelly.net
