Respondents had strong concerns over compromises made to keep costs down while trying to build for successes.
Seventy-three
percent of SMBs nationwide are unable to handle a 200 percent spike in online
traffic without changes to their Website. That's according to findings of a
survey by Neustar, a provider of directory and Internet infrastructure
solutions. And the number jumps to 93 percent in the case of a 300 percent
increase in traffic.
The
survey, part of a study conducted in March and April of 2011, indicates just
how unprepared SMBs are to cope with rapid business growth, as well as their concerns
around keeping technology costs low versus implementing the best option.
The
survey also found IT's confidence in the infrastructure's ability to handle
increased traffic flow without changes to their current Website wanes as growth
accelerates. More than half the respondents, 55 percent, expressed confidence
that they can handle a twofold increase in traffic, but only 7 percent had the
same confidence that they can handle a 300 percent rise in Website traffic.
The
survey of 300 IT workers at midmarket organizations was conducted online in
partnership between Neustar and Decipher.
Respondents
also had strong concerns over technology compromises made to keep costs down
while trying to build for the successes targeted by management: 30 percent of
the IT professionals surveyed go for savings through "every free or
low-cost service" available, while only 12 percent say they're willing to
fight for an "optimal" solution regardless of cost, and nearly half
the respondents admit they recommend a "best option" to management
but then settle for a compromise.
One
key factor in this equation is DNS management, the foundation of a company's
Web presence, which every online visitor relies on to engage with any large or
small business on the Internet. In fact, 38 percent of the respondents said
they use the DNS service provided by their ISP, while another quarter, 24
percent, rely on a "do-it-yourself" setup, and 16 percent count on a
free, hosted option. While some of these services have come a long way, most
simply don't have the scalability or stability required to keep an online
business running through rapid spurts of growth, the report noted.
"Our
research into this market has shown us the most common problems stemming from a
lack of true scalability and related security-Website downtime and DDoS attacks-and
our specific goal in developing the UltraDNS brand of solutions was to address
exactly these issues," said Alex Berry, senior vice president of Internet
infrastructure services at Neustar. "UltraDNS Basic provides optimal Website
and application performance, while remaining affordable for companies that can
no longer compromise performance and security. The new survey illustrates the
huge market need for these services."
Small
business consultant and columnist Gene Marks said many small businesses,
particularly those powered by online marketing and increasingly dependent on
e-commerce, know they might see spikes in online traffic anytime, but they're
not ready for it. "These firms have become accustomed to free services
with limited capabilities, and this becomes a serious problem when they need to
scale up in a hurry," Marks said. "The market needs more DNS
solutions that are simultaneously affordable, scalable, stable and
secure."
Nathan Eddy is Associate Editor, Midmarket, at eWEEK.com. Before joining eWEEK.com, Nate was a writer with ChannelWeb and he served as an editor at FierceMarkets. He is a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.
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