NetWorthy Systems Blog

Yesterday was a holiday for employees of Networthy Systems. I worked in the office anyway, and when I arrived I noticed I had a voicemail waiting for me. I casually hit the button to listen to the voicemail, and much to my surprise, there was a woman from a small town north of our Beaumont offices demanding to know why I was stealing her business.

Below is the transcript of the voicemail, quoted word for word.

"Hi, this is *****   ********* from ********   ****. My issue is that you are using my domain name to direct business from people that search for my company to your business, which I would like to know why you're doing this. My number is *******. I'm sure ******   ********* would like to speak with you about this. So, give us a call back please."

Now, I don't know how most small business owners conduct their business, but I can tell you that I would never leave a voicemail like that for another business owner, even if they were guilty (which, of course, I'm not)  I politely called her back, and she proceeded to tell me that she had been doing "research" on this, and she would trust me if I told her that I wasn't doing this. To put this in plain english, she has no idea what she is saying, but she knows she is wrong, and she is not going to apologize. Instead she is going to make excuses, try to make up some techno-babble, and pretend that I might not be telling her the truth.

For the record, if she was a true web page designer, she would know what she was accusing me of was virtually impossible. And she didn't even take the time to research our website. If she had, she would have found that we don't even compete with them. We look for smart businesses, that know they need IT support and Proactive maintenance, and also know they should leave it to professionals. We don't even have a retail store front!!

I was perhaps abrupt with her, and for that, I must apologize. I just don't take unfounded, ridiculous accusations lightly.

After all, is it my fault that our web page is optimized so that a google search shows our company before hers? After all, the word "computer" returns over 922 MILLION hits!

Please don't run your business in this manner. It certainly won't make you a trusted professional!

To Your Success,

Tim Beard

The podcast on digital photography is now posted on  Geek Free Radio. This show originally aired on March 2, 2010. Tim interviews Danny Keffer of Keffer's Photography regarding digital photography and the advances made over the last few years. If you get you megapixels confused with your megabytes, then this show is for you!

The podcast regarding Email encryption, archiving, and SPAM prevention is now available for listening at Geek Free Radio. Tim Beard interviews Scott Barlow, VP at Reflexion Networks regarding new Federal and state laws about sending personal identifiable information via electronic means. They also discuss the merits of automatic archiving of all email communications in your company, and how you can combat SPAM as well. If you are responsible for a business, you'll want to listen to this podcast!

The podcast for online banking safety is now available at Geek Free Radio. I interviewed Scott Sims from Education First Federal Credit Union in Beaumont. Scott is the VP of Information Systems at the Credit Union, and is responsible for the safety of the network. Excellent interview regarding online banking, security, safety, along with some good tips on staying safe while accessing your accounts

According to an article in the Wall Street Journal, Barnes & Noble will announce a new e-book reader tomorrow. It's dubbed the "Nook" and this color reader will retail for $259

Some other sources on the internet are saying that B&N are partnering with Best Buy to boost sales of the new product. Sources are also saying it will be available in Best Buy stores on Thursday, which just happens to coincide with Windows 7 Launch Day. That's either incredibly smart, or incredibly stupid, if it's true.

One of the unique features touted is the ability to "lend" books to friends. I'm not sure exactly what this entails, but none of the other e-book readers on the market have this feature. If you want the details from the WSJ, click here.

To Your Success,

Tim