The pain of outages, for companies and customers

I remember working on an IT helpdesk, responsible for managing technical and administrative issues for multiple large-scale sites. The particular network I worked on was especially large, with desktops, Exchange servers, etc., and the resources to potentially maintain the work flow of sites and keep our clients satisfied. The keyword here is 'potentially', as sites experienced network outages at a rate well beyond reasonable.

When receiving call after call and listening to every voice, no matter how stoic or exasperated, I quickly picked up on a common tone. I heard dissatisfaction, disappointment, a loss of trust and confidence. Not only was I realizing the failure of a system, but also the permanent damage to the reputation of the IT firm that I represented, its purpose to be keeping our clients working.

It's experiences like these that made me want to turn to writing, and because of these experiences I want to point out the importance of having a reliable platform to host whatever your product or service may be. There were a few noteworthy cases of outages that have occurred in 2015: SlingTV and Apple iCloud are two I will use as examples. Both have both experienced outages, leaving many regular users without access to media they would regularly use for a brief period of time. Don’t be misled by 'brief', as I will soon cover why even a brief outage can be damaging to a brand.

In the case of SlingTV, the outage gave an opportunity for competitors like Amazon Prime and Hulu to provide video streaming within SlingTV’s downtime. This is the reality of companies that provide streaming services -- one’s absence is not only a statement on the provider’s (lack of) reliability, but only more power for others seeking to gain the attention of viewers.

In another case, when Apple’s iCloud started having difficulties it left many users without 'Calendar' and 'Reminders', among other features. For those who rely on organization and planning in their work and personal lives, this was a great inconvenience. While no one denies the prominence of the Apple brand and the loyalty of its customer base, the outage stands as fuel for competitors to point out a big flop for the company.

How bad could it get for SlingTV, Apple, and any other company trying to make it in the digital world? If we want to see the real consequences of an outage -- even a 'brief' outage -- let’s look to one more example, provided in this blog article about web hosting:

There are [sic] costs associated with downtime. In 2013, the New York Times had an outage that lasted two hours. While it doesn’t sound like a lot it caused their stock price to fall and Twitter exploded with negative feedback from NYT web site users. To capitalize on this event, the Wall Street Journal deactivated its paywall, making the site completely free.

All of this falls in line with the new model of success for those providing content and media over the Internet. In what I like to describe as our 'Netflix Era', successful companies abide first and foremost to one principle: 'Give your customers what they want'. Having content that consumers would want is one thing; having that content available to customers 24/7 is a different story, and both go hand-in-hand when maintaining a reputable brand.

My point carries through the realm of tech for commercial and personal use. Networking technology is the means of exchanging information and engaging with media, and when a company or other organization claims responsibility for providing connectivity they must understand that they put their reputation on the line. In other words, the performance of a brand name's service or product is itself branding -- better performance equals a better image.

Photo Credit: iQoncept/Shutterstock

Aaron Farrington is a former IT who has turned to writing about tech, the Internet and how business and culture relates to both. He is also lover of music, comedy and craft brews.