123-reg.co.uk

This summer we’re on the road, or at least our advertising is. We’ve teamed up with a set of taxi cab drivers in Leeds and in London to spread the word about 123-reg and in particular the great value of .co.uk domain names.

It’s not all about advertising though, we are trying to make it fun and get our fantastic customers involved too. Over on our other social channels, especially Facebook we are running a series of taxi-related competitions with lots of giveaways too. For example, if you spot one of our liveried cabs, take a photo and send it to us to be in with a chance to win.

We’ve also got our taxi quiz up and running so test yourself and see if you have the knowledge.

There’s plenty more to come, so make sure you keep an eye out for the 123-reg cabs in London and Leeds and also keep an eye out for chances to win and opportunties to get involved too.

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A new feature to 123-reg in 2013 is the Website of the Month competition, where each month we will ask customers to add their great websites to our Facebook application. We have put the voting in the control of our community, each month our fans will vote for the winning website. There will be a monthly winner and an overall winner which will be announced at the end of 2013. Each monthly winner will win £100 and the Grand Prix winner will pick up the £1,000 prize.

The aim of our competition is to showcase the work of our customers. February’s Website Site of the Month winner, as picked by the 123-reg community, is certainly a website that falls into that ‘making a difference’ category. The charity website, www.bethsdogshow.co.uk, was set up by Gemma Simmons to advertise charity events that run throughout the year. The website was set up after the death of Gemma’s cousin in 2010. Thanks to the support of 123-reg, Simmons has been able to push her great causes to a wider audience.

We offer our congratulations to everybody involved in the charity website, especially for the work they have put in; raising both awareness and money for a great cause. 123-reg caught up with Simmons to gain a greater insight into the inspiration for the website.

Can you tell us about the work that you do on www.bethsdogshow.co.uk?

We set up the website just under two years ago to advertise charity events that we run throughout the year. In 2010, we lost our cousin to a brain tumour, and the website has helped us to bring the variety of causes we support to a wider group of people; help raise awareness; and draw attention to what an awful disease cancer is and how it can affect so many lives.

What does it mean to have won 123-reg’s Website of the Month Competition?

We are absolutely over the moon to have won February’s competition. We didn’t expect to come close to winning and it was such a surprise to find out we had won. We entered to get our website across to more people who wouldn’t have necessarily seen it otherwise.

What has been the value of having an online presence?

Having this website gives us the advantage of reaching a wider audience, not just local individuals that we know. It gives the chance for a large number of people to enter our competitions and to raise money for a great cause. We have had so much support since we set the website up and it makes all the fundraising we do worthwhile. We spend a great amount of time fundraising in between our full time jobs, and it’s nice to see that people do take the time to read about our causes and support our events.

How has 123-reg helped your cause?

We heard good reviews from our peers that 123-reg were very good, so when we decided to set up a website we went with the company that had the most positive feedback. We have found 123-reg to be very good; any issues that we have had have been resolved quickly. We would recommend 123-reg to everyone. It has truly helped us with our fundraising efforts.

What does the future hold?

We didn’t expect the website to take off so quickly. We have had 25,000 views in less than two years which is fantastic. We will continue with our fundraising and help to push our causes out to many more people.

123-reg is proud to be supporting those who are making a difference. Remember, our March competition is up and running so if you have a great website hosted by 123-reg enter it here.

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THIS COMPETITION IS NOW CLOSED

This year 123-reg is focusing on harnessing the creative spirit of our fans. As breakthrough videos like Gangnam Style and Harlem Shake have proven, the power of video on the internet is massive.

Are you the next internet sensation?

Here at 123-reg we are constantly thinking of new ways that we can reward our loyal fans. Hot on the heels of the announcement of the Website of the Month competition, we have launched the ‘How far would you go’ to win a Raspberry Pi competition.

Would you draw a picture or even write a song? Would you dance in your office? We are putting you in the driving seat; show us how imaginative you can be! This is an exciting, creative and innovative competition. So, the question is, how far would you go to win a Raspberry Pi and £500?

The Raspberry Pi has taken the UK by storm since its launch in 2012. We are championing the Foundation and its overarching aims of getting more young people into the field of computer programming.

We want our Raspberry Pi competition to inspire you to be creative and go that little bit further! Whether you have used the computer before, it doesn’t matter! We have created a number of pages highlighting what you can do with the Raspberry Pi and how the computer works. You never know, you may surprise yourself!

So, if you have ever wanted to build your own internet radio or tablet computer, this competition is for you! So what are you waiting for? Submit your video and you will be in with a chance of winning both a Raspberry Pi and the £500 prize!

3 steps to Raspberry Pi Heaven!

Create!

Upload!

Socialise!

So get your creative juices flowing and show us how far you would go for a Raspberry Pi.

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At the end of 2012, 123-reg ran its annual Christmas campaign draw whereby customers sent their email address into us for the chance to win a prize of £1000. The lucky winner of this competition was Roderick Barker-Benfield, a photographer from South East London, who was selected at random and delighted to be so.
Here, we talk to our winner about the competition and we learn more about Rod’s relationship with 123-reg.

You are the winner of one of our most popular competitions. How did the win make you feel?

I won’t lie to you – winning your competition has been an ace start to the year! I have felt an incredible rush of emotion and this is really great news for both me and the business. Without a doubt, I am going to compete in future contests!

Tell us a bit about yourself and www.rodography.com

I started taking photos as a kid, but it wasn’t until about 2009 that I decided to turn my hobby into a career. I’d taken some great shots whilst travelling and some friends recommended I look into doing something a bit more commercial. I started photographing portraits and events to gain a bit more experience working with clients and it wasn‘t long before I was asked to shoot my first wedding. Since then I’ve gone through two cameras, three websites and several lenses, but I love taking photographs and wouldn’t change it for the world.

As Social Media becomes more intertwined with our everyday lives, where do you see the photography market going?

The market is slowly moving towards the crowd. In a couple of years’ time wedding albums will be made up of images taken by guests throughout the day using their smartphones. You’ll be able to upload your images to a specially created wedding group and if they make the cut, your photo will end up in the happy couple’s coffee table book forever more! In the meantime though, it’s all about the social. It’s easy enough to create image content as a photographer, but if you want to engage your audience you have to get them talking. A Facebook page and a Twitter feed are standard, but get yourself onto Pinterest to show people what you’re interested in and write a blog to keep them amused with tales from the industry. Keep people talking and when someone asks them if they know of any photographers they’ll remember the conversation you got them involved in.
Oh and make sure your website is mobile and tablet friendly. I read a stat somewhere recently that up to 50% of all online content is viewed via a tablet/smartphone. If your website doesn’t look good to people viewing it on their mobile devices you could be losing business. Actually, that’s next on my to-do list!

Why did you choose 123-reg?

My dad runs his own business and uses 123-reg to host his website. He recommended I use them as a good starting point to find the domain name I was after. Initially I just purchased my domain name from 123-reg and hosted my website with a third party, but after a couple of years of poor service elsewhere I decided to bring everything under one roof and use 123-reg to host my site as well.

What do you like most about 123-reg?

The user friendliness is vital. Everything I need to run the online side of my business is there in a clean, bright and accessible way. I’m kept up to date by email with when I’m due to renew my domain license or hosting package and there are a load of helpful technicians in the online support centre that can give me a hand if I get stuck with anything.

What have you gained? Have there been any benefits that you didn’t expect?

I’ve gained a better knowledge and understanding of how the internet can really work for small businesses. I’ve also taught myself how to create a website from scratch. These days you don’t need to have a background in coding to be able to create your own website – there are free apps available to help you build your own without the hassle of getting under the bonnet. As with everything in life, the more you put in, the more you get out so my advice to anyone wanting to make their own would be to set aside some time, figure it out logically and then start playing. Remember that you started out with nothing so creating anything is an improvement!

How would you describe 123-reg to somebody else?

A one-stop-shop for all your website needs. You can purchase a domain, get up and running with hosting and email and use their inbuilt apps to help create your own website from something as small as an idea.

Would you recommend 123-reg?

I definitely would. I would recommend it to all small businesses looking to get themselves an online presence quickly and professionally. Whether you’re a local café just wanting to tell people about your new menu or a photographer like me wanting to show off your latest snaps then 123-reg can do you wonders!

If you want to see more of Rod’s fine work head over to: http://www.rodography.com

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Over the past two weeks you have been telling us your stories and we have been crying with laugher and gasping with shock and we have been so excited for the next story to come in! You have outdone yourselves and we are featuring some of the stories we have enjoyed the most.

Remember if you want to be in with a chance of winning the £250 prize as well as featuring on the 123-reg blog make sure you enter your stories over at Facebook.com/123-regfans

Here are our favourite stories from the past week:

Kay Adeola when I was about 11 I was complaining to my mum that I was hungry when we was on the bus she kept telling me to wait till I got home I was not impressed lol but as we drove in to our town the bus driver stopped said he would be back in a few minutes when he came back he had brought me a lovely cream cake from one of the shops and said he didn’t want me to be sad lol lovely man quite old then and became a family friend he has since passed but I will always remember the kindness he showed me

Helen Jacob-Lloyd Bus Story Competition – My most memorable bus story is when a lady went into labour on the bus! The bus journey I used to make a lot goes past a hospital, I presume the lady was on route to the hospital, as she was heavily pregnant, but there was a road closure due to a burst gas pipe, so the bus sat at traffic lights and in queues for about 30 minutes longer than the usual length of the journey. This lady was with her partner and started to look like she was in a panic, as did her partner! It soon becomes evident that her waters had broken, as a puddle appeared on the floor. She began being embarrassed and apologising to everyone but as her contractions began to get stronger she soon didn’t care. We were all trying to help, with tissues on the floor, people were offering bottles of water, and painkillers etc but she didn’t want any of it! By this time we were within walking distance of the hospital so her and her partner got off the bus quickly and headed to the hospital! I’ve never seen them again but it sure was an eventful journey!

Dawn Costen Oh my goodness most memorable bus journey? It wasn’t a particularly long bus journey maybe 10 minutes tops – but it was a very hot day with a couple of extremely stinky people on it, that I managed to plonk myself right behind and proceeded to try and discreetly turn my head to the side every now and again to get an intake of “fresh” air before holding my breath a little bit longer! As I said it wasn’t a particularly long journey but it felt like THE longest journey ever!! I think it will stick in my mind forever as being the most memorable journey for me – to be honest I don’t think I have been on a bus since!

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This competition is now closed for new entries and unfortunately any sent through from now on will not be considered for the prize. Thanks to everyone who entered, we will be getting in touch with the winners shortly and the explanations we liked the most will be put up on the blog as well.

Just to let you know, my Gran didn’t even bother to ask this time around which was a relief but a couple of Great Aunts did, and I think they got it!

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**Please note: This competition is now closed for new entries and unfortunately any sent through from now on will not be considered for the prize. **

With summer knocking on our door, the season for family get togethers is upon us, be it weddings, christenings, family BBQs, birthdays… and those of us who work in the web hosting industry will be met with the same vacant look after being asked “What do you do for a living?” or “So what exactly do you do?”.

More often than not people ask if it’s the same as broadband to which I usually reply with a resigned “yes” rather than spending another 30 minutes explaining why it’s nothing like broadband.

So, the question is, how do I explain to my Gran this summer where I work and what we do (I’m not even going to bother attempting to explain what SEPPC is)? In one sentence and as simply as possible:

How would you explain to my Gran what web hosting is?

The top 5 answers we like the most will each win a portable notebook BBQ.

Terms:

• The competition closes 27th July 2008. Unfortunately, any entries made after this date can not be included.
• No cash alternative prize is available.
• The winners will be notified by the email address provided within 14 days of the competition closing. If no email has been provided we will choose an alternative winner.
• No purchase necessary.
• If the Portable Notebook BBQ is out of stock we reserve the right to source an alternative of equal value.

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Thanks to every one who took part in our competition to win a speaker for your MP3 player. The question was; “February 7th is Chinese New Year; which animal is 2008 associated with?”

A) The Rat
B) The Zebra
C) The Sea Horse

And the answer is….

A) The Rat

We will draw the 20 winners from a hat and if you have won we will be in contact shortly.

Terms:
The last date for entries is 29/02/08. Unfortunately, any entries made after this date can not be included. The winners will be notified by the email address provided within 14 days of the competition closing. No purchase necessary.

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THIS COMPETITON IS NOW CLOSED

Enter the 123-reg blog competition to win one of twenty portable MP3 speakers we have to give away.

We’ve managed to wrestle 20 speakers away from the 123-reg shared hosting, InstantSite, ecommerce & domain name promotion for our blog readers. All you have to do to enter is to email us at hosting-marketing@pipex.net with the correct answer to this easy question…

February 7th is Chinese New Year; which animal is 2008 associated with?

A) The Rat

B) The Zebra

C) The Sea Horse

We will then pick 20 correct answers randomly from the hat.

Terms:
The last date for entries is 29/02/08. Unfortunately, any entries made after this date can not be included. The winners will be notified by the email address provided within 14 days of the competition closing. No purchase necessary.

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