Ben Neumann

Reality TV = Unscripted Drama = Mark Burnett

Spring and Fall are the seasons when my Tivo is working overtime. Aside from my favorite shows 24, Monk and Real Time (a littleBill Maher never hurts), I also very much enjoy Reality TV. Not all of it, of course, but you’ll find me setting up season passes for shows such as

• The Apprentice (Donald & Martha)
• American Idol
• The Biggest Looser
• Survivorand a few others on occassion.  (more…)

Starting a “Buzz” or the Power of WOM (part 1)

I’ve always been a strong proponent of Word-of-Mouth (WOM) marketing or what is commonly known as starting a “Buzz”. It is certainly one of the most effective ways to market your business, brand, product or service and we have employed WOM techniques at Globat for years. It is also one of the most cost-effective forms of marketing as it does not require many tools or expensive services. The power of word-of-mouth marketing, however, is truly immense. One of the keys to WOM success is to have unique ideas that are trend-setting to promote your brand or business. (more…)

Roy Yamaguchi… Hawaiian Flair in Los Angeles

Have a mentioned that I’m a foodie? Tonight Chris, Andrea, Peter, and I will be celebrating off some gift certificates I still had forRoy’s. The original Roy’s founded by master chef Roy Yamaguchi is located by the beach right outside of Waikiki; gorgeous location! We’ve been there many times and since I love Hawaii, visiting “our” Roy’s in Woodland Hills always brings back fun memories. Definitely a place, though, where you need to make reservations as early as possible to get in (or know Jason, the manager). Did I mention that the food is outstanding, too?!

Interesting on the business end (since I previously invested into some restaurants) is that Roy’s restaurants are actually owned byOutback (remember the steakhouses?) through a joint venture deal that Outback has with Roy.

How to find the best hosting companies out there (part 2)

Here’s the second part of yesterday’s posting on how to find the best web host out there. For obvious reasons I will continue to useGlobat.com as my example hosting company of choice.

Important factors to consider when selecting a web hosting provider are: (more…)

How to find the best web hosting companies out there (part 1)

Ok, as the Chief Exec of leading web hosting firm Globat.com one of the questions I’m being asked often is “how can I find a good web host for my website, blog, business, etc.?” So, here’s the low down and dirty directly from the horse’s mouth (and, a bit of a gentle pitch for Globat, of course).

Companies and individuals can by themselves create impressive websites (I have seen truly amazing websites over the 12 years I’ve been in the hosting business), but ultimately everybody needs a web hosting service to launch their site on the Internet and “make it live”. Most major web hosting providers offer adequate space, speed, and security measures required to keep your site running smoothly. (more…)

Back from Alaska

Ok, our Alaska trip was absolutely awesome and I will post some pics in the next few days. I have to admit, though, that I’m also happy to be back home and in the game. There’s only so much beauty I can take and Alaska has tons of it. I’ll most certainly spend more time up there in the future (still need to go bear watching).

The actual trip to Seward, where we met our ship, was a bit of a hassle. Picture traveling by plane, bus, train, and car from L.A. to Seattle, than to Anchorage, and finally to Seward with three adults and a 3 and an almost 5 year old, all within less than 24 hrs, and you know what I’m talking about. It was a bit like one of my favorite movies “Traines, Planes, and Automobiles”. (more…)

Alaska – love at first sight!

I haven’t been able to post over the last few days as my Internet connectivity in Alaska has been very sporadic. On Saturday we went to view the majestic Hubbard Glacier and I witnessed several bus-size pieces break off and slam into the ocean. What an amazing and majestic part of nature! Today we chartered a helicopter and actually landed and walked around on the Taku Glacierright outside of Juneau. We saw bald eagles, whales, and more beauty than I personally could take in. This has easily been one of the most amazing days I’ve had. I’m in love with Alaska already!

“May I be frank” and the power of candor

Sounds a bit like a Harry Potter title, doesn’t it. Well, many people who are close to me are well aware how much I hate the common “may I be frank” phrase. Sure, you may be frank; does that mean you did bullsh** me the entire time before? Of course, we all know that this phrase usually introduces something unpleasant, but why not deliver the “bad” news as part of daily communication? It might soften the blow and, who knows, maybe the situation would have resolved itself without any significant confrontation; just because we were “frank” to each other all the time. (more…)

40-Year-Old Virgin and old friends

Last night I saw 40-Year-Old Virgin at The Grove. The movie and especially Steve Carell cracked me up. I highly recommend it for 2 hours of light-hearted entertainment.

When I saw the movie I almost couldn’t believe my eyes. Steve, a good friend of mine, and his wife are in the touring production of the smash hit show The Producers (can you tell I live in L.A.) and the two just recently moved to New Jersey. Turns out that they actually shot 40-Year-Old Virgin (at least the part where the virgin’s love interest lives) in Steve’s house. It was kind of an embarrassing moment during the show when I realized that and yelled “Sh**, I’ve been in that bedroom”. I guess I need to frequent a differnt theater for a few weeks. Go and see it anyway.

Network Outage

Today was a NIGHTMARE-DAY! Globat.com just emerged from a major outage – the worst in company history and everybody – customers and staff alike – still feel extremely beaten up. Here’s what happened:

At approximately 5:00am Pacific Time on Thursday, February 21, 2008 we suffered a major network outage, which effected nearly all Globat.com customers, our own Web sites and service infrastructure as well as our phone systems. (more…)