Satellite Broadband drives rural areas back into business

by Alastair Cameron

Satellite Broadband drives rural areas back into business

Companies trying to run a successful business from a rural area have always faced bigger challenges than city based organisations. With the internet, and in particular social media now playing such a crucial role in building and retaining a loyal client base, it was feared that those with no dial-up access would suffer greatly.

Many broadband providers do not deem rural areas to be as profitable enough to warrant any investment, and have abandoned them as a consequence.

Modern day marketing

Statistics for 2013 show that there are roughly 33 million Facebook users and 34 million Twitter account holders in the U.K, which means any company hoping for client engagement without using social media are just burying their heads in the sand.

A slow dial-up connection will simply not cut the mustard when it comes to the fast paced nature of sharing information across the various social media platforms. As approximately 20% of businesses are located in rural areas, it is a sizeable enough chunk of the British economy that broadband providers cannot ignore.

Help from above

In response to this, a number of support groups have formed to fight the cause for businesses considered to be out in the sticks, and the results have been encouraging to say the least. In November 2011, The Devon and Somerset Rural Connection Scheme formed and have already been given big thumbs up from many delighted customers.

Not only did they benefit from impressive 20 Mb satellite broadband connection speeds; they were also given complimentary kits, free installation and on-going support. Devon council asked participants to complete a survey in order to monitor the campaigns success, with users saying the scheme had played a crucial part in the development of their business.

Dial-up drudgery

Andrew Walwyn CEO of Europasat said:

“For five years, we’ve been trying hard to reach the consumers still subject to the drudgery of dial-up, to show them that satellite broadband is the perfect alternative if they can’t get broadband over wires. The feedback we’ve had from those we’ve spoken to so far is that they simply didn’t realise that the satellite alternative existed or how fast modern satellite internet solutions are.

Published on: 21st January 2014