We are pleased to confirm that we will reflect the new VAT rate of 15% in our invoicing system for all purchases from Monday 1st December 2008.
It has always been our policy to quote prices exclusive of VAT and therefore there is no need to make price adjustments.
Resellers should note that all whitelabel and cobranded bills will be automatically adjusted.
We recently posted a blog entry informing you about our plans to replace the servers that host your website. Our original plan was to replace the PHP 4 web hosting cluster tonight, 25th November 2008. Unfortunately, due to emergency maintenance on our email service, we have had to reschedule this work for a week tonight, Tuesday 2nd December 2008.
We apologise for any inconvenience caused by this delay.
As always, you can contact the support team for any help that you may need.
From Chew Stoke workshops to county and national commendations: Gradwell’s VoIP clients excel at Somerset Business Awards 2008 and benefit from low-cost telephony charges.
Gradwell, the UK’s leading VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) operator for the SME (small-to-medium enterprise) business sector, is pleased to have provided the “engine for growth” for 3 clients who took home significant accolades from this year’s Somerset Business Awards, organised by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB).
Prizes at the FSB event were announced earlier in October, going - in the competition’s e-Business category - to National Pages and TelePA who, respectively, claimed first and second prize.
National Pages
Launched only this year, National Pages provides a search engine for businesses, to increase businesses’ “visibility” through enhanced viewing of online advertising.
The company’s Gold service, for example, offers customers a self-managed micro-website. “We also offer businesses the chance to show video clips about what they can do for customers,” explains the company’s Nigel Finch.
TelePA
TelePA uses 21st century solutions to provide professional business support services that are affordable.
Clients subscribe to TelePA services for as little as £0.30 per hour, with additional “pay as you go” upgrades if required.
The company acts as a trusted ambassador: management of phone lines, “gatekeeper” screening and the organisation of diaries and events are all services that are included.
“Using the VoIP service from Gradwell has allowed TelePA to adopt a “flexible working” business model,” explains the company’s Judith Ludovino. “Our skilled PAs can work from home, putting in the hours that suit them.”
Driving Ambition
In the 2008 award’s service excellence category, another Gradwell client, Driving Ambition, was thrilled to achieve runner-up status.
The company’s MD, Sandra Pennyfather, says: “We are committed to offering the highest levels of customer service. For example, a 17-year old learner driver can expect the same level of service from Driving Ambition as a corporate client whose revenue might be millions each year.
“All telephone calls to Driving Ambition are answered personally during office hours and all calls are dealt with as appropriate for the client - a professional approach, for instance, when the learner already has a substantial career, or a sympathetic, friendly ear if the customer requires assurance and advice.”
Commenting on his clients’ success, Peter Gradwell – MD of Gradwell – comments: “It gives us great satisfaction that the 2008 business awards in Somerset feature no fewer than 3 of our clients.”
“We started-out 10 years ago, and rented very small premises in Chew Stoke, near Chew Magna. Now we have clients worldwide - all seeking a reliable, good value feature-rich telephony service backed by excellent customer care.
“It just goes to show what can be achieved.”
We are going to be replacing the servers that host your website as part of our PHP4 web hosting cluster on the evening of 25th November 2008. As well as physical replacement, we are also changing the software we use, moving from FreeBSD to Centos Linux.
These changes will mean your website runs ontop of our “cloud computing” platform, built using VMWare, and as such we will be able to maintain our web servers, add new features and greater capacity more quickly in the future.
You should be aware that development for the PHP4 web language has now been officially ceased by the PHP community, and that we also now offer customers a new PHP5 web hosting cluster to use. Please contact the support team if you’re interested in migrating.
The new server cluster has been built with the following characteristics:
WHAT YOU NEED TO DO
Whilst we expect the majority of web sites to continue working without any issues, it is important, because of the software changes, that you test your website as soon as possible to see if there are any problems that need to be addressed. To test your website on our new PHP 4 servers, you can take advantage of our test system by pointing your browser to http://www.yourdomain.com.v-web-php4.gradwell.net.
We will be switching off our current FreeBSD PHP 4 servers late on Tuesday 25th November 2008. Apart from ensuring compatibility, you do not need to make any changes to your site or DNS and there will only be a brief period of downtime to your website.