Q&A with Rajan Sodhi

Mike Sly, VP of Sales at GigaOM talks with Rajan Sodhi- VP, Marketing and Communications at PEER 1 and ServerBeach about what’s happening at PEER 1 now and what’s to come in 2010.

MS: Rajan, what is new at PEER 1?

RS: PEER 1 recently expanded into the United Kingdom with it’s 16th data center to better serve the UK and EMEA markets. We are also currently building out our 17th data center in Toronto, Canada scheduled to open in 2010. This will become our flagship data center, using green technology and infrastructure, while serving up Managed Hosting, Dedicated Hosting and Colocation services.

MS: How did PEER 1 take off?

RS: We were an early adopter of social media that used forums, blogs, Facebook, and YouTube to developed a community around our brands PEER 1 and ServerBeach. In 2007, we launched a successful short series entirely online called “Growing Pains” that went viral and since received several advertising awards. We’ve now been active on Twitter and expirementing with ways of turning it into a successful marketing medium without annoying our followers. Four months ago, we launched a weekly “48HR Twitter Promo” where we give out a gift like a Netbook or Slingbox to any new customer that signs up between Wed 6pm EST and Fri 6pm EST. It started off slow, but has really taken off in the last 2 months. We think we’ve found the balance between communicating/sharing news/tips/updates and offering up a promo. Scheduling it at the same time every week so followers know when to expect it seems to have worked.

MS: Why do you use GigaOM for your marketing?

RS: I met Om Malik at Office 2.0 in 2007. I was already an avid reader of his blog, but after meeting him, I felt PEER 1 would benefit greatly from being more closely associated with him. We started off as a small sponsor of NewTeeVee which then turned into the headline sponsorship of the first Structure 08, as well as this past Structure 09. I was very impressed with the calibre of people Om reaches and clearly saw the benefit of using GigaOM as a marketing channel to raise our profile. I haven’t been wrong.

MS: How Does the future look for PEER 1?

RS: The future looks incredibly bright for PEER 1. More and more people know who we are, and are impressed with the quality and value of our hosting. Our SuperNetwork(TM), FirstCall Support(TM) promise, and range of hosting choices resonates strongly with the SMB marketplace and we’re obsessed with serving them better than any other provider.

Interview from July 2009