CHASE NETWORKS: THE COMING BRAND!
By Rod Drown
BRANDON CHASE AND THE VANCOUVER CONNECTION
The effect of the Internet in my life has been, over the last ten years, to both accelerate and compress the possibilities of connection - both personally and commercially. Several weeks ago, I had occasion to advertise on the Internet for a new web designer for Grab News. The responses poured in - some from as far away as Hong Kong and Singapore. However, not being a total virtuoso of virtual reality, I was seeking an associate closer to home - someone within SkyTrain and coffee-drinking distance of New Westminster.
Contained within the dozens of responses was one from Brandon Chase - just across the river in Delta. He seemed perfect. What's more, he seemed very un-geek-like: while some of the offshore candidates wanted to convert my pages to the very latest software and design languages, Brandon simply said, "If it's not broke, don't fix it!"
Others, less ambitious, might call Brandon a motorcycle-riding workaholic. Possessed of both a Vancouver state of mind and sense of humour, he summarizes his attitude to his commercial creation, Chase Networks, which he started in 2009, as follows:
"Let's just say I wish there was 30 hours a day instead of 24, it would certainly make life easier. There's 24 hours in a day, I spend about 6.5 of those hours sleeping, and 7.5 of those hours at my day job. So that is 14 hours gone already, which leaves me with 10 hours. Which is not a lot, you can't even watch all three extended editions of Lord of the Rings in 10 hours!"
In pursuit of his business goal of entrenching Chase Networks on the web, the 30 year old go-getter is very familiar with, and quite active on, the two major Internet entrepreneurial tools.
"I spend at least 30 minutes in total each day on Facebook and Twitter, for marketing purposes, and in general discussions about what Chase Networks is presently offering. The remaining 10 hours is allotted to design and coding, and - probably most important -- making contacts and gathering up new clients."
CHASING NETWORK DIRECTORY DREAMS
Brandon describes Chase Networks as an initial but essential stage for small businesses starting their online existence.
"We're like a stepping stone. If, for example, a small business comes to us, wanting to get online, there are steps taken to get them there. We help them find a domain, and get hosting, through http://www.gvrdhosting.com, once we have that, we move on to website design. For website design, we always recommend using Wordpress, because pages are easily edited, making it possible for our clients to do it themselves, and not always have to pay us or someone else to do updates."
Chase Networks is currently focused on building directories aimed at British Columbia professionals. The first one up (several others are under construction) serves therapists.
"If you're a therapist in BC, we have our http://www.bctherapists.net directory, which is dedicated to therapists and their clients in BC only. We're in the midst of building other directories solely dedicated to BC as well, for other professionals, but we're keeping those quiet, until they're complete."
He emphasizes that his assistance to clients doesn't end when their new site is up and running.
"We work with our clients, to optimize their website, because showing up on the top pages of Google is work. There are many steps getting to that point and we guide our clients along the way."
Photography by J. Kaufman
One cannot imagine a guy who for pleasure rides around on a big Suzuki SV650A V-Twin to leave that aspect of his life out of his work. To wit:
"There is an entertainment side to Chase Networks as well. I have a passion for motorcyles, so we have a motorcycle-based website project in the works, but we're presently undecided on which route to take with it."
He also is very eager to start writing online about the company and the challenges he has faced and continues to face.
"[My blog] http://www.brandonchase.me,which will hopefully be live by the time this article goes live, will be a simple one where I, personally, will be writing about the company, the things we're working on, or letting go of. It will concern my likes and dislikes, hardships that I or Chase Networks have faced and essentially anything else I decide to add.
Other future web-based projects currently in the Brandon Chase pipeline include a niche auction site and some small product lines.
AN UGLY BEGINNING
So, how did this burgeoning web entrepreneur get started? As mentioned above, Chase is a guy who likes to laugh - even at some of his own creations. For example, here's his view of his first website - created when he was 14 years old:
"It was so ugly, but I designed it, I built it, and it was mine!
The year before, 1994, when he was 13 and when Bill Gates was well on his way to much more than his first billion, Brandon had first ventured onto the Internet. He was in Jr. High School, where he came across Hackers.Com -- better known to those in the emerging wide world of the web as HDC.
Brandon:"I ended up working there as a forum administrator, and came to know the owner quite well, from an internet perspective that is. I never actually met him in real life, but what I learned from him, has assisted me along my path."
From there, Brandon Chase went to FortuneCity, where he worked alongside the man he describes as his mentor -- Michael Murphy, owner of Pacoima Ranch. Chase met Murphy, who lived in California when he (Chase) was 15 and doing volunteer work for FortuneCity, which at the time was the largest free host on the internet.
"Pacoima Range was Mike's life, it was everything. It was games, it was html information and color codes, as well as information about the San Fernado valley. Pacranch.com just simply became anything Mike wanted it to be, he was always adding new sections.
He taught me easily half of what I know today when it comes to the internet, and general web design, but one thing he taught me is far more important: to remember to enjoy what you do and if you don't, then do something else."
A MISSING MENTOR
Mentors don't necessarily have to be in close proximity. In fact, one gets the impression that Brandon and Michael never saw each other that often after a certain point. They emailed quite steadily until one day the emails stopped coming.
I asked Brandon what had happened. His reply: "To be honest, I don't know. I knew he was sick, then one day I just stopped hearing from him, a few months had passed, and I was worried, so I used admin rights to access his email accounts on my server, and he hadn't opened a single email I sent, so I took it upon myself to find out what had happened. I started out scouring through California Obituaries, and when I had no success there, I altered the main page of pacranch.com requesting anyone who had information to contact me. A few more months had gone by and I finally received an email informing me that he had passed away six months earlier."
No doubt he missed his friend because they had done some interesting things on the Internet together. For example, in 2001, when Brandon was 20, he and Michael had launched a free host called Portal Worlds which, after a year or two, proved unsuccessful.
Brandon:"What's the old saying, 'wrong place, wrong time'? It unfortunately did not go the direction we had hoped, and we dropped the project. In 2003, I launched a web hosting company on my own called G2-Hosting.Com, which after the past failures, was a success."
However, the success came at a price. Brandon soon found he was working himself right through the wringer.
A PROFITABLE BUT UNHAPPY PLATEAU
"Right place, right time? I guess. Unfortunately I plateaued. I got to a point where I was making enough money to support myself, but I was working 16 hour days, 7 days a week, and I wasn't making enough money to hire anyone to help out. Working that much was not a way I wanted to spend my life. An opportunity came up in 2005, at a communications company, so I sold G2-Hosting.Com to a company I knew in Australia and I took the job at the communications company. Taking that job was no mistake,"
He says this because he feels he has gained more useful knowledge there than he ever could have running G2-Hosting. Combining that experience with things he learned during time at Kwantlen College (taking some electrical courses) and at BCIT with the CCNA program has put him in good stead for making Chase Networks efficient and profitable.
MOTORCYCLE THERAPY
One of the ways that Brandon gets away from the stress and pressure of establishing Chase Networks and its related companies is to tear up the highways and byways on his Suzuki.
"My brain is consistently running, thinking, planning, it's just constantly going, but ya, ok, I get breaks, it just depends on what time of year it is. If it's summer time, I usually stick around Vancouver, and enjoy coffee with friends, and movies with my fiancee, we're both huge movie buffs. Family is a big thing for me too, so no matter how busy I get, I always make time for my family, and I always make sure to ride my motorcycle every week, no matter what, it's like therapy but cheaper."
LOYALTY AND SUPPORT COUNT HIGHLY
Brandon prides himself on knowing that his friends and those who count in his life see him as being three things -- extremely blunt, dead honest and loyal to the end.
"In my opinion, loyalty is something you don't come across a lot in this day and age," he emphasized.
The old adage that behind every successful man is a woman can probably be, in Brandon Chase's case, doubled. There are two women in Brandon's life - his fiancee, Jenelle, and his employee, Angel. The latter takes care of Chase Networks when her boss is stuck in meetings at his day job.
"Angel presently works on commission, though we're both hoping that will change one day. Angel has done so much for Chase Networks from a client aspect, as she takes care of a lot while I am stuck in my day job."
Never a man to forget his employees, fiancee or friends, Brandon also mentioned Jeremy, his "long time friend and programmer, [who is] always there", whenever he (Brandon) has a question or needs assistance -- free of charge.
He has equal respect and gratitude for his server administrator, Kulraj of MBS Computers who "handles all my server needs, and also throws a lot of marketing advice my way."
He reserves his ultimate admiration for his fiancee.
"Last but not least, I wouldn't be where I am, without my fiancee, Jenelle, whom puts up with my extremely busy and sometimes hectic schedule, but more importantly, is so supportive and loving."
To learn more about Chase Networks and to keep up to date with them, you can go to the official website http://www.chasenetworks.ca you can "Like" them on Facebook by clicking on this link - Chase Networks on Facebook - and by "Following" them on Twitter by clicking this link - Chase Networks on Twitter.
It came to my attention just before releasing this article, that Chase Networks just announced that they will be making annual donations to local BC Charities based on a percentage of their annual profits, as a part of their BC and Canada business plan.
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