Expansion

Many things have been happening over the past couple of years. We finally have a cost model and a service offering that places a modest business in the black.

Expanded Pilots and Franchising

We are now setting up a franchise operation. The concept has been piloted in our local community since 1999. We are now starting pilots in three other cities in preparation for rollout.

Over the fall/winter/spring we will be fine-tuning our offerings. As soon as is feasible, we will start to rollout in earnest.

If you are one of the many partners we have worked with us over the past seven years, "It's show time". You will be happy to know that many specifics will now be forthcoming. For our long-suffering pilot partners with Websites you can expect some rationalization of your sites to the latest code and material. This includes a 'customer care' package showing how to contact first and second line 24/7 support. It also includes instructions and some tutorial material showing you how to operate the many new facilities that have been provided. Those facilities are already live on your sites.

Initial product offerings

We already offer a turnkey reseller plan, etc. However, we are looking to establish a network of geographically protected franchises to sell:

• All Internet related products: domain names, hosting, Websites, SSL, etc.
• Specific Telecomm products.
• Specific Computer-related products (boxes, monitors, etc.)

We have existing facilities for all Internet related offerings. We also have agreements in principle for all of the above components with the exception of some Specialty network devices that have been difficult to source. Even for those, we have agreements in principle to manufacture what we need at a reasonable cost.

Requirements for Franchise Partners

Note that the majority of franchise partners must be a local resident of the area they service. Note also that we are looking for a mix of skills across the network so that we can offer one another mutual support. Trantor has access to many technical resources, owns existing software code and other IP. It also has the global agreements in place to support the network. However, our company is currently weak on graphics design skills. We are taking steps to correct that.

Expanded pilots

The franchise network will not be put in place until we are done our expanded pilots. There are also regulatory matters in some of our jurisdictions that require something akin to a prospectus prior to offering a franchise. Note, therefore, that this text is not an offer of a franchise. However, it is an offer to 'get your feet wet' and a promise that we will work together with you (if you qualify) to provide facilities at our disposal, our knowledge of what works and does not, etc. We also have three vertical markets that we are working with and whatever service is involved for these vertical markets will accrue to whoever controls the geographic area. We are already creating the 'prospectus' material to satisfy regulatory requirements in the United States. Legal agreements

As mentioned above, our company has been in 'pilot mode' since 1999. During that time we have gathered information on a large variety of small businesses and the payback they can expect from the services we offer. We avoided the boom and the following bust because we determined early on that for most of our target audience, there was no net payback from 'one-up' Websites as such.

We knew that a payback would eventually be possible, concentrated our efforts on divining what gave a net payback and now have a product that can be offered to clients with a good conscience that it has a net-positive business value (it earns more that it costs). All of our offerings are targeted at a specific market for a specific purpose and meant to offer true business value.

People working with us will have the benefit of our experience as well as tools and (coming) software developed specifically to service our offerings.

We think that simple web hosting per se is a dead end. There is no business model there because 'naked hosting' is a commodity market and 'boutique hosting' does not have a net payback for the client. If you starve your clients (or any other partners), you will eventually starve yourself. In some cases, rather elaborate hosting arrangements do have business payback, but these instances occur outside of our target market and our attention is not focused there.

Working with Us -- A good thing

Working with us will give everyone involved the satisfaction of knowing that whatever they provide, it is a 'good thing'. It is either a unique value-add at a good (but still reasonable) margin or a 'pass-through' that provides a small margin and is competitive with anyone. Of the top ten domain sellers in the world, only one matches our prices for domain names. All the rest sell for higher prices than we do. We are not the lowest priced, but we are highly competitive on commodity items and whatever margin we take is for a bona-fide 'value add'. We sell at a small profit, but it is a profit. That means that our various partners can be sure they are dealing with people that won't go away.

Ethical requirements

Note that for Trantor Standard Systems Inc., ethical behavior is not just window dressing. It is the essence of our business. Until now, all of our business has been by referral and word-of-mouth. Everyone that works with us must adhere to the highest standards of ethical conduct. No cheating is allowed. That means that everyone can expect to be treated fairly, with an open hand. You will know that you are not a burden on your suppliers, your customers or your community. We only do 'net positive value' stuff. If a company only needs modest shared hosting, that is what they get and that is all they pay for.

Free Lunch?

We have agreements in place for service within both Canada and the United States. We expect to have approximately two 'anchor' entities within each jurisdiction (State or Province) to ensure that companies in our network are in compliance with all local legislation. Trantor holds three 'Trantor' domain names: Trantor.ca for Canada, Trantor.us for the United States and Trantor.biz for a later global expansion.

This is a 'long play'. There is no 'get rich quick' plan. There is an expectation that this will be a sideline for franchisees initially and that people will work from home offices. There will be some need for 'sweat-equity' to build the business. However, for what we offer, the smallish operations should be genuinely 'in the black' within eighteen months or less. This is with sustainable and growing revenue. The nature of our products and services is such that they have a net positive payback for clients. The nature of our target market and our offering is such that clients will remain clients even if their businesses fail. Our plan goes out about ten years during which time we expect these franchises (when offered) will have a value in the millions. That is, their sustainable net profit will be equivalent to more than a million dollars of invested capital.

There is no free lunch here. Everyone in the entire chain from suppliers through head office, regional distributors and franchisees/dealers must add value to the chain and must only take a fair profit from the value they add. No layer or pillar of the operation will remain in place if it does not add value. This is for the benefit of all concerned.

There is a 'reduced cost' lunch here, though. By partnering together, we gain the benefits of volume buying, national presence, a focused offering, etc. We create value through synergy and it is that value that we share. The operative word here is share. That means vendors, our company, franchisees, customers and the local community all share in the value they create together.

Our advantage

As of this point in time we far exceed our major competitors in providing value for money. Some minor players offer lower prices, but the prices are not sustainable going forward. During our seven-year tenure as a supplier of Internet services, the majority of our competition has ceased operating. Those that remain are typically in a precarious state and no longer nimble enough to correct that.

We are strategically postioned to move quickly and decisively into a very large but underserviced market. Our competition can not move as quickly as we are able to fill the breach. They do not even appear to see the breach yet.

Contact us for more information

If you would like to explore this further or have questions/comments, use the Contact Page to get in touch.