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Wondering whether you should move to the cloud? Any three of these advantages would be enough to convince many businesses to move their business into the cloud. But when you add up all 10? It’s approaching no-brainer territory.
What is cloud computing? Simply put, it’s computing based on the internet. Where in the past, people would run applications or programs from software downloaded on a physical computer or server in their building, cloud computing allows people access to the same kinds of applications via the internet.
When you update your Facebook status, you’re using cloud computing. Checking your bank balance on your phone is via the cloud. Chances are you rely on cloud computing to solve some of the many challenges faced by small businesses, whether you’re firing off emails on the move or using a bunch of apps to help you manage your workload.
In short, using the cloud is fast becoming the new normal in your day-to-day life. So, why are so many businesses moving to the cloud? Cloud computing increases efficiency, helps improve cash flow and offers many more benefits. Here are 10 advantages of cloud computing.
Cloud-based services are ideal for businesses with growing or fluctuating bandwidth demands. If your needs increase, it’s easy to scale up your cloud capacity, drawing on the service’s remote servers. Likewise, if you need to scale down, the flexibility is baked into the service.
This level of agility can give businesses using cloud computing a real advantage over competitors – it’s not surprising that CIOs and IT Directors rank ‘operational agility’ as a top driver for cloud adoption.
Businesses of all sizes should be investing in robust disaster recovery, but for smaller businesses that lack the required cash and expertise, this is often more an ideal than reality. Cloud is now helping more SMBs buck that trend.
According to Aberdeen Group, small businesses are twice as likely as larger companies to have implemented cloud-based back-up and recovery solutions that save time, avoid large up-front investment and roll up third-party expertise as part of the deal.
The beauty of cloud computing is that the servers are off-premise, out of sight and out of your hair. Suppliers take care of them for you and roll out regular software updates – including security updates – so you don’t have to worry about wasting time maintaining the system yourself. Leaving you free to focus on the things that matter, like growing your business.
Cloud computing cuts out the high cost of hardware. You simply pay-as-you-go and enjoy a subscription-based model that’s kind to your cash flow. Add to that the ease of set-up and management, and suddenly your scary, hairy IT project looks at lot friendlier. It’s never been easier to take the first step to cloud adoption.
When your teams can access, edit and share documents anytime, from anywhere, they’re able to do more together, and do it better. Cloud-based workflow and file sharing apps help teams make updates in real time and gives them full visibility of their collaborations. And our research tells us, collaboration increases productivity within a business by more than 40%.
With cloud computing, if you’ve got an internet connection you can be at work. And with most serious cloud services offering mobile apps, you’re not restricted by which device you’ve got on hand.
The result? Businesses can offer more flexible working perks to employees so they can enjoy the work-life balance that suits them – without productivity taking a hit. One study reported that 42% of workers would swap a portion of their pay for the ability to telecommute. On average they’d be willing to take a 6% pay cut.
The more employees and partners collaborate on documents, the greater the need for watertight document control. Before the cloud, workers had to send files back and forth as email attachments to be worked on by one user at a time. Sooner or later – usually sooner – you end up with a mess of conflicting file content, formats and titles.
As even the smallest companies become more spread out geographically, the scope for complication rises. According to one study, "73% of knowledge workers collaborate with people in different time zones and regions at least monthly".
When you make the move to cloud computing, all files are stored centrally and everyone has one source of the truth. Greater visibility means improved collaboration, which ultimately means better work and a healthier bottom line.
Lost laptops are a billion-dollar business problem. And potentially greater than the loss of an expensive piece of kit is the loss of the sensitive data inside it. Cloud computing gives you greater security when this happens. Because your data is stored in the cloud, you can access it no matter what happens to your machine. You can even remotely wipe data from lost laptops so it doesn’t get into the wrong hands.
Wish there was a simple step you could take to become more competitive? What about enterprise-class technology, for everyone? Moving to the cloud gives you access, and allows smaller businesses to act faster than big, established competitors.
A pay-as-you-go service and cloud business applications mean small outfits can run with the big boys, and disrupt the market, while remaining lean and nimble. David now packs a Goliath-sized punch.
While the above points spell out the benefits of cloud computing for your business, moving to the cloud isn’t an entirely selfish act. The environment gets a little love too. When your cloud needs fluctuate, your server capacity scales up and down to fit. So you only use the energy you need and you don’t leave oversized carbon footprints. This is something close to our hearts at Salesforce, where we try our best to create sustainable solutions with minimal environmental impact.
Want help choosing the right technology solutions? Take our free business assessment today to learn more about finding the right path to growth for your small business.
