Back in 2011, most businesses hadn’t even heard of the cloud, let alone knew what they should do with it. But fast forward seven years, and it’s now a ubiquitous business tool that’s helped many companies lower costs and improve productivity. It’s genuinely revolutionary.
Just like the internet in the early days, entrepreneurs continue to uncover new uses for the cloud, providing evermore services for businesses to enjoy. The cloud isn’t a panacea – nothing is – but it’s just about as close as many companies have ever got to one.
Grow Without Worrying About Scale
The cloud changed IT forever. Before it came along, businesses had to manually grow their business by buying new physical servers and hard drives, new computer networks, and routers. It was all a massive hassle. But today, cloud service providers largely eliminate this donkey work, giving companies a seamless experience.
Businesses use new cloud space as and when they need it. If they need more, then they pay a small increase in their fee and get the extra resources they need. If they need less, then they pay less. Because it is a marginal service, firms never have to spend more than they need, with some providers offering a daily or hourly rate.
It Makes Outsourcing Far Easier
Outsourcing certain company operations used to be a hassle, but with the cloud, it’s become a lot easier. It’s now far easier to integrate a telephone answering service, for instance, into a business with the connectivity offered by the cloud. Remote staff can access all company records and documents, providing customers with a seamless experience, all at a lower cost.
For small businesses, this is a godsend. No longer is there a need to spend a lot of money on in-house staff. The cloud makes skilled professionals available immediately, and on a cheaper, gig basis.
Cloud Networks Are Safe
With improvements in antivirus software, its become much harder for hackers to gain access to company networks (although recent news stories may have you thinking otherwise). The main threat now is physical theft and staff sabotage.
The cloud, however, sidesteps these security headaches. Not only do most cloud service providers keep their equipment in secure facilities, but they also provide tools that employers can use to restrict access to specific folders and files. Segmenting worker access is one of the best ways to prevent a system breach and keep data private.
Automatic Updates
Nothing is more annoying than having to update an entire network to a new, and likely incompatible, software version. But on the cloud, specialist engineers do this for you. The pain of updates is, for the most part, history.
Better Productivity
Ultimately, productivity determines the financial success of a business. Those companies that can generate prodigious output with frugal inputs make the most money over time.
The cloud allows companies to improve productivity by giving employees access to relevant information, no matter where they might be. Having all files stored and backed up online not only prevents data loss but also allows quick retrieval from mobile devices.