It’s easy to understand why you’re hearing more and more about small businesses adopting cloud computing. Remote workforce is one of the strongest reasons why you should think about moving to the cloud.
What is cloud computing, though? “Cloud” is just another name used for the internet, and moving to cloud computing actually means moving data from local servers or work computers to online servers. That means moving your locally-stored data to separate servers connected to the internet.
Cloud computing has been around for a while now, and it’s grown a lot in popularity in recent years. Many users don’t even realize they’re cloud-technology users in everyday life. For example, when you check your bank info online, you’re using a cloud-based service. It’s the same when you’re streaming Netflix or Amazon.
About 42% of EU enterprises used cloud computing in 2021, and that number is steadily increasing. Bring your small business to the next level by relying on cloud computing. It can solve a lot of your business problems and challenges. To get the best data transition with great results, it’s a good idea to go for the top cloud consulting services available in your area.
Cloud computing can be the new normal for your business. Here are 6 reasons to help you take the leap yourself!
1. You have more flexibility with cloud computing
Cloud computing can be a great solution for your bandwidth demand problems. Cloud-based services can scale your cloud capacity by using remote servers. Whether you need a scale up or a scale down, you’ll easily find an answer.
You can use as much or as little bandwidth as you need, thus getting a real advantage over other similar businesses to your own. Simply put, cloud computing can increase your business efficiency because you can use cloud-based apps to take care of certain business aspects.
A large majority of EU enterprises that use cloud computing focus on solutions to host their email sistems. Around 68% of those prefer them for storing files and for office software.
With Slack or GSuite you can take care of team communication and collaborations. And Shopify can take care of e-commerce aspects, inventory management or order tracking for you. When you use apps like these it’s easier for your team to work together from anywhere.
2. Scalability allows you to easily grow your business
When you have a small business it’s a given you want to find a way to grow. But growing too fast can lead to issues overtaking your infrastructure. For example, EU companies increased their cloud computing usage from 36% in 2020 to 42% in 2021.
Tracking your calls and orders can be a good start when you have a limited number of orders or clients. But when you have to scale your operation fast, you can run into trouble.
The good news is there are cloud-based solutions you can switch to. A good example is Salesforce, which eases your customer service problems. You can keep growing your business at your own pace and focus on developing without worry, adding capacity whenever you need to, without ruining an existing well-oiled machine.
3. You can easily recover data
Losing data is devastating for any business, more so for a small business trying to fortify a customer niche and grow. And it’s not just about security, information and files, it’s also about time and money wasted trying to recover everything.
Over half of the EU enterprises using cloud say they prefer security software apps, while 47% host their databases in the cloud. According to the same data, the EU states with the highest cloud computing rates reported in 2021 are Sweden and Finland (75% each). At the opposite end of the graphs sit Romania, with 14% usage, and Bulgaria, with 13%.
Cloud-based services with quick data recovery are a great option to keep your information secure. It’s a great investment for your small business. Especially because a robust data recovery system can save your data when it’s been wiped from a malfunctioning server. Or you can safely delete critical data remotely from a lost laptop, for example.
4. You’re not dependent on software updates anymore
When you’re taking care of your small business data in-house, you regularly have to upgrade your systems yourself to keep everything up-to-date and secure.
When you’re using a cloud-computing service, you don’t have that worry anymore. A third party regularly upgrades systems that host your data, instead. Your IT department can focus on other, more important targets, like design or development.
5. Your employees can work from anywhere
A great advantage when using cloud-computing solutions is that your employees can work from basically anywhere. They just need a good internet connection to be able to work.
In early 2020 4 out of 10 workloads in European companies were moved to the cloud, according to an Accenture research. It was meant to lower costs, as opposed to North American cloud computing adoption meant to increase customer value.
Most services are optimized for mobile usage, too, so your employees are not restricted by the devices they have on hand. Statista says there are over 6.5 million smartphone users in the world in 2022, so you definitely want to cater to them, too.
Cloud computing is a flexible working solution for employees to enjoy a work-life balance without having to take a hit on productivity.
6. You save money by avoiding expenses
Cloud computing is an affordable solution for small businesses. Using it to its full potential saves money across the board – hardware, software solutions, staff costs, etc. And you also save time, so you save even more money.
Accenture says that many EU companies move their data centers to cloud computing specifically to decrease operating costs. They primarily adopt cloud at a software-as-a-service level, meaning they’re working on advancing their cloud computing usage. That means adopting models like platform-as-a-service or AI technologies.
Because you don’t spend as much on computer equipment or IT resources, you have another reason to use cloud computing solutions to streamline your small business. Consider you’re also getting access to programs, tools and apps you or your team needs. And they may be too expensive otherwise.
Conclusion
By using cloud computing solutions for your small business you add flexibility, security and scalability to your operations. You’re also making it easier for everyone to work from anywhere, improving work-life balance and productivity. And you cut back on maintenance costs, freeing your IT department for other tasks in the process.
Transferring more of your business infrastructure to the cloud makes it easier for your teams to think practically instead of reactively. And it makes it easier to work during a crisis. In the end, looking for ways to implement cloud computing solutions into your business infrastructure is a remarkable win.
