More Reasons to Choose Cloud Computing for Small and Medium Businesses

More Reasons to Choose Cloud Computing for Small and Medium Businesses

Are you a small or medium business owner in Western Australia? If so, you may be wondering if cloud computing is the right option for your business. In this blog post, we will explore some of the reasons why cloud computing may be a good fit for your business. We will also discuss some of the benefits of using cloud computing services. So, if you are considering making the switch to cloud computing, keep reading! You may be surprised at all the advantages that cloud computing can offer your business.

What is Cloud Computing?

Cloud computing is a term that refers to the use of remote servers to store, process and manage data. This means that instead of storing data on your local computer or server, you can access it from anywhere in the world via the internet. Cloud computing is a model for delivering information and applications over the internet. It has changed the way businesses operate and how people use technology.

Cloud infrastructure types for businesses

Small and medium-sized businesses usually choose from these categories of cloud computing infrastructure options for SMBs:

• Platform as a service (PaaS): This is a comprehensive cloud computing solution such as Google App Engine or Microsoft Azure that includes hardware, software and infrastructure solutions.
• Infrastructure as a service (IaaS): This features networking and storage solutions such as Amazon Web Services and Oracle Cloud Infrastructure.
• Software as a service (SaaS): These services are designed to be accessed online and used on in-house machines and not as downloadable services. Some examples of such services include Adobe Creative Cloud and Trello.

Which of these infrastructure services you need will ultimately depend on several factors, including if you plan to full or hybrid cloud computing and what services you prefer to access from your office servers.

Benefits of cloud computing for SMBs

Small to medium businesses (SMBs) have unique IT needs, which is why cloud computing can be so beneficial for them. Cloud computing allows SMBs to use technology without having to maintain and manage their own infrastructure. Here are five reasons why cloud computing should be a priority for SMBs in Western Australia.

1. Data Security

Data loss is one issue that businesses simply cannot afford. Be it due to accidental deletion or breaching attempts by hackers, businesses of all sizes are always at risk of data loss. Rather than invest heavily in safeguarding data on in-house servers, smart businesses choose the more secure option of cloud storage. Reputed cloud service providers offer uncompromising security and data encryption facilities so that businesses have more control over who gets to access the data.

2. Cost Reduction

Compared to the cost of purchasing, storing and maintaining servers in your office, it is more economical to invest in cloud computing for SMBs. Imagine the space you would need to house servers and the IT experts required to keep them running without a glitch. In addition, there are hardware requirements such as cabling, software updates and licenses that all incur considerable costs. With cloud services, you will have to pay just a fraction of this cost to enjoy uninterrupted services.

3. Efficiency and scalability

Cloud computing can provide significant efficiency and scalability benefits for small and medium businesses (SMBs). With cloud computing, businesses can scale their IT operations up or down quickly and easily, without incurring the high costs associated with traditional on-premise infrastructure. In addition, cloud computing can help businesses to optimise their IT resources and improve operational efficiencies. For example, by using cloud-based email and productivity applications, businesses can save time and money by eliminating the need to maintain and update on-premise software. As a result, cloud computing can help SMBs to improve their bottom line.

4. Making business processes more mobile

Most businesses are now experimenting with hybrid working modes in which employees need to come into the office for just a few days every week and can work from home on the other days. Cloud computing for SMBs has been contributing a great deal to facilitating this hybrid working model. With cloud computing, employees working from remote locations are now able to access data and easily connect with the internal communication system. 

5. Disaster recovery

This is among the most significant benefits of choosing cloud computing. Disaster Recovery has traditionally been a complex and costly endeavour, typically reserved for large enterprises. However, with the advent of cloud computing, Disaster Recovery as a Service (DRaaS) has become a viable option for small and medium businesses (SMBs). DRaaS provides SMBs with the same level of protection as larger organisations but at a fraction of the cost. In addition, DRaaS is much easier to implement and manage than traditional Disaster Recovery solutions.

No matter what business you are engaged in, cloud computing is becoming more and more popular for small to medium businesses. The benefits are many, and the cost has come down in recent years. If you’re still on the fence about whether or not cloud computing is a good option for your business, we encourage you to contact us today for a free consultation. We can help you assess your needs and determine if moving to the cloud is the best solution for your company.

You may like to read these for more information

The complete guide to cloud migration

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Jargon Buster

Disaster Recovery – DR is a set of processes and tools designed to protect an organisation from data loss and minimise downtime in the event of a major outage.
Data Encryption – Data encryption is a process of transforming or encoding readable data into an unreadable format using a key. Only the right key can decode the data back.