There's more to the cloud than just data storage (though it is great for that). Cloud computing is the way of the future. It's a practical, beneficial, and continually changing the way small businesses do business. Here are five reasons small business owners should consider moving to the cloud:
1. Lower Costs
Moving everyday business to the cloud can provide a small business with significant savings. Servers require quite a bit of capital- both up front and for overhead/maintenance. With the cloud, you can lower installation, maintenance, hardware, upgrade and support costs. According to Trend Micro, small and medium business cloud users spent 11% less on IT than non-cloud users.
2. Do More with Less
Moving more of your business applications/hardware to the cloud means you can do more with less! Even organizations with limited resources can store critical data and leverage more computing power without purchasing additional software and hardware. Think of it like this- you get all the benefits of having multiple servers, with none of the hassle.
3. Better Collaboration & Productivity
Employees can easily collaborate using cloud applications. Users can upload, edit and comment on documents using Office 365, Dropbox, Google Drive, and more. You can even create, collaborate, send and get approval for proposals/quotes using Proposify. Cloud computing really allows you to streamline your critical processes.
4. Increased Flexibility
One of the best benefits of cloud computing is being able to access work-related files and information from any device in any place, at any time. Because most cloud applications are browser-based, you can literally work from anywhere with an internet connection! Most even have mobile apps so you can work from a smart device.
5. Greater Integration
Adopting cloud-based business solutions creates multiple opportunities for simplified integration. If you're using one cloud-based software, you can most likely integrate that application with many others due to the API (Application Programming Interface). For example,you may be able to integrate your CRM with your Email, Accounting, Project Management and Human Resources applications (and maybe more).
