One of the most universal advantages of adopting cloud technology is being able to store data offsite on remote servers, otherwise known as cloud storage. From fledgling startups to international enterprise-level organizations, cloud storage offers key business advantages. In fact, if you’re not storing data on the cloud, you could be putting your business at risk of falling behind.
But, even with the huge shift to cloud storage, unless you know how it can optimize your business, you may not be getting the most out of your cloud storage services. Let’s take a look at what exactly cloud storage does and how it can optimize your business.
What Can Cloud Storage Do?
The idea of accessing a shared computing space to store and analyze data isn’t as new as a lot of people assume. In the 1970s – well before the digital era – companies were using a cloud-like computing model.
At that time, even big-budget organizations couldn’t afford a mainframe computer to house their business data. To remedy this problem, they would “dial in” to remote computers, which were managed by a service provider.
Just as with cloud storage, companies could send their data to an offsite computer and use this more capable computing power to analyze their data.
Today, cloud storage is much more complex, but the same principle applies. Companies save their data on remote servers. These servers can be located across the country or on the other side of the world. And, as with the managed mainframe computers of the past, with cloud storage, cloud service providers manage the servers.
What Are the Advantages of Cloud Storage for Businesses?
There are a few good reasons that 90 percent of companies are on the cloud already.
Cloud storage increases data security
Hands down, your data is more secure in the cloud than it is on an on-site server. As John L. Miller, cloud storage services expert and distributed systems PhD points out, the top cloud storage providers store at least three copies of each piece of data – in three different locations. The chances of all three hard drive failures happening at once are infinitesimal.
Cloud-based storage eliminates infrastructure costs
This is a big advantage, especially for small businesses. When you don’t have to purchase, maintain, and update onsite hardware, you cut these costs out of your IT budget. Instead of having to invest in the right infrastructure, companies pay a predictable, ongoing cloud services fee. This translates to easier budgeting and, over time, cost-savings of thousands of dollars. Research by Multisoft found that SMBs find it 40 percent more cost-effective to use third-party cloud systems instead of in-house ones.
Cloud storage lets your IT team focus on more productive tasks
Another way cloud storage helps businesses to be more efficient is its impact on the IT department. You may still need an IT team, but because your data is stored and managed in the cloud, IT no longer shoulders the responsibility of data storage. This frees your IT professionals up to work on tasks that will increase productivity and help business operations run more smoothly.
With cloud-based data, team members can work from anywhere
Probably the most dynamic advantage of cloud storage is the flexibility it offers. Your employees can log in and access business data from anywhere – they no longer have to be sitting at their office workstations to complete tasks or to collaborate with team members.
This location-agnostic advantage increases productivity, makes collaboration more efficient, and makes your company a more attractive place to work. Employees today prefer the option to work from anywhere so much so that 34 percent would take a 5 percent pay cut just to be able to work remotely.
How to Get the Most Out of Your Cloud Storage
Even with so many intrinsic advantages, the reality is, all cloud storage solutions aren’t the same. In order to get the most out of your cloud-based storage, make sure you’re using a solution that has the features your business can use to thrive. Here are a few of the tools and features you should look for:
- Real-time file storage and backup
- Ability to access the most current version of a file from any device
- Built-in anti-malware and antivirus protection
- Powerful administrative controls to reduce access as needed
- Secure internal and external file sharing
The more robust your cloud storage solution, the more your business will benefit from the advantages cloud-based data storage and file sharing provides.
Intermedia Unite makes it easy to share and collaborate without having to worry about internal or external security issues.
The Intermedia Team
Intermedia helps businesses of all sizes connect better – through voice, video conferencing, chat, contact center, business email and productivity, file sharing and backup, security, archiving, and more – from wherever, whenever. And, as a partner-first company, Intermedia goes to work for our channel partners to help them grow their revenue and maximize their success.
December 16, 2019
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