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Benefits for SMBs
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Cloud Computing Provides Many Benefits for Small Medium Businesses

Overview


There’s a lot of hype about the ‘cloud’ these days. And no, we’re not talking about those miserable Stratus ones that we’re seeing a lot of recently!


We may not know it but most of us use Cloud based services every day, e.g. Yahoo! GMail, Google apps, Amazon, eBay, Facebook, Twitter, & LinkedIn are all Cloud based applications.


So if companies such as Google and Facebook are using Cloud based applications don’t you owe it to yourself and your company to find out what the benefits are?


Many companies now provide a range of Cloud based software programs for businesses as well as personal use. Zoho (Single Office, Home Office), for example, provide a range of over 25 integrated online business tools that can be adapted to practically any business model.


These cloud based products, are delivered using SaaS (Software as a Service) which means that you pay a monthly subscription fee, they handle the rest.


All you need is an Internet connection, a browser and a computer device.


Cloud Adoption


Cloud computing continues to gain significance in today's business world. The global market intelligence firm IDC predicted a 130% increase in cloud computing by 2016. Gartner predicted the size of the cloud computing market to be $150 billion in 2013 and 60% of server workloads moving to the cloud by 2014. Mimecast found that 70% of companies currently using cloud services will continue to move more applications to the cloud to increase efficiency and cost savings.


An excellent report published last year by CDW, a leading provider of integrated information technology solutions in the U.S. and Canada, more than half of organizations surveyed are moving a variety of capabilities to the Cloud AND, unlike traditional IT decisions, the Cloud is increasingly considered as a business decision, not a technology selection.   


Cloud Benefits


Cloud software benefits are obvious and immediate.


1.   No new hardware, no new software to install, no security issues & no hassle.    


You do not need to invest in servers or IT teams to maintain them. Infrastructure, security and backups/redundancy is handled by the providers. Cloud service providers invest millions of pounds in security. Their encryption and physical security is way more robust than most most small businesses or even enterprise level organisations can implement.


2.   Pay for what you use 


Cloud service providers charge licenses based on how many users you have. License models are flexible in providers that focus on the SMB segment. They do not require you to undertake painful and expensive ‘software upgrade’ or ‘software maintenance’ contracts – software is always the most up to date version for as long as you subscribe. 


3.   Cloud applications for SMBs - Why? 


Cloud applications for SMBs provide better control costs and reduce their I.T. budget, and drive staff efficiency and greatly improve productivity. 


4.   Which applications?    


According to the Department of Business Skills SMBs make up 99% of all businesses and account for 59% of all private sector employment and 49% of all private sector turnover.  There are Cloud based applications for all of these SMBs. 


5.   Better security and disaster recovery 


The scale of economy with cloud software is such that huge sums of money are invested into making them secure, with the latest encryption technologias well as physical security at their data centres.  And disaster recovery is immediate: Office burned down or destroyed by a flood?  Log on again from any internet connected computer – even a mobile device!  And access your data immediately.


6.   Reduced implementation time 


Implementation time is in days, not weeks and months, as the applications have extensive features and customization capabilities. 


Conclusion 


It’s quite easy to write a lot on cloud software and how it can be of benefit to businesses of all sizes and of course, we’re bias! There are detractors from the theme of course and no system is perfect. However we strongly believe that the cloud will continue to become more of a necessity rather than a luxury when thinking about your business IT solutions and back office processes, staying ahead of competitors and especially when factoring in collaboration between staff, often in multiple locations, together with gains in productivity. 


Work smart. Work online.

Contact Us

Mangoho are Zoho CRM UK consultants and we aim to push affordable, cloud based solutions to the small business sector in Wales. 


Contact us for more information and ideas on how Zoho can be implemented in your business.