What is the cloud?
The definition of the cloud may seem unclear, but fundamentally, it is a term used to describe a global network of servers, each with unique functions.
The cloud is not a physical entity, but a huge network of remote servers around the world that are connected to each other to act as a single ecosystem. These servers are designed to store and manage data, run applications, or deliver content or services, such as video streaming, webmail, office software, or social media.
You do not need to access files and data from your personal or local computer, but you can access them online from any device connected to the Internet, which means that all the information can be used anytime, anywhere.
1. Adaptation to changes and custom systems
Working in the cloud represents an adaptive advantage because some applications have options that can be customized according to your business needs. This allows you to test what works for you and discard features that wouldn’t bring as much benefit. Additionally, you can always go back and include a feature that was initially discarded, in case something changes about it.
Since there’s not much setting up to do, these changes are made very quickly and don’t represent any IT hard labor or equipment costs.
There are platforms such as Google Drive, OneDrive, iCloud, Dropbox, among many others, from which you can easily do this.
When we talk about cloud storage, we refer to information stored on cloud-based servers. When navigating the internet, you can use a platform such as OneDrive, and download a document, you can access the information stored on a certain server located anywhere in the world.
Some of the functions of the cloud are:
- File storage
- Infrastructure
- Computing or Software
2. Lower Storage Fees
Stop buying bulky technology and get cloud services instead, which are readily available. Traditional computing and technology are expensive to acquire, complex to set up, and nowadays inefficient and underutilized.
Cloud services require almost no entry cost, making the access and use of advanced technologies very inexpensive, easy, and hassle-free. For example, the ease of obtaining cloud services gives you several low-cost options.
These are some of the monthly and annual costs of the most popular cloud operators in the world:
| MICROSOFT ONEDRIVE | APPLE ICLOUD | AMAZON DRIVE | DROPBOX | MEGA | |
| Free storage | 15 GB | 5 GB | 5 GB | 10 GB | 2 GB |
| 100 GB | 1,99 €/month | No | No | No | No |
| 200 GB | 2,99 €/month | No | 2,99 €/month | No | No |
| 1 TB | No | 69 € annually | No | 99,99 € annually | 9,99 €/month or 99 € annually |
| 4 TB | No | No | No | 399,96 € annually | No |
| 8 TB | No | No | No | 799,92 € annually | No |
3. Real-time Updates
That’s right, now all your computers will automatically update the software. In the end, we will forget about the problem of having to insert the disk computer one by one to install an update.
Imagine this is a problem for employees in your company with multiple computers. You’ll see great benefits from Cloud adoption. Now, imagine there are two or more branches in the same city or even in different cities. By using cloud-based solutions, your entire business will keep running, saving a lot of logistics costs.
Cloud updated tools:
- Automatic sync
- Offline downloads
- Backups
- Integration with third-party apps and external devices
4. Reducing costs
You no longer have to pay high hourly rates for consulting and installation services that are common in traditional technical solutions. With cloud services, there is no need to pay expensive consulting fees up front, and services can be up and running in a few hours rather than months or years.
Plus, stop signing expensive maintenance and support contracts. Traditional technology means keeping up with updates that change every 3-6 months. Cloud service providers can support and maintain the technology and infrastructure to ensure 24-hour access to the latest cloud services.
By providing cloud services, companies can have management tools and other functions available. It’s necessary to know how to use them correctly to take advantage of all its functions, thus reducing costs.
One of the main ways to save money with cloud-based software is to use the tools that the service provider offers. These tools will help your organization make the most of its resources.
Automation is an excellent tool to cut costs. By automating cloud services, companies can eliminate various manual and cumbersome processes, simplifying activities, and gaining extra time to focus on more productive tasks. Additionally, errors can get minimized.
The automatic expansion of resources is used to solve the excessive cost of data when using Cloud services. Thus, you can control the amount of processing that the cloud application must do.
This process can help evolve cloud computing networks, allowing organizations to gain greater flexibility without worrying about paying for excessive contracted services.
By investing in these advantages and effectively managing your resources in the cloud, you can reduce your investment costs, thereby having extra money to expand your business even further..
5. Mobility and fewer hardware requirements
Since cloud apps process data from the cloud instead of computers, many apps are suitable for mobile devices, such as smartphones and tablets, and don’t require expensive devices with high processing power and storage capacity.
Therefore, you can gradually give up Hardware to promote a popular strategy, such as BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) or a strategy used from your own device, where employees can use their laptops, mobile phones, and tablets to work.
In addition, you and your employees will be able to access your work information at any time and place, which has great advantages for better control of the company. This also means greater flexibility and the ability to work from home, which is essential in today’s world.
6. Cloud-Based Phones
A cloud-based communication system is a service that enables you to make calls over the web instead of using ancient analog phones that make use of copper cables or fiber optics to establish connections.
A cloud-based phone system has an array of different features, unlike the traditional analog phones which are limited in terms of features and are less updated. Some of the features of a cloud-based phone system include: unified communications, international calling, artificial intelligence, instant messaging, cloud communication, call forwarding, voicemail-to-email, integrations, automated voice menu and ring anywhere.
Cloud phones are hosted in one or in several data centers which are offsite and secure.
The phone systems can be used with many different types of devices such as: phones with adapters, smartphone apps or phones that are VoIP enabled.
All of the data and knowledge is kept within the cloud rather than maintaining the package through a server. This will ensure that you save on maintenance and upgrade costs as everything can simply be upgraded within the cloud.
Cloud-based phone systems work by breaking up your voice into little digital packets that are sent as information over the net to the recipient of the call. A cloud-based PBX is used when routing a call.
Cloud-based phone systems are accessible through a variety of different ways, all you will need is an internet connection. People can make cloud-based calls via the following methods:
- A phone with a VoIP adapter, the adapters simply plug into your router or directly into the wall.
- There are several programs or applications that allow you to create voice calls over the net, such as: with Skype, Google Voice and Apple FaceTime.
- You can download apps with your smartphone such as Skype or Google voice to make calls via the web.
- A phone dedicated to VoIP. The appearance of the phones come across as a traditional analog phone, however it connects directly to a computer network instead of a phone line.
Summary and Takeaways
There is no doubt that cloud computing has been growing and evolving in many different industries. It is highly important that businesses use technology to be more efficient, as it boasts a number of advantages such as, an increase in productivity, security and assistance of scaling on a global level – those are only to name a few.
Cloud computing is a service that allows users to pay only for what they need- that is the major advantage. It dramatically reduces costs for businesses therefore allowing them to invest in other projects, features or infrastructure to grow their business.
