Your business data needs to be stored somewhere. You can keep it on a server onsite. You can move it to the cloud. Or, you can choose a hybrid approach.
In our recent guide, Cloud Computing Curiosity: Your IT FAQs Answered , we shared the questions and misconceptions of cloud computing we hear every day. If you are one of the many companies seriously thinking about moving some or all of your data off-premise, you might be struggling with determining the key value propositions needed to make the move sooner rather than later.
Here at Silverado, we want to assist you with choosing the best cloud solutions for your organization, whether it’s cloud, on-premise or a hybrid. In our latest article we clearly define why cloud migration may be a better business value – and perhaps even a necessity – in the future.
4 Financial Benefits of Cloud Migration
Let’s be clear. Cloud services may not be cheaper. That being said, it’s important to look at the true “costs” and value of cloud computing. We’ve summarized them into 4 key areas.
1. Avoid Writing a “Big Check”
There is never a good time to allocate the budget to pay for new on-premise hardware or software. Cloud alleviates many of these large capital investments. Service fees are billed on a recurring, subscription basis. However, if you don’t mind writing a somewhat larger check once a year, many cloud service providers offer a prepaid annual discount, and that can save you time and money!
2. Reduce Surprise Bills
Your accountant will appreciate more predictability of future expenses. When set up and managed correctly, most highly rated cloud service provider contracts include future upgrades, offering a consistent spend strategy. This also leads to hidden staff productivity savings. Cloud providers typically roll out their changes as they’re available rather than waiting for one big release. Your staff experiences small updates that are easier to adapt to than significant changes.
3. Right-Size Your IT Spend
Your server needs to support the number of employees you have today, during any seasonal fluctuations and a year from now. It has to be built for the highest number of users you expect to have and, thus, you may be paying for more server than you need. Cloud storage and services are flexible, allowing for increases and decreases in plans, keeping you productive without overpaying for unneeded capabilities.
4. Is 5% Better?
On-premise server support companies work to maintain a minimum of 95% uptime. That sounds pretty good, right? But what if that 5% downtime happens during a peak productivity period? With cloud, most service agreements require 99.999% uptime and include a better network, hardware, more robust redundancies and disaster recovery. That’s simply a better standard for business continuity.
It’s Not If You’ll Move, But When
You heard it here first. It isn’t a question of if you’re moving to cloud – it’s when. In the not-too-distant future it will become cost prohibitive to handle all your data on-premise.
Try to visualize the costs and resources it will take to duplicate all that you can do (or soon will be able to do) in the cloud. This includes running all your applications, managing up-to-date hardware and software and, of course, maintaining security best practice features. Then, look at paying a monthly fee that handles all these things better, faster and with more predictability. When you look at your bottom-line spend and talent-resource allocation, it becomes much easier to see the true value of the cloud.
Still Unsure if Cloud is Right for You?
You need sound advice to decide if a cloud, on-premise or hybrid solution is right for you. Here at Silverado our team of experts will provide you the guidance to decide which solution is right for your business. Call us at 520-903-1580 or contact us online and let’s talk about what’s best for your business.
