Benefits of Cloud Computing Explained Simply w/Examples

Do you plug your ears and make Pee-Wee Herman noises every time you hear the term “cloud computing” bandied about? You’re not alone. Individuals and businesses alike find a lot to dislike with the idea of yet another monumental shift in technology.

While no one with a brain would claim every technical change is worth considering, this thing called cloud computing has a lot going for it. Here are our five favorite benefits.

1. Slash IT Costs

Whether you have a single IT guy or gal or an entire department, moving as many business operations as possible to the cloud is almost guaranteed to save money. Thanks to the subscription model of reserving cloud server space, you no longer have to troubleshoot issues when they arise.

Gone also are the twin sucks of time and money involved in updating software and hardware.

2. Scaling Up or Down

The problem with running a traditional network on your business premises is that it is difficult and expensive to increase or reduce capacity when you have busy or slow times. It takes time and effort to ramp up or down resources.

With cloud computing, it’s a simple matter of calling up your computer services provider and tell them what you need. They flip a switch and, presto, it’s done.

3. Disaster Proof

Business owners with a server on site live in perpetual fear that a hurricane, fire, flood, or tornado could rip through the building at any time and completely destroy an entire network. Even if you have offsite backups, it’s going to take time to rebuild.

But when you compute in the cloud, the premises where your business is physically located could be completely wiped off the map and your data, programs, files, and resources won’t take a hit at all.

4. Collaborate Like Never Before

The physical location of your employees becomes almost irrelevant with cloud computing.

Throw off the shackles of only being able to make changes to documents on site and take a step into the world of real-time collaboration between employees, contractors, consultants or other third parties. It’s a simple matter to authorize access to anyone you like, even if they’re halfway across the globe.

5. Automatic Updates

People, this is a big one. Small companies are notorious for failing to incorporate hardware and software updates into their network on a regular basis. This is how malware and hackers get into your system!

When you shift operations to the cloud, you also shift the responsibility of applying updates to your hosting provider, and there’s a good chance they’ll be more vigilant about the task that you are.

The Bottom Line

Unlike the Rubik’s Cube or pet rocks, cloud computing is no flash in the pan. This is a fundamental change in the way networks are built and used. The more you resist, the further you fall behind because there’s a good chance your competitors are already in the cloud.

The efficiency gap will only widen over time, making it harder for “landlocked” operations to stay profitable. You like profit, don’t you?