Information Technology has provided the individual users as well as the enterprises with a very advantageous tool in the form of cloud computing. Its technical aspects may be a topic of discussion for technical experts however its functional attributes are known to be very successful for small businesses and individual users. This is primarily because of its cost efficiency and flexibility it offers to the small and micro enterprises.
There are many reasons why cloud hosting is chosen over any other medium especially the conventional mediums of running a business. Speed and efficiency have been the buzzword for today's business. The response time of a service provider has to be short and truly yielding. Merely responding in a short time without any proper solution or result is not sufficient for a business to stay ahead in the competition. A business owner has to ensure that he or she comes with outcomes which can be mapped along with the shorter yield time. This along with many other reasons pointed out here justifies the preference given to the cloud hosting over conventional mediums. The obvious reasons supporting the preference can be numbered as follows:
1. Limitations of conventional mediums
As discussed above, the response time of a business dependent on conventional modes of operations is considerably low. In addition it is also not easy to gauge the progress of the assigned project in a given time. This inability to measure the progress not only wastes the human resources it also impedes the work and affects the overall performance of the team. Since the management is not able to pin point the problematic areas in the first place it is not able to offer a remedial solution which ultimately hampers the business.
Cloud hosting offers promising solutions to tackle the limitations of conventional mediums. While it is difficult in the physical world to find out who is doing what at what time, it is contrastingly easy in the digital world to do that. Merely by looking at the login and log out time a business owner stay updated on its major ongoing operations or it can also keep a check on its employee's timings, work assignments, extra tasks (if being carried out by the them). All these activity can be done discretely by the administrator or employer without the knowledge of the user.
2. Reliability
Cloud hosting is very reliable medium as the chances of the system shutting down, is very less in this new technology. This system is optimized and functioning with the help of internet connectivity. Whatever activity is carried out by the user is recorded is processed over internet in real time. Whether it is updating the client on the status of unpaid bills, sending reminders to vendors or sending latest reports to the bosses, each task is properly done at the users end. It does not matter where the user accesses the system from. The user may access the system while traveling or while sitting in the comfort of his or her home and carrying out the business tasks without any problem.
Access to the application through cloud hosting is reliable because it is restricted. Only the users with valid login ID and password can get access to the application or digital resources. Cloud hosting services are offered by professional and experienced service providers. These providers take the services of expert IT professionals to offer cloud hosting services to their clients. Besides the sound infrastructural support, these service providers also score because of experienced professionals they hire. This dual advantage of proper infrastructural support and professional experience help the providers to offer reliable hosting services to their clients.
3. Cost Efficiency
Cloud hosting services are not just reliable; they are also very cost effective. Whatever be the nature of a business or the probable duration for a business to reach to a break even status, cloud hosting helps. One of the obvious reasons of this cost efficiency is that the user of this service need not bother to make investment for purchasing the hardware required to use the desired applications. At the start of a business, a business owner has to take care of multiple investments from administration, promotional activities, marketing, backup plans etc.
In order to optimize the business a user needs to invest in the purchase of IT goods so that the entire business process can be computerized. Though in the long run the process of computerization is very rewarding but for the entrepreneurs or startup professionals investing heavily in IT purchases is a burden. Cloud hosting helps such business users to save on money to be invested in such unavoidable necessities. Rather one needs to invest in hiring only the basic computer with an operating system and internet connectivity. The user will also need to purchase applications like QuickBooks or any other application that he or she wishes to use for the business. In addition to this, there is only a reasonable subscription fee to be paid to the service provider of cloud hosting services to avail the cloud hosting services of a service provider. With such a little investment one can access the application on a reliable secure platform.
4. Faster Returns for business in comparatively lesser time
It is also a fact that cloud hosting yields faster returns on the investment done by the user in a lesser time. It is because the user does not need to invest in the purchase of complete IT resources such as high end computers, hard drives. The user invests only in the form of a monthly or annually subscription and even this fee is reasonable considering the hosts of benefits that this hosting offers. A user can immediately start availing the benefits of cloud hosting after subscribing. It also means that the user immediately starts offering optimized IT backed services to its clients. Lower investments and better yields make it a profitable business proposition.
5. Security
Cloud hosting is not just reliable and profitable it is also very secure medium to run a business. In the cloud hosting, security is ensured due to restricted access to the application and resources. A user can access into the application only after signing into the account with valid login ID and password. This ID and the password provided to the user is unique and secure. In case of any doubt of a security breach or suspected attempt by invalid user one can alter the password after verifying the identity with the service provider. This mode of access offers more security to the resources because a wary user is not able to break into the account even after gaining access to the physical computer. This is possible because no information or data is stored at the user's computer. Rather all the data and information is stored on a secure drive at a remote place monitored by the cloud hosting service providers.
6. Offers support for varied platforms and configurations
Cloud hosting is also feasible because it hosts support for a range of operating system from Windows based PCs to Macs. A user can opt for the operating systems or volume of services and number of applications as per the need. A user can seek for more or less applications and the prices are accordingly adjusted by the service providers offering cloud hosting services. This feature makes it feasible and adds another reason why cloud hosting should be preferred by the users over the conventional methods of running a business.
