With growing business complexity comes growing costs, and with increasing reliance on IT and network infrastructure, businesses are increasingly turning to cloud-based applications for key elements of their operation.

Why Choose a Cloud Service?

A good cloud service will provide a high level of flexibility and control over a business process. A good example of this comprehensive control is the payroll cloud service offered by XCD.

To help in choosing the best cloud services for a specific business, let’s begin by clearing up some of the popular misunderstandings with ‘the cloud.’

How Does a Cloud Service Work?

It is a popular misconception that ‘the cloud’ which people speak about so frequently today is an actual company or the actual service itself. This is not the case.

Many of the commonplace applications being used and accessed in daily life are, in fact, cloud services. Social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter are typical applications that store data on a network of remote servers. When a user accesses the social media application, they effectively access that remote (or cloud-based) data.

Essentially, a cloud service is any application or software platform that is offered by a service provider to the business, who then accesses data remotely hosted on their behalf.

Why Should I Opt For a Cloud Service?

Cloud-based technology is making increasing sense for business concerns of all scales and complexities. Typically, the larger the scale, the greater the usage and uptake of a cloud-based service.

Typical benefits include the increased control over data and information, together with superior storage, data, and system security and accessibility.

A decentralized cloud service also does away with internal server and related infrastructure concerns – aging equipment and inadequate storage space – replacing it with a secure and stable platform that can be easily expanded upon or reduced if need be.

The Best Cloud Services for Your Business

Perhaps one of the most encountered cloud services is Microsoft Office 365, which has been a leading-edge provider of IT and office software solutions to businesses of small, medium, and large scale.

With the increasing reliance on cloud-based services to support and carry key business functions, the range of services on offer is increasing significantly.

A business may potentially seek out a cloud service provider to support a range of business functions, including:

• Staff and human resources management
• Customer relationship management
• Marketing management
• General management tools
• Project management
• Data backup and storage

Look for a good cloud service provider who will provide a demonstration of the proposed application, offer customization service to tailor the service to the specific business operation, and provide a good level of after-sales support for the future.

Summary

Cloud services are increasing in range and popularity as a replacement to business functions and processes typically hosted on an ‘in-house’ server or network. The service providers become responsible for providing uptime and maintenance of these cloud-based services permitting the business client control over access whilst ensuring the stability and security of stored data.

Read Also:

• 5 Mistakes Businesses Make with Their Website
• The Importance of Business Intelligence