February 15

10 Reasons Companies are Moving Communications to the Cloud


 

There’s lots of buzz around the cloud these days and cloud communications is no exception. But buzz isn’t always an indicator of a business case for technology purchases. Smart businesses are asking what’s driving the rush to the cloud—and they’re getting solid answers. So why are so many businesses moving communications to the cloud today? Here are 10 real-world reasons.

  1. Cost

Predictable monthly costs

This may seem like old news, but many companies don’t realize just how much they can save by moving their communications to the cloud. By hosting a phone system over the Internet, businesses are charged on an “as needed” basis, paying only for what they use. That makes cloud-based communication systems especially cost-effective for small businesses—eliminating the need to pay for the installation and maintenance of a traditional phone system.

  1. Management

Outsource IT support to the provider

The management of an on-site solution can be very expensive. Because of the complexity of today’s communications systems, it can often take an entire IT department to manage. Cloud-based communications can help alleviate the burden by eliminating maintenance, IT workload and some of the more costly internal infrastructure, including servers and storage systems.

  1. Scalability

Scale up or down based on users

Anyone who has moved or expanded an on-site phone system knows just how difficult it can be. Whether a business is growing, moving or sizing down, the cloud provides the flexibility and scalability the business needs now and in the future. And with cloud-based systems, businesses can access and add new features without any new hardware requirements.

  1. Vendor management

One vendor for everything

With cloud communications, a vendor manages communication systems off-site, and IT departments are freed up to focus on other high-priority issues.  (Let IT get back to that email fix!)

  1. Technology

Instant updates

With cloud communications, service is outsourced, and upgrades are deployed through automatic software updates. This allows organizations to stay focused on their business and leave the upgrades to the cloud communications vendor.

  1. Quality of service

Maximize uptime and downtime coverage

For many businesses, uptime is pivotal. To keep things running, they rely on the ability to scale and leverage remote work teams or serve customers from anywhere.  For these kinds of businesses, cloud communications maximize uptime and coverage through multiple remotely hosted data centers, helping them avoid costly interruptions and downtime.

  1. Affordable Redundancy

Leverage shared resources

With an on-site communication system, hardware and software geographic redundancy can be challenging to deliver. But when multiple businesses share resources in a cloud environment, they get access to a level of redundancy that would be too expensive to procure with an on-site solution.

  1. Disaster recovery

Business continuity made easy

Businesses are using the cloud to protect themselves from the effects of disasters. With cloud communications, they can get up and running quickly after a disaster or in some cases, continue running the entire time. Some reroute calls to remote locations and cell phones. Others rely on remote access to voicemail or use cloud-based auto attendants continue taking calls and providing information. It’s a hard-to-resist combination of reliability, resiliency, and redundancy.

  1. Cloud-based applications

Access customized applications in the cloud

When businesses are connected to a cloud communications platform, they get access to the latest communications applications and developments, like customizable business workflows. These applications help boost productivity and revenue streams for their businesses in ways that traditional communications programs cannot.

  1. Future-proofing

Digital transformation is here

Most companies have started transitioning to the cloud in one form or another to future-proof their businesses, as most applications today are being constructed in the cloud. Making the most of new applications requires the ability to integrate fluidly with business communications system. Integrating cloud-based applications with a cloud-based communications system is significantly easier than integrating cloud-based applications with an on-site one, so businesses looking to future-proof their operations are moving to the cloud.

Making your own call

Is cloud-based communication right for you? If you’re not sure, you can always contact us to learn more about the best communications solution for your business.