If your business relies on on storing a lot of digital files, whether for your own purposes or storing client data, it is absolutely crucial that you back that data up. About 60% of SMBs (small or medium businesses) prefer backing up data to drives connected to one of their computers, according to a study done by Spiceworks. However, it’s probably not conducive to back it up to several hard drives that take up space all around your office and are all vulnerable to one catastrophe.
Instead, you can invest in cloud storage to backup your data off site. You may be wondering, “How will backing up my data off site be helpful to me?” We’ll explain the benefits and show you how cloud storage is the storage of the future.
Affordability
For starters, cloud storage is very affordable now. It doesn’t cost very much to backup your files online; only a couple hundred dollars per year on average. This low cost means you can more easily manage critical data storage without breaking the bank, and if you’re storing data for your clients, they won’t have to break the bank to keep their data safe.
Accessibility
Cloud storage gives you or your clients the ability to access data from virtually anywhere with an internet connection. Never again will you need to pack up a laptop and hard drive just to show a client a single document or file. Using their own computer, or a tablet or phone using an app, they can access it easily, even on the go.
Security
According to the study by Spiceworks, 45% of those polled have experienced some sort of data loss and 14% of those were unable to recover the files. That is a huge percentage; almost one out of every two people. Even if you back up your files to an on site server, a single natural disaster, accident, or burglary could cause you to lose all your files, including the backups. According to FEMA, over 40% of businesses never open again after a natural disaster. By storing your files off site, you can have peace of mind that whatever happens close to home, your data is safe and secure.
Automation and Simplicity
Of the 60% people polled who did not have cloud backups, 56% said they had no plans to move to cloud storage. The biggest reason? Time. It takes a lot of time to back up gigabytes, and sometimes terabytes or petabytes of data. When you first back up your files, it can run overnight or over a weekend. With cloud backups, your files are constantly syncing to the cloud server. And all of this can be set up with just a few clicks of the mouse. Just choose a directory to back up, how often to do it, and you’re done.
Source:
http://thevarguy.com/blog/5biggestadvantagescloudbackup
