Our world today has hundreds of ways to the connect with each other, whether it is through pictures, “likes”, or sharing through multiple digital platforms. As the digital world around us evolves, so must our business practices and we must work harder. With the changing digital world, it is important to reach our customers where they are; online and in the cloud.  In 2014, businesses are expected to spend $13 billion on cloud computing services. Moving your business to the cloud can reap huge benefits.

According to IBM,  the 5 major benefits of utilizing the cloud are:

1) It offers better insight and visibility-

Cloud computing services work seamlessly for multiple platforms and allows you to share data faster. It also can access data for your company and use analytics to drive new insights which puts you ahead of competitors and adapt faster.

2) It makes collaboration easy-

Whether you use phone, tablet, laptop or desktop, the cloud creates an environment that works across all of your devices. Employees can collaborate or access data from anywhere there is Internet. No longer do you have to be sitting in the same room to converse about an ongoing project because the cloud is a virtual meeting place that everyone can access no matter where they are located in the world.

3) It can support a variety of business needs

Flexibility was the the top answer to InformationWeek’s survey about cloud computer services, with 65% stating “the ability to quickly meet business demands”  was most important. If a business needs more bandwidth, the cloud can immediately meet that demand. It also updates automatically with new security and new software features which give businesses the most up-to-date services to better meet the needs of their clients.

4) It allows for rapid development of new products & services

With more information being shared and moved faster through the cloud, the development of ideas can happen faster as well. New products and services can be readily available to customers because they are accessible on the cloud. Businesses do not need to be bogged down with laborious tasks and can focus more on what their customers want and be able to troubleshoot instantaneously to provide the best services possible.

5) The results are proven-

The businesses that have converted to using the cloud has demonstrated a reduction of IT costs, increased employee mobility, and higher efficiency for their practices. They are able to stay ahead of the curve by innovating new technology as well.

“Cloud computing is a new model of computing, only the third such model in IT history, with consolidated and client-server being the two previous ones”. –WSJ

These five benefits are just the tip of the iceberg. The cloud reduces our carbon footprint and makes our companies more efficient by storing our files and information virutally. Instead of multiple physical copies or backlogs of information on discs, the cloud seamlessly saves information safely in case of disaster, theft or other IT issues. Not only are you getting a peace of mind that the information is safe, it also creates a positive environmental impact for a better future. By adapting cloud-based platforms for your business you can open a new realm of possibilities. The sky, is not the limit anymore, it’s where it all begins; in the cloud.

Photo credit: George Thomas / CC 2.0