Are you wondering “Is cloud software right for me?”

Well, we’re sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but only you can answer that one! However, we may be able to help you come on your way by sharing our experience as a cloud software provider.

Hopefully, by the end of this post, you will:

• Understand what cloud software brings to the table
• Understand what you do and don’t want from software hosting
• Understand if the benefits of cloud hosting appeal to you and your business

Let’s get into it, here are 4 reasons why cloud hosting is better than on-premise hosting.

Secure and safe

The safety of your data could be one of if not the most important factors to consider when looking at new technologies – and rightly so!

The good news is that cloud-hosted software is held to very high standards of GDPR and data security, making it reliable and trustworthy.

Bonus tip: To ensure you are investing in the safest cloud software possible, look for hosting within the UK or USA. For example, our speech recognition software is hosted on Microsoft Azure servers within the UK (big tick!).

Unlimited access

Access to their software was a huge necessity for many of our clients and played a big part in their choice to opt for the cloud.

You see, some on-premise software (like our older speech recognition versions) have a limited number of installations available and once reached, that’s it. This was particularly troublesome for people working in healthcare who hot-desk or locum because they often needed to access their software from various computers at various locations.

Cloud software solves that issue as it can be accessed anywhere there is an internet connection and there are no restrictions on the installations or use cases. Simply download and go!

Less strain on your technical team

Given that you are paying for the privilege of a third-party hosting your software on their servers, and so another reason why cloud hosting is better is that the strain on your technical resources and department is minimised.

You don’t have to worry about the available space or security of your server, you don’t have to action updates independently and you can simply use your software carefree.

What’s more, complicated installs are a thing of the past meaning your IT team doesn’t have to learn how to carry them out and they are free to focus on other tasks.

Fewer ongoing costs

Most cloud software is licensed through a monthly or annual subscription. At first glance, the subscription price can be higher than its on-premise counterpart – But there is a reason for that.

As we mentioned above, with cloud software you are effectively paying for someone else to host your technology and take responsibility for its upkeep. However, other than the subscription and initial training, you will have no more ongoing costs.

Whereas when it comes to on-premise software, the responsibility to upkeep the software and your servers falls on your shoulders and with that comes ongoing costs.

This is a huge reason why cloud hosting is better than on-premise, in the long run, it is more cost-effective.

Here are a few examples of the kind of up-keep that on-premise hosting requires and will incur costs:

• Applying fixes, patches and updates
• Downtime
• Performance tuning
• Rewriting customisations and integrations
• Ongoing IT burden
• Maintaining software/hardware
• Maintain network security
• Maintain network database

There we have it – 4 reasons why cloud hosting is better than on-premise.

Hopefully, this has given you an insight into what both cloud and on-premise hosting entails and most importantly, helps you make the right decision for you.

Are you team cloud? Watch our cloud speech recognition software in action here…