Data is today’s currency. It’s valuable, sits at the center of commerce and competition, and needs protection. Cyberthreats, storage capacity, unpredictable economic and health concerns, remote and hybrid work, and human error put data at risk.
These realities drive businesses to adopt cloud backup solutions to improve data availability, retention, protection, and restoration.
It makes sense. Business continuity and disaster recovery (BC/DR) solutions follow as more applications and infrastructure move to the cloud. And the trend is accelerating. Since 2020, businesses using cloud backup for BC/DR have grown from 1 in 4 (23%) to more than half (55%), according to a recent study on data protections and trends.
If your business isn’t there, here are five reasons to switch to cloud Backup as a Service (BaaS).
1. Improve the reliability of backups
Rather than trying to retrofit a legacy solution to meet modern requirements, a cloud-based solution provides a simple and scalable pathway to complete visibility into what’s working – and what’s not. A backup solution should be testable, stable, and easy to use. And it shouldn’t require an advanced technical degree to work it. It should work for you.
2. Reduce software or hardware costs
Hardware, software, and storage are usually top of mind when budgeting for data protection. With a cloud-based service, there’s no vendor lock-in or added costs. Since cloud backup is delivered as a service, it scales as needed. And since the provider takes care of updates and training, valuable IT resources are also freed up.
3. Improve return on investment and total cost of ownership (ROI/TCO)
Traditional backup and data recovery solutions typically require physical infrastructure (and, as mentioned, maintenance). When capital expenses (CapEx) like these have been incurred, a natural disincentive occurs with respect to recycling and upgrading to better technologies. Shifting toward a service-based, operating expense (OpEx) model via cloud backup avoids sunk costs in aging technology and equipment while ensuring continuous access to best-in-class backup solutions.
4. Improve Recovery Point Objectives (RPOs) / Recovery Time Objectives (RTOs)
Building the backup breadth and depth necessary for today’s resiliency needs takes considerable time and expense. Legacy solution architecture and replication become locked in a budget-driven tug-of-war between more granularity for specific recoveries or scalability for bulk data storage. It’s not only a question of if you can recover but when – and how easily. Managed solutions can deliver scalable recovery options that also meet the most stringent RPO and RTO service level agreements (SLAs).
5. Reduce complexity
Let’s say it louder for the folks in the back: Ease-of-use matters! Many IT teams waste valuable time babysitting and troubleshooting legacy backup solutions. Modern and scalable cloud backup solutions give your IT team time back. Managed solutions are purpose-designed to cover physical, virtual, and cloud workloads while ensuring compliance and flexibility without draining your IT resources.
The Bottom Line
In an uncertain world, one thing is clear: Data protection and backup are critical. And choosing your data backup solutions provider is just as vital. Make sure your provider delivers a platform that is up to today’s needs and capable of evolving and scaling for the future. Do your homework, kick the tires, and talk to your peers. The best solutions are the ones that work for you instead of the other way around.
Need help? Your Cox Business cloud solutions team is ready to help with market-leading cloud backup services customizable to your business.
