What is Cloud Computing and How Does it Benefit Your Dealership? [On-Demand Webinar]
There was a time when “cloud computing” was considered to be just another buzzword but it’s clearly a lot more than that today. Cloud is everywhere — organizations are either already on it or are in the process of migrating to it.
Gartner forecasts rapid expansion of global cloud adoption with spending on cloud services reaching over $482 billion in 2022, up from $313 billion in 2020.
Dealers are not far behind. As per our survey, over 60% of DIS customers use cloud hosting and that number is growing by 10% annually.
At this year’s Virtual Summit, we hosted a session with computer security consultant, Roger Grimes where he spoke about dealership cloud computing and why they’re safer than traditional systems. Watch the full webinar below.
What is Cloud?
“Cloud” refers to software and services that can run and be accessed on the Internet (as opposed to your local servers and computers).
Cloud computing is the on-demand delivery of services, data, servers, and software through the internet. In a traditional setup, you would have to use physical hard drives to store data. That data could only be accessed on the system it is stored in.
In the case of cloud computing, users can access data anywhere on different servers. All you need is an internet connection.
Dealership cloud computing contributes to a more flexible, secure, and effective system. This empowers you to focus on crucial aspects of your business rather than wasting time maintaining your dealership system.
What are the Types of Cloud?
Cloud services are divided into three main categories:
- Public
- Private
- Hybrid
Public cloud refers to computing services that are open to the public and can be used by anyone. They are offered by third-party providers. Some examples include Gmail, Office365, and Salesforce among others.
On the other hand, private cloud is a service that is exclusive to a particular organization or set of users. It’s a protected environment that is managed and maintained by the organization. Some examples of private cloud providers are Azure Stack, Oracle Cloud Platform, and Cisco Cloud Center among others.
Hybrid cloud includes a mix of public and private cloud services.
Before you choose a cloud computing service for your dealership, it’s important to know the four types of cloud computing services:
- On-premise
- Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)
- Platform as a Service (PaaS)
- Software as a Service (SaaS)
As the name suggests, on-premise software is deployed on the premises of the organization. You are responsible for owning, running, and maintaining it.
IaaS is a cloud-based service that offers organizations on-premise infrastructure which includes storage, networking, and virtualization. This means organizations that invest in IaaS can manage servers without purchasing hardware.
In the case of PaaS, you are provided with the servers and data centers you need to build applications. PaaS is generally used by developers to build software and applications.
SaaS is the most commonly used cloud computing service. It refers to software that is available over the Internet and can be subscribed to at a fee. According to 70% of CIOs, agility and scalability are two of the top motivators for using SaaS applications.
Being the easiest to manage and use, this is the ideal option for dealerships that want to scale and grow.
4 Key Benefits of Dealership Cloud Computing
Confused about whether you should consider cloud computing for your dealership? Here are four key benefits to help you make the decision.
No maintenance
Imagine spending time and money on software updates, backups, hardware maintenance when you could actually be using it to focus on your business. With cloud providers, you don’t have to worry about maintaining your IT infrastructure because they manage it for you.
Cost-effective
An OpsRamp report states that 94% of organizations expect to reduce infrastructure setup and maintenance costs with on-demand public clouds.
Switching to a cloud provider is a cost-effective solution. Owing to the pay-as-you-go services and scalability factor, you can predict the costs you’ll incur and pay as per your requirements.
Easy access
You don’t have to dial into your business to get to your business. If you have an internet connection, you can use the cloud software and run your business. That’s one of the biggest benefits of cloud computing.
You can access your data at any time and manage your business, regardless of where you are.
More secure
According to the 2021 Cyber Threat Report by SonicWall, 304.7 million ransomware attacks occurred in the first half of 2021, surpassing total ransomware attacks in 2020.
When you move to third-party cloud providers, your data and applications are protected by their security measures.
Read next: How Switching to Cloud Protects ATS Outdoors from Dangerous Ransomware
How Safe is Cloud Computing?
Considering that everything is stored in the cloud, it’s common to wonder how safe your data is.
This is what today’s attacker workflow looks like.
What role does a cloud provider play here?
They regularly back up your data and store it in backup files as opposed to on-site. This means you can easily access and restore them if there were to be a security concern.
That’s not all, cloud service providers use firewalls and run security updates to provide added security. Overall, they also face less downtime and are less likely to be taken down by ransomware.
Consider Cloud Computing for your Dealership
It’s safe to say that cloud computing is the way forward for your dealership.
From being cost-effective and boosting productivity to being a more secure and flexible way of working, dealership cloud computing empowers you to focus on what matters — growing your business.
Ideal Cloud is our cloud computing solution that stores your data remotely in an extremely secure environment. It eliminates the high cost of hardware and is guaranteed to save you time.
Learn more about Ideal Cloud and how it can help you scale your dealership.