Businesses are pushed to adopt technology to deliver services and reduce costs. However, it can be difficult to set up platforms, install software, or manage IT systems on your own. Using the cloud, however, could be a great way to boost cost-efficiency, make collaboration easier, and make your business more flexible.
Fortunately, there are tons of cloud solutions already out there to serve you, no matter how big your business is. One of the best solutions out there is Amazon Web Services or AWS. Here are 5 ways using Amazon Web Services could benefit your business.
You Can Use It to Develop Your Website and Online Presence
AWS can be used to boost your online presence. AWS Elastic Beanstalk allows you to create a web app, and you can host it on AWS itself. Then you don’t have to set up a webserver to host it.
You can choose your name and register your domain on their servers as well. If you decide to improve your phone presence, you can configure your apps, test them on real devices, and then host it on AWS. It could connect to the same content you publish on your website and store your data in the same database that your website customers use.
You can change the database, programming language and operating system you use. This speeds up the development time for apps, websites, and platforms. All you have to focus on is your vision for the software or service and best practices.
If you have to use AWS tools to monitor customer interactions with the site, Amazon Web Services offer classes and customer support while learning how to use their user-friendly tools. You can often customize these tools, too, minimizing the time required to get your team acquainted. AWS also allows you to choose a programming language or operating system they are already familiar with.
You can also find AWS training courses from third-party providers if you need additional help making use of everything that AWS has to offer. For further information on this, you can visit findcourses.com.
Let it Power Your Startup
Amazon Web Services wants to connect with startups since they will become long-term customers and have the potential of growing into big customers. This is why AWS has a program, AWS Activate, that provides training and labs to people just starting their business.
It offers technical support and promotional credit to help you use their service. Their platform connects you with world-class developers, and this includes mobile app development. Furthermore, you can exchange ideas with a wide range of people while developing your own customer solutions or back-office systems. You’ll only have to pay for the processing, traffic and data storage you use. More importantly, they can scale efficiently as you grow.
No matter how big or small your business is, AWS can work for you. You’ll also get the same level of service and attention as anyone else. AWS also works with businesses of all sizes, so no matter how big your business get, you won’t have to worry about migrating to another service.
You Only Pay for What You Need, and Only Spend What You Must
AWS has more than a hundred services available to their customers. However, you only pay for what you use based on your business needs. This means you don’t have to invest money in servers or software you may not need for months and may never use it.
In fact, Amazon offers a free tier of access for up to a year. This allows you to try out various services without having to commit to pay for them. And you only have to pay for those you choose to continue to use.
Note that Amazon is commitment-free. While they offer a built-in firewall and hosting, they don’t lock you into a contract to use their services. Nor are you required to use (and pay for) all of their services to gain access to other services they offer. This means that you won’t have to pay for services you don’t use, and you can move your website at any time.
Yet you may not be able to find a better deal; AWS charges for services as you use them. In the case of bandwidth, it is on an hourly basis. This means you can pay for the IT infrastructure necessary to meet a spike in demand, but you won’t have to continue paying those rates when customer interest drops off.
Use It to Collect and Then Utilize Big Data
Amazon’s servers are great for storing all of the data that your organization and your customers generate. However, Amazon does a lot of work for you. They collect the data, store it on their servers and can archive it for you. And you’ll still be able to control who has access to it.
You can take advantage of their transcoding, clickstream analytics, fraud detection, Internet of Things (IOT) processing and recommendation engines. In short, you can enjoy the benefits of Big Data without having to master it yourself, and the tools that AWS offers are quite user-friendly.
More importantly, AWS has robust security suitable for almost every application. They offer multi-factor authentication, maintain IAM services to track user access, and they encrypt the data they store.
If you run into problems, you can connect with Amazon’s data experts who are available 24×7. That’s something that only a few businesses can do in-house effectively, and maintain. But Amazon builds its reputation on security, so you’ll know that they’ll always keep pushing for better technology in the future.
You’ll be using the same servers that many Fortune 500 firms use, and you don’t have to pay those IT security experts out of your tight budget. It is part of the ongoing fees. Your customers will know that the data they enter into apps, or the account information they enter into your website is as safe as it could be.
Meet and Exceed Your Customer’s Expectations
Online sales grind to a halt if your website is down. You’ll miss out on sales, too, if your server slows to a crawl. Amazon’s solid server network is dependable and consistent. Your customers will see a fast-loading website and apps that function flawlessly.
Add features like recommendation engines and search tools, and you’ll provide the same level of service to clients as major rivals. Because the data is stored in cloud servers all over the world, they’ll be able to access the data within moments.
You can host your data through AWS and it is available as readily as if it were in your own server room. Better yet, the customer and system data are almost impossible to lose. This improves their experience and the odds that they’ll buy from you again in the future.
If you take advantage of the services and resources available through AWS, you’ll be able to leverage the same tools big businesses have and at comparably low prices. This is essential to the long-term success of your small business. So, make sure that you take a closer look at what AWS has to offer, and get familiar with its features.
