Cloud Computing is one of the fastest growing digital technologies of the 21st century. In the Cloud Computing model, a specialized Cloud Service Provider (CSP) offers state of the art computing resources such as storage, database, servers, artificial intelligence (AI) and networking etc. These different services are made available over the internet, thus eliminating the need for on-premise servers or other IT hardware resources.
Cloud Computing enables easy data access to users from any remote location. All you need to access or leverage this data is an endpoint device with an internet connection. Some of the most prominent advantages of Cloud Computing have been discussed below.
Enhanced Efficiency
The fact that you can easily access applications, programs and data from anywhere across the globe, greatly enhances the efficiency of the workforce.
Since cloud services are billed as per a pay-as-you-go model, organizations can easily scale-up or shrink their operations through Cloud native services, without incurring additional costs on buying computing resources themselves.
It is the top priority of every leading Cloud Service Provider to protect sensitive and confidential user data. CSPs also deploy top-notch disaster recovery (DR) and backup plans to give the deploying enterprises added assurance. All this increases efficiency and in turn generates value for the enterprise.
Related: Cloud Use Cases in the Retail Industry
Optimal Flexibility
Fluctuating workload adjustments can help enterprises achieve scalability. Cloud Service Providers offer tailor-made tools and solutions, as per the requirements of organizations. The fact that employees can access data from anywhere, makes their working environment flexible.
Strategic Edge
Cloud Computing platforms offer smooth and agile services, running on automation. This greatly increases the efficiency of employees, since they are not concerned about maintenance of cloud-based infrastructures. Increased performance results in value creation for enterprises, giving them a strategic edge over their competitors.
Related: How Will Cloud Computing and Edge Solutions Re-Shape the Retail Sector?
Easy accessibility also enhances collaborative efforts and activities across the organization, as a lot of communication barriers are removed.
Cloud Computing in the Retail Industry
The global retail sector is continuously growing, and is now a multi billion dollar industry. Competition is fierce and every business wants to thrive by attaining a competitive edge over its competitors.
In the retail industry, we have witnessed a shift from traditional, on-premise supply chain, Customer Relationship Management (CRM), and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) solutions towards Cloud-based options.
A technological and research giant, Gartner, has predicted that 90% of businesses would be utilizing cloud-based services by 2022. It also predicted that by 2025, a whopping US $257.1 billion would be spent in the retail industry. In 2020, this spending was at US $182.5 billion.
Retail industry can benefit from Cloud Computing by having real-time easy access to operational data and inventory. Following points highlight how Cloud Computing can be utilized to decrease storage, infrastructure and computing costs in the retail industry.
Related: Benefits of the Cloud for Retail
- Processing orders, fulfilment of supply and re-stocking turnaround time can be greatly reduced if we leverage Cloud Computing services. A real-time data exchange simplifies the process, increasing efficiency.
- Visibility of data can be improved by deploying Cloud-based services. This can make the management of supply chain processes easier, as problems regarding inventory optimization, stockouts and catching real-time location data, can be diminished.
- Enhanced data security and protection will help retain crucial customer information. Losing this data would be detrimental for the business. The regular updates provided by Cloud Service Providers (CSP) help secure this data.
- By analyzing the buying behavior of customers, enterprises can enhance customer experiences through personalization via Cloud Computing.
- It is also used to make future predictions regarding customer’s buying behavior, consequently increasing overall business performance.
- Infrastructure and maintenance costs can be reduced through Cloud Computing, consequently increasing profitability.
- A Key element of retailer’s digital landscape is data (customer, inventory, analytics etc.). Cloud Service Providers safeguard and protect this crucial data from deletion, breaches or corruption.
- Cloud Computing offers mobile integration and real-time inventory tracking with the help of sensors or RFID, for effective management of inventory.
Related: Future-Proof your Business with Cloud Solutions
Conclusion
It would be justified to say that Cloud Computing services provided by CSPs like dinCloud have revolutionized the way businesses conduct themselves. Their quick response time, data sharing capabilities and cost-effectiveness have encouraged businesses to adopt cloud-based services at a faster pace.
If you are a leading retail company, thriving to excel in the industry by minimizing your IT related overheads, you should contact dinCloud, an ATSG company, for secure, flexible and agile cloud-native solutions.
