Why Small Businesses Embrace As-a-Service Models
What exactly are cloud services?
The trend for adoption of cloud services and ‘as-a-service models’ by small businesses is increasing. These models can provide small businesses with access to the same kinds of resources and technologies that were previously only available to large enterprises, which can help level the playing field and enable small businesses to compete more effectively.
Cloud services are computing services that are provided over the internet, rather than being provided locally on a personal computer or on-premises server. These services are delivered from a network of remote servers, or "the cloud," and can be accessed by users over the internet.
Cloud services are often offered on a pay-as-you-go basis, which means that customers only pay for the resources they use, rather than having to make a large upfront investment to purchase and maintain their own hardware and software. Thus, the majority of business liability is passed along to the vendor or host.
Many small businesses are adopting cloud services and the as-a-service models because of the benefits they offer.
Benefits of Cloud Services:
Cost Savings
Flexibility
Simplicity
Predictability
Reliability
According to a survey by the National Small Business Association, the adoption of cloud computing by small businesses has been steadily increasing in recent years. In 2020, 82% of small businesses reported using cloud computing in some form, up from 74% in 2018.
The as-a-service models that are most popular among small businesses include SaaS (used by 76% of small businesses) and IaaS (used by 29% of small businesses). PaaS is also gaining popularity among small businesses, with 22% of small businesses reporting use of PaaS in 2020.