This is the last in a series of four posts called “The Top 4 Reasons to Switch to a Modern Voice and Data Network”
The Need for a Cloud-Ready Network
This is the last post in our four-part series that lays out the business case for Technology Phone Systems. So far, we’ve examined the common challenges small business owners face when it comes to business communication systems. These challenges include legacy telephone systems, the increasing cost of these systems, and the need for a reliable voice and data network.
In our last post, we’ll look at the business need fora cloud-enabled network. There are several benefits for businesses to have a cloud-ready network, including:
- Your network is available anywhere and at anytime
- Less risk – data is backed up off-site, which protects it from hackers, viruses and natural disasters
- Improved efficiency – eliminate concerns about space, software updates or other maintenance issues
- Significant cost savings – cloud networks make efficient use of hardware, which means businesses can do more with less equipment
Now is the perfect time to upgrade
The first step toward moving your business applications into the cloud is to implement a modern, cloud-enabled network.
Historically, most businesses had their network and phone equipment on premise, and the requirements of those networks were modest. However, as more business applications have moved to the cloud, more bandwidth is required. As these requirements increase, more businesses will experience inconsistent and slow performance from applications that are cloud-based.
A Cloud-Ready Network is the Solution
Businesses that move to a modern, cloud-ready network can avoid the slow-downs and performance issues that come with running a cloud-based application on a network that was not designed for the cloud.
Local Area Network
If your business existed in the nineties, you would have created a Local Area Network (LAN) that included a data cable and Ethernet switches. This enabled you to connect your computers to a server and printers. This increased your productivity because your employees could share files and access information from a central location.
Wide Area Network
Over time, businesses began to connect their LANS to the internet. This new kind of connection is known as a Wide Area Network (WAN). Many businesses spent fortunes to have expensive technicians install Cisco routers. They also spent considerable amounts of money on low-bandwidth data circuits, such as T1’s and DSL.
The takeaway? If your business is still operating on an outdated LAN or WAN, you are losing efficiency while overspending on your data network.
What is a Cloud-Enabled Network?
The main features of a cloud-enabled network are the ability to support a VoIP business phone system, cloud-based business applications and IP-fax. And the best part, these new types of services are not expensive. In fact, your entire, brand-new voice and data network is likely to cost you less than your current legacy phone system and WAN are costing you now.
Sometimes, you can get More than You Pay For
If you move from an outdated legacy phone system and internet connection, to a modern, cloud-enabled network, you will have a rare opportunity to upgrade your business technologies while saving a significant amount of money.
You’ll need an Expertly-Designed Cloud-Network
However, don’t let the low cost give you the impression that your new voice and data network is low quality. In fact, your circuits much be high-quality to carry voice data. The first telltale sign of a network issue is poor voice quality. With this in mind, you’ll want to get the best network consultant you can find and use high-quality services and products. This is where we can help.
Conclusion
We hope that this series has helped you understand the elements that constitute a modern, cloud-enabled network. It’s important that you understand that the choice to replace your legacy business phone system will set you on a course for cloud-readiness. At TeleDynamic, we’re here to help you.
A Tale of TeleDynamic and the Cloud
In the summer of 2014, we needed to replace a file server that was near the end of its useful life. I questioned whether to replace it with a new server, and in my quest for an answer, I was introduced to cloud-based solutions.
The more I learned, the more I was impressed by the simplicity, power and lower costs of cloud-based applications. So, instead of replacing our premise-based server, we dumped all of our old applications and replaced them, and the server with cloud-based applications.
As we started down the road of cloud-based business operations, a question arose: “If all of our applications and data are in the cloud, do we really need to drive to a physical office every day and spend an hour-and-a-half or more in traffic? The answer was, of course, no.
I threw myself into a crash-course in cloud applications, researched and read several books on how to virtualize an office, hired a consultant and created my master plan. It took hundreds of man-hours and six months to implement, but we have:
- Significantly increased employee satisfaction
- Cut our overhead costs by at least 70 percent
- Improved our communication
Now, 90% of our employees work remotely. I’m not going to tell you that it was easy. We had to migrate a massive amount of data, make a significant cultural shift and learn several new applications. However, we had a carefully designed plan and we worked with subject-matter experts. The transition wasn’t that bad. We all agree that the benefits have significantly outweighed the risks and costs.
TeleDynamic’s migration to the cloud has transformed our company, for the better. From our own experience, we can see that the cloud promises to deliver the same fundamental value to your business. As I write this, I’m looking out my window in San Francisco at 5:30 p.m. As I look over the Mission, I can see traffic crawling along 101. I know that all of my employees are home right now, enjoying time with their families (while checking their business email!).
I’m happy that my old server needed to be replaced, which led me to move my business operations to the cloud. I am more than happy to share my experiences and help you and your business move toward a better way to operate. Let’s talk.
Sources: http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/245784
https://www.dincloud.com/blog/why-cloud-computing-for-small-business
