Top Clous Services for Small Business – Best 8 Platforms

Nowadays, many small businesses start using cloud services to stay competitive, secure, and scalable. Using cloud services helps you manage business emails, store files, provide collaborative tools for your teams, and much more. However, most businesses have trouble choosing which programs would be best for them. That’s why this article will explain all the best cloud services for small businesses.

What is a Cloud Service?

Cloud service is an on-demand services that provide you with a wide range of IT resources like software, storage, and computing power on the internet. Before, these companies had to purchase, manage, and maintain physical hardware and software for their work. But now, the cloud service eliminates those needs and delivers all the essential services through the internet.

Cloud services are mainly categorized into three main models:

• Software as a Service (SaaS): A common model for end-user applications where the provider manages the complete application and infrastructure. And the users access the software from a web browser or a mobile app.
• Platform as a Service (PaaS): In this, the provider provides a platform and tools for developers. Where can we build, test, and deploy applications, managing the underlying infrastructure, operating systems, and databases? Here, the users only control thte applicationa they develop.
• Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS): This model allows the business to rent the fundamental IT infrastructure, such as virtual machines, storage, and networking resources, from a provider.

Small businesses, enterprises, or startups use SaaS models for their daily work. Using the cloud service gives you several benefits, which I have mentioned below.

Benefits of Cloud Platforms for Small Businesses

• Purchasing servers or hardware for your SMB is expensive. Cloud services, on the other hand, are available on a monthly or yearly plan, which is more affordable.
• It is easier to access emails, files, and apps from any device and location. Therefore, they are perfect for the remote work and traveling teams.
• You don’t require advanced technical skills to use the cloud platforms. Most are user-friendly, and the updates/maintenance are handled by the provider.
• As the business expands, the need for more storage or users also grows. Good for you, cloud services allow you to upgrade your plan anytime without needing to change the setup.
• You will get advanced security features like encryption, multi-factor authentication, and threat monitoring, which are very helpful for a small business.

You will get more advantages from using the cloud platforms. But to choose the right platform, you must know about the factors that help you choose which one is best for you.

Factors for Deciding Cloud Services for Small Business

When selecting a cloud service, multiple factors are considered to find the best. Below are all the key factors.

• Pricing and Plans: First, decide on the budget for purchasing the license. Then, check the price of the plans that fit your budget and how easy to upgrade or downgrade the plans. Also, watch for the hidden costs like extra storage or user fees.
• Expansion: Choose the service that can expand with your business. You should be able to add more users, storage, or features without switching platforms.
• Security Features: Find the cloud service that provides built-in security like data encryption, MFA, spam protection, and secure login controls.
• Data Backup and Recovery: The platform must offer automatic backup and easy data recovery for accidental deletion, cyberattacks, or any system failures.
• Integration with Other Tools: Check if the cloud service allows you to work with apps that you are already using, like CRM, accounting software, or third-party business tools.
• Reliability and Great Performance: The platform should give you high uptime and reliable performance so that they always available to you.
• Compliance and Data Regulations: To handle your business-sensitive data, check for compliance standards like GDPR, HIPAA, and an ISO certificate.

By considering all these factors, let’s see the best cloud services for small businesses.

Google Workspace

I am starting with the most popular cloud services, which is Google Workspace, formerly known as G Suite. Developed by Google, it is a comprehensive suite that provides you with productivity tools, including Gmail, Docs, Sheets, and offers you 15 GB of free storage.

For small businesses, individuals, and freelancers, G Suite is the best cloud suite as it gives you seamless real-time collaboration on documents, spreadsheets, and slides. It gives you affordable business plans with ample storage. Easily integrate with other Google services and third-party apps. and easily accesss from any device using an internet connection. However, in the data usage policy, Google has the right to analyze your content for personalized ads, and it does not provide more advanced features for your business.

Microsoft 365

Another popular cloud service developed by Microsoft is Microsoft 365, formerly known as Office 365. This suite gives you all the services, including productivity tools like Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and OneDrive cloud storage.

Microsoft 365 easily integrates with the Windows Operating system and other Microsoft products. Provide youwith robust security features, such as multi-factor authentication and encryption. In this, you will get industry-standard Office applications and provide strong hybrid cloud options for connecting on-premises systems smoothly.

As you can see, it gives you many advanced features, but compared with G Suite, it is pricey, with various plans and annual subscription requirements. In initial setup and management, you may need IT support.

Amazon Web Service

AWS is a widely used and extensive cloud platform as it offer you wide range of services from basic storage to advanced machine learning and analytics. It has a massive global infrastructure, but is also highly scalable and flexible. It follows pay as you go pricing model, so for growing businesses, it is cost-effective if properly managed. Users can also get enterprise-level security and compliance certifications.

Despite this, the platform is complex, and beginners may find it difficult to work with this platform without any IT expertise. It may affect the cost management, as if not monitored properly, you can incur unexpected expenses.

Dropbox Business

This cloud service is known for its clean interface and simple file sharing. It is the best collaboration solution. The interface is like the standard computer folder, which is why it is easy to use. Provide you outstanding automatic synchronization feature to all the devices. And other features like granular permissions, version history, and integration with apps like Slack and Microsoft 365 make this a nice service.

However, many people complaint on security concerns, and it can be expensive for a single user.

Box

Another best cloud service for small businesses. It helps in dealing with sensitive or confidential information and offers strong compliance features. This platform focuses heavily on security as it offers you end-to-end encryption and compliance tracking. Also, the Box supports more than 1500 integrations with third-party apps like Salesforce and Google Workspace. To manage the user permissions and access, provide you with strong admin controls.

If I talk about its drawbacks, there is a size limit on File upload, which varies with the plans. Also, it is more expensive than other cloud service competitors.

Digital Ocean

It is a much more affordable, developer-friendly cloud platform. Digital Ocean is known for its simplicity and fast deployment times. Users find this program simple and clear in pricing. It is best for developers and small teams who want to deploy applications quickly. Due to its robust documentation and strong community support system, many prefer this service.

But before purchasing, note that it lacks some enterprise-grade features, and the customer support is limited.

Asana

Asana is a cloud-based platform for project and task management. It helps the team to organize and track their work. Provides an intuitive interface for organizing projects, tasks, and team communication. With this, team members can stay connected and give updates from desktop or mobile devices. Easily integrated with other cloud services like Google Drive, Slack, etc.

For large-scale or highly complex project management, this program is not suitable, and advanced features are locked behind the higher-tier subscription plans.

Carbonite Business

For automated, reliable data backup and disaster recovery, Carbonite Business is best. Here, you will get automatic and reliable data backup to secure remote servers. Quick data recovery when the hardware fails, natural disasters, or cyberattacks. and a user-friendly interface with minimal IT overhead for setup and management.

This is a backup solution. You will not get a wide array of services. Also, you must have a stable internet connection for continuous backups and recovery.

These are the best cloud services for small businesses. Now, it is upto you to decide which one is suitable for you.

Best Cloud Platform According to Business Use Case

From the above list, you can see that many cloud platforms are providing great services. But not every small business, startup, or enterprise, need same cloud computing program. Some of you need email and teamwork, or another requirement, secure file storage, or advanced compliance. If you are confuse of choosing anyone based on your needs. Then, I am going to help you in your decision based on your case.

Best Cloud Service for Email and Team Collaboration

If you want the service only for email and collaboration tools, then Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace would be best for you. But which one is better, Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace?

Depends on you if you need a professional email, shared calendars, video meetings, and document collaboration in one platform with Microsoft tools. Office 365 is great. However, for small teams and startups, G Suite is very popular because of its simple interface and quick collaboration.

Best Cloud Service for File Storage And Document Sharing

If your business deals with a large volume of files, you need a reliable cloud storage with easy sharing options. For this, OneDrive, Google Drive, and Dropbox would be best.

Best Cloud Service for Business Expansion and Growth

In the future, if you are planning to expand your team, add more users, or adopt advanced workflows, then Microsoft 365, AWS, and Google Workspace are best suited for you.

Thus, with these example cases, you can able to find out which one is best for you. Now, you are ready to adopt the new cloud services. But, before that, you also have to pay attention to the cloud migration.

Guide for Cloud Migration

Whether you are moving from traditional service to cloud service or switching between cloud providers. Many of you have problems with migration. For business, migration is a very crucial step in changing your cloud services. One wrong step and you will lose all your data. That’s why there are many professional tools on the internet, like G Suite to Office 365, Google Workspace to Google Workspace, or Office 365 to G Suite, etc. that can help you properly migrate your complete data between the two cloud service providers.

Final Words

So, if you are looking for the best cloud services for small business. Here, you will get all the popular and top platforms providing amazing cloud features. I listed eight services with their pros and cons to help you decide which is best suited for you. Properly read the article before making your decision.