Why Should You Move Your Email to the Cloud?

**Everyone is talking about the cloud these days. Many small and mid-sized businesses are moving their email to the cloud, taking advantage of the additional benefits offered by Google's and Microsoft's cloud-hosted email solutions. Before deciding to migrate, it's important to understand how cloud email servers differ from the traditional email servers of internet providers or from local email servers, and how your business can expect to benefit from using the cloud for your email.

What is cloud email and how does it differ from traditional email?**

Cloud email may seem a bit intimidating, but it's really just a different place to keep your email, with a few added benefits.

Cloud-hosted email is easier to sync across many devices. You probably use multiple devices to access your email, or at least a computer and a smartphone. With cloud-hosted email, you won't see, for example, messages marked as read on one device and unread on another. Your email will sync to show the same thing on every device.

Traditional email is prone to downtime. If your server crashes or your internet connection goes down, your email goes down too. If you can't process orders, contact customers or suppliers, or send invoices, your business comes to a halt. You can't do business until your internet connection has been restored or your hardware has been replaced. With cloud-hosted email, you have a much more reliable form of communication. You don't have to worry about hardware. Microsoft promises 99.9% uptime and allows just under 9 hours of downtime spread across the entire year.

What email options exist?

• *On-premises*

An on-site email server is an unreliable and expensive option. Having a physical server requires a designated space for your server, which can be quite noisy and disruptive for people working nearby. You have to pay for the extra space for your server and the additional electricity to keep it running.

With a server in your office, you have to be mindful of physical security. If someone breaks in and damages your server, your communication and business continuity will be interrupted. Natural disasters are also a concern, as a flood or fire could damage or destroy your server and all its components.

On-site email depends on your hardware and your internet connection. If something breaks or your internet connection is interrupted, no one will receive email anymore. Messages can neither be sent nor received, and business stops.

• *ISP email service*

ISPs are internet providers. Their specialty is providing an internet connection, not an email server. They aren't global entities like Microsoft or Google and therefore don't have the same resources to devote to security updates or support.

Email provided by ISPs is only downloaded to your computer. It doesn't sync across devices. So you can't access your email if you're somewhere other than at your desk.

• *Online suite*

Cloud-hosted email takes up no physical space. Google and Microsoft are global entities. As a result, if a data center is destroyed or damaged, your data is still protected elsewhere.

If your internet connection at the office is interrupted, you can still access cloud-hosted email on your phone, allowing your business to stay operational. Cloud email is synced across all devices. So no matter where you are and what device you're using, you can always access your email.

The benefits of the cloud

• *Saving money*

With your email server in the cloud, there's no physical server taking up space or hardware to maintain. There's no need to replace tens of thousands of dollars in hardware every few years. In the cloud, you don't need hardware.

You don't need to buy new licenses or replace existing software with the latest version, because the cloud keeps everything up to date with the latest releases. The cost of the cloud doesn't change, so it's much easier to budget for a constant cost.

• *Saving time*

If you're just starting to set up your own custom domain, choosing the cloud is a better option because it will save you time during setup. You can configure an email account for the cloud service - in Office 365 or G Suite - in less than an hour and receive your email.

• *Increased security*

Microsoft and Google have their own dedicated security teams. Their job is to protect your email. They automatically patch your email server so you no longer have to think about updating for the latest security flaws. These updates are done in the background and you won't even notice they're there.

• *Simplifies management*

Google and Microsoft offer cloud email that integrates with the other software on their platforms, so you can access everything in one place. You have your email, online chat, and document management system in one easy-to-access place.

• *Improved retention*

The cloud has much more storage, so you can keep far more data than with other email options. You don't have to worry about cleaning up your email to make room. The smallest option is 50 GB, and storage only goes up from there.

• *Always up to date*

Updates are done in the background and rolled out to everyone. You don't have to think about installing the latest updates or patches, because cloud email servers will do it for you. With other email solutions, you have to manually update all the devices yourself or call on IT support to handle it for you.

Cloud-hosted email offers a host of benefits for small and mid-sized businesses. With more people working remotely, from home, or at job sites, access to email is crucial to maintaining productivity. Local email servers and ISP email service entail hardware and maintenance costs, limit your storage space, and can cause downtime and an interruption of business continuity if the server fails. Cloud email from Google or Microsoft saves you physical space and upgrade costs, while guaranteeing 99.9% uptime for your business.