Cloud Computing and SMBs

Cloud computing appears to be a fantastic idea for SMBs or start ups.As Cloud computing matures, gains more trust and confidence of enterprises, it will more likely to open up a plethora of opportunities.Especially, the SMBs would see a compelling factor to evaluate Cloud services portfolio and plan for more and more usage in expanding their business offerings.
Few of most significant and compelling factors of SMBs, which I think are:

1) Low TCO: Traditionally for any business enterprise, IT investment would mean huge cost pressure and now by planning to embrace Internet, virtual private cloud offerings, SMBs can greatly think to reduce and do away to with web hosting issues and ever rising infrastructure management prices.It offers technology at a reduced cost.

2) Reduced IT operations overhead: Especially for SMBs, planning and maintaining IT infrastructure sustenance workforce could become a huge overhead and distracting factor, in start up days.The adoption of Cloud could help SMBs to focus more on defining more business aligned SLAs, operational standards with cloud vendors and enforce their compliance strictly.

3) Low Risk venture: By opting away from huge IT investment and utilizing Cloud's pay as you go model, SMBs could immensely enjoy reduced risk in terms infrastructure purchase and planning due to budget pressures.This could help them transferring the IT investment related risks to Cloud vendors and opt for world-class infrastructure from the day one.

4) Innovation: The adoption of cloud leads to more innovative culture as SMBs can think more freely in terms of buying technology as a service, which enables businesses to meet majority of their needs almost immediately.As very technology stalwarts can afford the cost and risk of year long IT projects that often fail to deliver what the business needs

5) Business process automation: There is increasing chance of business process automation for SMBs while utilizing IT as a service. SMBs can more aggressively plan for automating parts of their business process than ever.There are many vendors like Salesforce.com,GoogleDocs etc which helps to embrace IT more efficiently and business friendly with their services offering.

6) Shift from product to service: Buying technology as a service and not as a product,enables businesses to meet majority of their needs quickly and cheaply.Simultaneously, it gives them the option of moving away from technology product owner/service provider(which earlier they could not easily) that has failed to meet their business needs.In fact, SMBs got the choice of moving to different cloud service provider who can serve better to the business needs.The introduction of technology as a service (in contrast to old era of having technology as a product) can prove beneficial if evaluated correctly.