Cloud Retail
Utilising cloud computing can help retailers to develop a system that will save them both time and money.
‘Cloud computing’ is a familiar term that is bounded around in today’s computer focused society. It can make life much easier, and is a useful tool for retail business, but what exactly is it? Put very simply, cloud computing is a process by which different computer hardware and software can be accessed remotely, so retailers utilising cloud computing would be able to access anything from stock levels to delivery schedules from a single device. Central hosting of IT can provide a number of benefits, specifically for small to medium retailers, as cloud providers are able to absorb much of the maintenance, reducing the costs and time associated with keeping IT operations running. This can be a very valuable opportunity for smaller businesses, who are offered the opportunity to compete with larger companies in terms of the IT that they can absorb into their business model.
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As retailers, IT isn’t something that
should really be taking up lots of time or money. It is a distraction from providing customer service, keeping on top of the best possible produce and, lets face it, getting a little bit of sleep in between! As such, the cloud is an excellent alternative to IT departments and server costs that absorb a retailer’s valuable budget. “The primary promise of the cloud is
enhanced flexibility and speed at significantly lower costs than these traditional models, and it is the ubiquitous availability of high capacity networks, alongside low cost computers and storage devices, that underpins the tremendous growth in cloud computing,” explains Andy Thomas, Retail Business Development Manager at AzteQ. Thomas believes there are a number of benefits that retailers can take advantage of when
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