Choosing a cloud vendor is a very important commitment. It’s hard to switch over from one to another, so you want to make the right choice the first time. To avoid an expensive mistake, keep an eye out for certain red flags in vendors’ offerings.
The most important consideration is the vendor’s reputation. Has the vendor been in operation for a while? Are there negative reports or testimonials about its security or quality of service? Doing this research will help you choose a vendor that you can trust.
Find out what performance data is available. If the vendor doesn’t make any information available, that’s a ground for caution however it is extremely common, so this should not be the sole reason in provider selection.
The data center’s site is also important to consider as distance can play a part in latency issues. Therefore it is suggested that you confirm the location of the data center as it is often different than the headquarters. If it’s in another country, you may have to deal with its legal issues. Each country has different privacy requirements, and some may demand private records with few legal safeguards.
If you’re using SaaS (Software as a Service), make sure the vendor understands your business needs. If they talk only about the technology and don’t understand your particular requirements, they are not likely experienced with SaaS and may not be the best fit.
Security is important, but a vendor’s practices can be hard to gauge. Make sure the vendor lets your business use its own security certificates. Unsigned certificates (ones not validated by a certificate authority) are cheap but worthless, as are certificates shared among multiple clients.
The vendor must include data backup. Without the safety net of data backup, you’re completely dependent on the provider and could be in bad trouble if it ceases operation or refuses to renew your contract.
Conduct your potential cloud vendor research carefully and ask the hard questions, and you will be more confident that you have made the right choice for your business.
Please contact us to learn how we can help with your business technology planning.
