How Cloud Computing is Changing the eCommerce Game

The huge transition in consumer shopping habits from in-store to online has created a massive opportunity for retailers to build and expand their online presence and business in order to drive sales and growth. With the COVID-19 pandemic, e-commerce has hugely benefited from cloud computing technology in many ways.  Any business that wishes to build or grow their own e-commerce platforms should pay careful attention to how cloud computing can save both time and resources. eCommerce platforms should be mindful of the benefits when using cloud computing which can save both time and resources.

But with every opportunity, comes challenges. Fluctuating demand, unpredictable situations on the market, the need for scaling up and down, performance issues are some of the issues that e-commerce businesses are facing at the moment. Thus, Cloud computing offers plenty of benefits. In e-commerce, cloud computing allows the company to appear larger than ever and operate globally. Cloud computing has become the go-to solution for e-commerce businesses worldwide, due to its high-performance outputs. Also, businesses are rapidly using cloud-based apps due to their potential to build a stronger relationship with consumers across regions, generate sales, and improve income.

The top influence of cloud computing on eCommerce sector-

• Scalability- Cloud computing caters towards the dynamic needs of the eCommerce business. It allows companies to scale up and down their IT requirements based on traffic, business challenges, or seasonal changes. It also helps to balance the workloads and counter the fluctuating demand.
• Stability- One of the most important advantages of cloud computing is the reliability of its performance. It caters to stable and predictable performance in times of huge traffic spikes like Amazon Great India Festive, Flipkart Big Billion Days, etc.
• Security– Information Security for any eCommerce platform is an important factor to safeguard customer information and payment data. The cloud can provide you PCI-DSS certified hosting, which is extremely important in GDPR compliance. Additionally, the cloud offers advanced security measures that can protect your website from DDoS attacks or other threats. One of the major advantages of the cloud is, it protects data loss by using a cloud-based platform with built-in redundancy. It also secures, backs up, and makes data conveniently accessible. All this ensures business continuity and aids in overcoming any crisis and efficiently resuming company operations.
• Speed – Everyone loves to shop from a website that has a good interface and fast speed instead of an e-commerce website that takes too long to load its inventory or search results. Migration to the cloud allows you to improve your e-commerce site performance. All of which increases the chance of conversion and ultimately your sales.
• Savings– Adoption of cloud can significantly reduce your IT infrastructure costs compared to traditional hosting, as you only pay for what you use. The cloud plays a vital role in assisting businesses in achieving their objectives.

Over the past few years Cloud computing has proved that it is an indispensable switch for any e-commerce platform to achieve phenomenal growth as well as providing personalized experiences to their consumers. Cloud-based e-commerce applications are expected to grow and become increasingly powerful & common in times to come. More significantly, as professional cloud service providers take control, cloud migration services will become more inexpensive. Cloud servers are now part of a larger digital transformation effort to replace or update old IT systems.

The data recorded and stored in the cloud will be more susceptible to enhanced analytics by machine learning due to improved cloud storage capacities. Data analysis driven by machine learning is currently being used in some of the most modern CDPs. Still, as more powerful data storage architectural structures emerge in the cloud, this technology will become more common and powerful.

(The author Punit Sindhwani is CEO at Paxcom and the views expressed in this article are his own)