Cloud services and SaaS systems have changed how the education sector operates and conducts business. With the rise of SaaS platforms like Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace, the education industry has been able to successfully pivot to the virtual world--in teaching, courses, and administrative needs. In 2018 alone, over 6 million individuals enrolled in distance degree-earning programs. Moreover, virtual and remote education will only continue to grow, with the online course market expected to gain a net worth of over $25 billion.

For schools K-12 and universities alike, cloud services have been able to offer significant advantages to education. This includes providing resources to students, having a more robust enrollment, and deploying a seamless platform for admin to navigate, and the reduction in costs as a result.

For one school division in Canada, switching to cloud services resulted in $12,000 of annual savings. Showing that one of the greatest assets SaaS platforms can provide is a significant reduction in costs, often bridging the gap between high-quality education and affordability.

Read on to learn how cloud service providers can help the education industry cut costs, and protect their data.

How to Reduce Costs (and Grow Profits) with Cloud Services

Utilizing cloud and SaaS backup services does more than cut costs on the surface level. There are actually a number of hidden costs education organizations should take into consideration as well. Here’s how cloud and SaaS backup services can reduce overall costs for education:

1. Ransomware protection: Ransomware, and any other kind of cyber breach, can wreak havoc on an education system’s data and platform. In 2020, ransomware attacks in higher education have increased 100 percent, costing an average ransom of $447,00. The University of California, San Francisco fell victim to ransomware in June 2020 and agreed to pay a ransom of $1.1 million--one of the highest ransoms ever paid in the public sector. In addition to paying a pretty penny to get your data back, the downtime education organizations experience during an attack can also be expensive. Having a backup plan in place means reducing the risk of having to pay the ransom, and eliminating the downtime required to reassess your lost data.
2. Administrative tasks and automation: Cloud systems can automate and standardize administrative tasks and needs, such as enrollment, communications, and assignment tracking. This can lead to a reduction in staffing costs since cloud systems can do the tedious work for education organizations. Seamless processes allows IT teams to focus on other tasks and better utilize their time.
3. Data loss: The number one cause of all data loss is human error. And, the average cost of data loss is about $3.6 million per year in the education system. With teachers, students, and faculty handling files and data, it can be easy for data to be accidentally deleted. SaaS backup can help restore data that does get lost, and create an automated backup system to prevent future occurrences. See how in this infographic.
4. Minimal hardware: Using a cloud-based platform means education organizations don’t have to rely on their own servers and data centers. Instead, a cloud providers’ server will do the heavy lifting. This means education organizations can spend less on data and server hardware (which ages), as well as spending less on an electric bill. Instead, education organizations can reallocate their budget to other needs.
5. Increase scalability and profits: Having a cloud-based provider allows education organizations to increase their overall operations with marginal changes in staffing and effort. Automated systems allow organizations to expand their digital reach and enrollment, which, can lead to bigger profits.
6. Compliance and investigations: With cloud services that offer backup and restoration features, education organizations are able to ensure they stay compliant with protecting data (like HIPAA-sensitive and financial records). It also ensures organizations stay protected when investigations and legal issues arise. In the event that deleted or past data is needed for a crucial investigation, cloud services have the capacity to restore or provide that data.

Get Savings and Security with Backupify

In the world of education, affordable security and backup options are key. When using a cloud service or SaaS backup, not only can you find affordable plans, but you’ll also eliminate hidden costs.

With Backupify, you can do both. Backupify offers a secure and customizable SaaS backup platform for your data, including automated features and ultimate security with our private cloud. That way, you don’t have to compromise on cost or worry about cyberthreats.

Want to graduate to better security and cost benefits? Request a free Backupify demo today.