Cloud storage is a service model where digital data is stored on remote servers managed by a third-party provider and accessed over the internet. This approach eliminates the need for businesses to purchase and manage their own physical storage infrastructure. Instead, they can leverage on-demand, scalable capacity from a provider, often paying only for the resources they consume.
Adopting cloud storage offers significant advantages over traditional on-premises solutions. It allows businesses to streamline operations, reduce overhead, and enhance their data management capabilities, moving from a capital-intensive model to a flexible, operational one.
Cloud storage isn't a one-size-fits-all solution. It's typically offered in several deployment models, each catering to different needs for control, security, and scalability. Organizations can choose the model that best aligns with their operational requirements and data governance policies.
While often used interchangeably, cloud storage and cloud computing serve distinct but related functions in a modern IT strategy.
While cloud providers offer robust security, organizations must address key considerations to protect their data.
The cloud storage market is dominated by three hyperscalers: Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud. These providers lead the industry with vast global infrastructure and a wide range of services. They offer scalable solutions for nearly any use case, from enterprise data lakes to simple backups.
Beyond the big three, other vendors serve specific niches. Services like Dropbox and Box are popular for file synchronization and sharing. Meanwhile, traditional enterprise vendors like IBM and Dell EMC also offer robust cloud solutions.
How secure is my data in the cloud?
Leading providers use robust security like end-to-end encryption and compliance with major regulations. However, security is a shared responsibility; you must still properly configure access controls and manage user permissions to prevent breaches.
What happens if my cloud provider has an outage?
Most providers guarantee high uptime through service-level agreements (SLAs) and have built-in redundancy across multiple data centers. This ensures your data remains accessible and minimizes disruption to your operations during an outage.
Can I switch cloud providers easily?
Migrating between providers can be challenging due to data egress fees, technical complexities, and potential downtime. Planning a multi-cloud or hybrid strategy from the outset can help mitigate vendor lock-in and simplify future transitions.
“No Spam” is a commitment to sending only relevant, solicited messages. It means avoiding bulk, unwanted emails to respect the recipient's inbox.
An objection is an explicit expression by a prospect that presents a barrier to moving forward in the sales process.
A pain point is a specific, recurring problem your target customers face, causing them frustration, inefficiency, or added costs.
Analytical CRM analyzes customer data to uncover actionable insights, helping businesses make smarter decisions and improve customer interactions.
A sales kickoff (SKO) is an annual event for a sales team to celebrate wins, align on goals, and get motivated for the upcoming year.
A go-to-market (GTM) strategy is an action plan that outlines how a company will reach target customers and achieve a competitive advantage.
Database management is the process of organizing, storing, and maintaining data in a database to ensure its accuracy, security, and availability.
A Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system is a tool that centralizes customer data to help manage interactions and nurture relationships.
Event tracking is the method of collecting data on specific user actions, or 'events,' on a website or app, such as clicks or downloads.
Call disposition is the process of labeling the outcome of a call. It helps sales teams track interactions and plan their next steps effectively.
Corporate identity is the visual and verbal persona of a company, encompassing its logo, color palette, communication style, and core values.
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Sales objections are reasons or concerns raised by a potential customer as to why they are hesitant or unwilling to make a purchase.
On-Target Earnings (OTE) is a salesperson's total potential pay, combining base salary and commission for hitting their sales quota.
Sales funnel metrics are key data points that track how effectively you're moving potential customers from awareness to a final purchase.
A headless CMS is a back-end content repository that delivers content via API to any front-end, decoupling the content from its presentation layer.
DevOps is a culture and set of practices that merges software development (Dev) and IT operations (Ops) to shorten development cycles.
Customer centricity is a business approach that puts the customer at the heart of every decision, aiming to build loyalty and long-term value.
Mobile app analytics involves collecting and analyzing data from mobile apps to understand user behavior and optimize the app's performance.
Cold calling is a sales technique where reps contact potential customers who have had no prior interaction with their company or product.
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Platform as a Service (PaaS) is a cloud model where a provider delivers a platform for users to develop, run, and manage applications online.
A sales intelligence platform is software that provides sales teams with data and insights about prospects to help them sell more effectively.
A trusted advisor is an expert who builds a deep client relationship by consistently prioritizing their best interests over any single transaction.
Virtual selling is the process of selling to customers remotely using technology like video calls, rather than meeting them in person.
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A knowledge base is a self-serve online library of information about a product, service, department, or topic.
Account View-Through Rate (AVTR) is the percentage of target accounts that see an ad and later visit your website without clicking on it.
A drip campaign is a series of automated messages sent to prospects or customers over time to nurture leads and drive engagement.
A Sales Development Representative (SDR) is a sales specialist who finds and qualifies new leads, building a pipeline for the sales team.
Load testing is a type of performance testing that determines how a system behaves under both normal and anticipated peak load conditions.
Sales operations analytics is the practice of analyzing sales data to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the entire sales process.
Digital advertising is the practice of delivering promotional content to users through various online and digital channels like social media or search engines.
An early adopter is a user who embraces a new product or technology before the majority, helping to validate and popularize the innovation.
A sandbox is an isolated testing environment where new or untrusted code can be run safely without affecting the host device or network.
Generic keywords are broad search terms that lack specific details like brand or location. They attract a wide audience with less specific intent.
Compounded Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) measures the mean annual growth of an investment over a specified period of time longer than one year.
Sales rep training is the process of equipping your sales team with the skills, knowledge, and tools to effectively sell and hit their targets.
Direct mail is a marketing method where businesses send physical promotional materials directly to potential customers' mailboxes.
A sales methodology is the framework that guides how your sales team approaches the entire sales process, from prospecting to closing deals.
Predictive lead scoring uses AI to analyze data and rank leads by their likelihood to convert, helping sales teams prioritize their efforts.
Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR) is the predictable, recurring income a business expects to receive each month from all active subscriptions.
Dynamic segments are self-updating lists that group contacts based on real-time data, ensuring your outreach is always timely and relevant.
Email engagement measures how your audience interacts with your emails. It includes key actions like opens, clicks, replies, and forwards.
Software as a Service (SaaS) is a cloud-based model where users subscribe to an application and access it over the internet.
A RESTful API is a web service interface that uses HTTP requests to access and use data, adhering to the constraints of REST architecture.
De-duping, or data deduplication, is the process of eliminating duplicate copies of data within a dataset to improve accuracy and save space.
A use case is a detailed description of how a user interacts with a system to achieve a specific goal, outlining the steps from start to finish.
Customer relationship marketing is a strategy for building lasting connections with customers to foster long-term loyalty and engagement.
Kanban is a visual project management method that uses a board to visualize workflow, limit work-in-progress, and maximize team efficiency.
Trade shows are events where companies in a specific industry showcase their latest products and services to find new customers and partners.
A System of Record (SoR) is the authoritative data source for a specific type of data. It acts as the single source of truth for an organization.
A Request for Information (RFI) is a formal process for gathering information from potential suppliers before issuing a more detailed proposal.
A Service Level Agreement (SLA) is a contract defining the level of service between a provider and a client, including metrics and penalties.
Consumer buying behavior is the study of how individuals select, buy, and use products and services to satisfy their needs and desires.
SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, is increasing the quantity and quality of traffic to your website through organic search results.
SPIN selling is a sales technique using a sequence of questions—Situation, Problem, Implication, Need-Payoff—to uncover a buyer's needs.
SFDC stands for Salesforce Dot Com, a popular cloud-based CRM platform that helps companies manage their customer interactions and data.
An electronic signature is a digital method for getting consent on electronic documents. It's a legally binding way to sign agreements online.
Ad-hoc reporting is the creation of one-off reports to answer specific business questions as they arise, providing instant, targeted insights.
Supply Chain Management oversees the entire production flow of a good or service, from raw materials to final delivery to the consumer.
A sales strategy is a comprehensive plan that outlines how a business will sell its products or services to achieve its revenue goals.
Average Revenue per User (ARPU) is a key performance indicator that calculates the average revenue generated from each user or subscriber.
A persona is a semi-fictional profile of your ideal customer, based on market research and real data about your existing customers.
A hard sell is an aggressive sales technique that uses high-pressure tactics to push a customer into making an immediate purchase decision.
Sales Operations KPIs are measurable metrics that track the efficiency and effectiveness of a sales team's operational processes.
Sales enablement content refers to the materials and tools that empower your sales team to engage prospects and close deals more efficiently.
Going dark is when a once-responsive prospect suddenly stops all communication, leaving you wondering what went wrong.
Kubernetes is an open-source system for automating the deployment, scaling, and management of containerized applications.
Chatbots are AI-powered programs that simulate human conversation. They interact with users via text or voice, typically for customer support.
Firmographics are descriptive attributes of organizations, used to segment companies by characteristics like industry, size, and location.
Revenue Operations (RevOps) is a business function that aligns a company's sales, marketing, and customer service teams to drive predictable revenue.
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OAuth is an open standard for access delegation. It lets you grant apps access to your data on other services without sharing your password.
API security is the practice of protecting application programming interfaces from attacks, preventing data breaches and unauthorized access.
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Predictive analytics uses historical data, statistical algorithms, and machine learning to identify the likelihood of future outcomes.
Closing ratio is a key sales metric that shows the percentage of leads or proposals that result in a successful sale.
Account-Based Sales (ABS) is a focused B2B strategy where sales and marketing teams treat high-value accounts as individual markets of one.
Data encryption translates data into another form, or code, so that only people with access to a secret key or password can read it.
A sales playbook is a guide that outlines your sales process, best practices, and tools to help reps sell more efficiently and consistently.
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Data cleansing, or data scrubbing, is the process of detecting and correcting inaccurate records from a dataset to improve data quality.
Multi-threading allows a single CPU core to run multiple independent threads (or tasks) at the same time, boosting efficiency and performance.
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Sales acceleration refers to strategies and technologies designed to speed up the sales cycle, enabling reps to close more deals, faster.
Email deliverability is the ability for your emails to successfully land in your recipients' inboxes instead of their spam folders.
Channel partners are third-party firms that help market and sell a company's products or services, acting as an indirect sales force.
Price optimization is the process of finding the ideal price for a product or service to maximize profitability or other business objectives.
The awareness stage is the first step in the buyer's journey, where a potential customer realizes they have a problem or an opportunity to explore.
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Quality Assurance (QA) is the systematic process of ensuring a product or service meets specified quality standards from development to delivery.
Customer Success is a business strategy focused on proactively helping customers achieve their goals with your product or service.
Enrichment is the process of adding third-party data to your existing customer profiles to get a more complete picture of your leads.
Pay-per-click (PPC) is an ad model where you pay a fee each time your ad is clicked. It's a method of buying targeted visits to your website.
A demand generation framework is a strategic process for creating awareness and interest in your product, ultimately driving new business.
An API (Application Programming Interface) is a software intermediary that allows two applications to talk to each other and exchange information.
Inbound sales attracts interested prospects who've engaged with your brand, letting sales reps connect with warm leads instead of cold outreach.
Total Addressable Market (TAM) represents the maximum revenue a company can earn by selling its product or service in a specific market.