For those of you conducting business in the online marketplace or for those who handle large amounts of data, the term ‘offshore hosting’ must have come across your desk more than a couple of times. At it’s very basics, the term implies something super simple- keeping your company’s data on servers outside of its host country. This may seem counterproductive since you will usually want to keep your data as accessible as possible. But there are multiple potential gains to this practice and we will be exploring how they can potentially change your business for the better.
Changing your business- One server at a time
Save Money!
Okay, this one might be a bit confusing. How could you save money booking the exact same thing abroad instead of at home? Well, the answer lies in a couple of things. Prices of technology in separate countries, import taxes, and internet infrastructure are all factors that majorly impact how much it costs to host a server in a country. This means prices for server hosting and the amount you need to pay to store data varies across borders. Companies that provide reliable hosting across borders usually have flexible rates depending on where you live. Ultimately, globalization helps everyone make money!
Circumvent the stranglehold!
Many countries have laws that are objectively bad for different types of businesses. In conservative nations, marketing alcohol; online gambling and similar other entertainment websites are often banned. This means for your business to operate in regulated industries, offshore hosting could allow you to circumvent these rules while being available to the local consumer.
Reduce legal risks
Countries will often not outright ban different types of businesses. Rather, what they will do is legally strangle the growth of such a business via taxation, regulations and the criminalization of specific aspects of the business. These can be avoided and your legal team can have a much easier time if your server is hosted abroad in more liberal economies.
Reduce data loss risk
If your business is on an island nation or in states that are at high risk of natural disaster, data loss due to bad weather is often a massive risk. Even if your business requires data to be stored locally, a reliable backup of all the data must be kept somewhere, preferably offshore.
Globalizing via data
It is often difficult for teams to understand the needs of consumers who live far away from where they are based. Thus, if your business is targeting an audience from somewhere outside your locality- then having an offshore server in that region can be supremely advantageous. Having a server established in a region means your website and it’s services will be available in that specific region as well. This allows business expansion and helps your website climb search engine rankings in that region.
Aside from the form of payment and data center selection- hiring an offshore server should be identical to hiring a local server. However, the process itself can get a bit difficult. However, it is important to remember what your business would benefit from and book the best offshore servers for your brand!
