• by Ray Schultz , April 1, 2019

Cloud solutions offer many benefits -- especially to email marketers -- but they’re not always easy to implement.

“Cloud providers will tell businesses how easy integration will be in moving to their system, but after the sale those businesses are often besieged with problems they didn’t see coming when trying to migrate their data,” states Sky Cassidy, CEO of MountainTop Data, in an advisory released on Monday.

The company points to stats showing that 87% of online marketers use email, and that it is still the number one source for online sales.  

However, businesses need deep analytics to track email behaviors and indicators of malicious activity. They also need email security software to counter threats.

Cassidy recommends that brands take these actions when moving to the cloud:

1. Determine what each system will be able to see within the other. Don’t unwittingly connect your data to a company that will abuse it.
2. Know what fields are required/available when integrating raw data. And make sure you have the formatting to seamlessly integrate them. Systems may have different ways of handling blank data fields or those with fixed formatting — why lose unformatted phone numbers when switching to a VoiP system?
3. Spot-check data for issues after it has been integrated. A special character in a contact name could cause half the client records in your new CRM to not import properly, to name only one problem.

MountainTop Data cites statistics showing that companies plan to spend 24% more on the public cloud this year than they did in 2018. It adds that 13% of companies spend over $12 million a year o it and 50% more than $1.2 million.

Cassidy concludes: “As your company prepares to integrate data into the cloud, insist on reviewing the migration process with the providers before agreeing to any terms. The details are critical to a successful migration.”