On-Site vs. Online Backup: Which is Right for You?

Backing up your data. It’s something that small and medium-sized business owners know they must do, but oftentimes push to the wayside, or just leave as “status quo.” When you do make the decision to add a BDR component to your IT coverage, there are decisions that need to be made. In fact, when it comes to this critical task, nearly half of U.S.-based SMBs say using both on-site and online solutions are important and necessary, according to a new survey by Clutch, a leading B2B research firm.

In fact, many SMBs steadfastly hold to on-site backup, with 42% of those surveyed reporting that it’s more important than online backup.

In the past two years alone, 63% of SMBs have adopted cloud-based backup solutions, according to Clutch’s findings. Despite this surge, nearly 90% of SMBs continue to back up their data both online and on-site. The trend is to be expected, say cloud backup and disaster recovery thought leaders.

SMBs are reluctant to abandon on-site backup and adopt cloud-based backup exclusively, mainly due to concerns about security and loss of control over important data.

SMBs that back up data in the Cloud, tend to choose consumer-facing solutions, according to the survey. Apple iCloud (47%), Google Drive (36%), and Dropbox (35%) rank as the top three online backup services used by SMBs. All three typically meet the more basic backup and data recovery needs of SMBs.

Consumer-facing solutions are popular in the SMB market because employees are often familiar with the options, having used them elsewhere or for personal data management. This often influences an SMB’s IT team to apply the service throughout the company, sometimes known as the “bring your own service” approach.