IT professionals are often asked to reduce the costs associated with data centres. But is it possible to do so without compromising on quality and performance?
The simple answer to this is yes. With the technology available to IT teams today, it’s entirely possible to make cost savings where data centre bills are concerned. It’s just a case of knowing what to ask for, and who to ask.
Take a look at our tips on how to cut your data centre costs, and before long you could be able to free up a significant proportion of your IT budget. Here’s how to do it.
Consider your requirements carefully
When it comes to weighing up the options provided by different data centres, there can be a tendency to focus exclusively on contract pricing. But this sometimes results in far more important factors being overlooked.
If you’re looking to cut data centre costs, resist the urge to delve straight into pricing negotiations. Instead, take a step back and consider the scale of your requirements more carefully.
You may well find that your requirements aren’t quite as extensive as you had first thought. If this is the case, you’ll be able to scale down your package and make a significant cost saving.
An analysis of our last 300 audits revealed that businesses waste up to 35% of the data centre provisions that they’re paying for. There’s absolutely no reason for this, and cutting down on contracted services can help to save huge amounts of budget.
Focus on building a strong relationship
Relationships matter in business. And there are huge advantages to building a strong relationship with your chosen data centre.
A reliable, trustworthy and secure data centre often proves invaluable, helping to limit risks and make life far easier for IT teams. Nurturing relationships with the professionals at your chosen data centre can also bring benefits in terms of affordability.
If you’re able to build a strong relationship with your data centre partner, you might find that the resulting new level of transparency soon equates to cost savings for your company. Purchasing granularity is a particular area with the potential for significant cost savings, and this is something that’s well worth investigating if you’ve been working with a single data centre for a long period of time.
Speak frankly to your data centre contacts and start the conversation. You might be surprised at the amount you can save, simply by providing more detailed information on the services that you really need.
Tier your applications
Saving on data centre costs doesn’t necessarily mean sacrifices in terms of performance. The majority of companies can easily secure a more affordable deal, by being more specific about the performance requirements of their applications.
Investigate whether or not you could save some money by considering what performance means to your company, and what the real needs of your various applications are. If you go into detail about these needs, and tier your applications correctly, you may well discover new opportunities for consolidation and reorganisation. These changes tend to result in hugely beneficial cost savings.
Don’t overlook the potential of hybrid environments
Hybrid environments offer incredible potential for modern businesses, particularly when it comes to getting the best data centre deals. For too long, companies have relied exclusively on traditional data centres. But the tide is turning, and the popularity of hybrid environments is on the rise.
Given the flexibility and adaptability required by the IT teams of today’s companies, it’s easy to see why these environments are becoming more prevalent. Hybrid data centres make full use of cloud and software-defined networking, to enable IT professionals to work seamlessly across increasingly complex multi-cloud environments.
There are now huge opportunities to be had, particularly in terms of cost savings. But better affordability isn’t the only reason to consider hybrid environments. Just take a look at the benefits of remote hands, for example. Designed to provide full support throughout maintenance, as well as improvements in uptime and reductions in travel to and from data centres, this service is quickly becoming a necessity.
Cloud-based data services can also significantly reduce infrastructure costs, thanks to lower power requirements and demands on space. Take a look at the services offered by Nutanix and cloud-controlled WiFi, routing and security specialist Cisco Meraki to learn more about new offerings.
If you’re looking to reduce your data centre spending, there are plenty of ways to do so without making any sacrifices where performance is concerned. It’s often just a case of being a bit smarter with your requirements. Think carefully about what your company actually needs, and make sure you’re not wasting money on your data centre footprint. Build a strong relationship with a data centre that offers the service you really need, and before long you’ll be saving time and money.