DEV Community: aliyuyusuf9

How SaaS Marketing Strategies Fail (And How to Fix Them)

aliyuyusuf9 — Mon, 17 Feb 2025 10:24:39 +0000

The journey of building and scaling a SaaS product is full of highs and lows. You start with an idea, develop your product, and then launch it with excitement – only to realise that the marketing strategy you hoped would bring in customers isn't yielding the expected results.

SaaS marketing failure isn't uncommon, but understanding why things go wrong can help you pivot, adapt, and ultimately succeed. Whether you’re a founder, marketer, or product manager, learning from mistakes is essential in refining your approach. Let’s take a look at the most common reasons why SaaS marketing strategies fail and how you can avoid them.

1. Ignoring Your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP)
One of the biggest mistakes SaaS businesses make is not clearly defining or understanding their Ideal Customer Profile (ICP). Without this, your marketing efforts will be all over the place, resulting in wasted time, resources, and missed opportunities.

A SaaS product cannot appeal to everyone. If your marketing is not targeting the right people – those who genuinely benefit from your solution – your messages will fail to resonate.

How to Fix It: Invest time in research to define your ICP. Ask questions like:

1. What industries are they in?
2. What challenges are they facing that your product can solve?
3. What are their goals and motivations?
4. How do they prefer to consume content? By clearly defining your ICP, your marketing will become more focused, resulting in better engagement and conversions.

2. Poor or Unclear Value Proposition
SaaS companies often fail because they don’t communicate a clear and compelling value proposition. If potential customers don’t quickly understand the problem your product solves or how it benefits them, they will lose interest before they even get to know your product.

Many SaaS brands focus too much on features, when they should be highlighting benefits – the outcome of using the product, not just what it does.

How to Fix It: Refine your value proposition to make it specific, clear, and customer-centric. Your value proposition should answer:

What problem are you solving?
Why is your product the best solution?
What makes your solution different from competitors? Make sure your value proposition is visible and consistent across all customer touchpoints – from your website to your ad campaigns.

3. Underestimating Customer Retention
It’s easy to get caught up in acquiring new customers, but focusing solely on acquisition without considering customer retention is a surefire way to fail in SaaS. In fact, acquiring new customers is typically more expensive than retaining existing ones.

If your marketing strategy doesn’t focus on keeping customers happy, satisfied, and engaged, churn rates will rise and growth will stagnate.

How to Fix It: Shift your focus from just acquiring new users to creating an exceptional customer experience that keeps people coming back. Here are some strategies for improving retention:

Implement onboarding sequences to help users understand how to use your product effectively.
Regularly update your product with new features and improvements.
Offer excellent customer support, ideally with multiple channels (e.g., chat, email, helpdesk).
Create a community around your product where users can share experiences and tips.
Customer retention programs, like loyalty incentives or referral bonuses, can also help turn users into long-term advocates.

**4. Not Having a Clear Content Strategy
**Content marketing is essential in SaaS, but without a clear strategy, your content will lack direction and fail to drive results. SaaS businesses sometimes post blogs, social media updates, and videos just for the sake of it – without a consistent plan that ties back to their marketing goals.

Content marketing is about educating your audience, building trust, and guiding them along their buyer’s journey. Without a plan, your content efforts will lack focus, consistency, and purpose.

How to Fix It: Create an editorial calendar with a clear strategy that aligns with your customer’s journey:

Awareness Stage: Blog posts, infographics, and videos that address common problems.
Consideration Stage: Case studies, comparisons, and product demos that show how your product works.
Decision Stage: Testimonials, customer success stories, and special offers that make your product irresistible.
Consistency is key. Quality content helps establish your brand as a thought leader in the industry and builds trust over time.

5. Failing to Optimize for Conversions
A website that attracts traffic but fails to convert is a common issue for many SaaS businesses. If your landing pages, call-to-action (CTA) buttons, or sign-up forms aren’t optimised for conversion, then all the traffic in the world won’t matter.

The main goal of your marketing efforts is to convert visitors into customers – and if your site isn’t structured to facilitate that, you’ll struggle.

How to Fix It: Conduct regular A/B testing on your website’s most important pages:

Landing pages
CTAs
Pricing pages
Sign-up forms
Product demos Try out different variations, like changing headlines, CTA button colours, or simplifying form fields, to find what works best for your audience. Conversion rate optimisation (CRO) is a continuous process, and even small tweaks can lead to significant improvements.

6. Overcomplicating Pricing Models
A common mistake in SaaS marketing is having an overly complex or unclear pricing model. If your customers don’t understand how much your product costs or what they’ll get for the price, they may abandon the buying process altogether.

Pricing should be clear, simple, and aligned with the value you’re offering.

How to Fix It: Streamline your pricing model. Avoid confusing tiered pricing structures or hidden fees. Offer straightforward plans that are easy to understand. Consider providing:

A free trial to allow users to experience the product before making a commitment.
Transparent pricing: Ensure your pricing page is clear and concise with all the details a customer would need to make an informed decision.
If your pricing model is too complex, you risk losing potential customers to competitors who offer more transparency.

7. Not Using Data to Inform Decisions
Relying solely on guesswork or gut feeling when making marketing decisions is a fast track to failure. Without tracking, measuring, and analysing key metrics, your marketing campaigns will lack direction, and you may end up wasting resources on strategies that don’t work.

How to Fix It: Start using data to inform all of your decisions. Use analytics tools like Google Analytics, HubSpot, or Mixpanel to track website traffic, conversions, and user behaviour.

Identify the metrics that matter most for your business – such as customer acquisition cost (CAC), customer lifetime value (CLTV), and churn rate – and continuously measure the success of your marketing efforts. Data-driven decisions will help you optimise your strategy and reduce the likelihood of failure.

Conclusion: Learning from Failure
SaaS marketing is a challenging and ever-evolving landscape. Failure doesn’t mean your product is doomed – it just means you need to reassess, adjust, and try again. By understanding and addressing common mistakes like neglecting your ICP, failing to communicate a clear value proposition, and not focusing on retention, you can avoid common pitfalls and set yourself up for success.

Marketing a SaaS business isn’t easy, but with the right strategy and an open mind, you can learn from your failures, refine your approach, and watch your business thrive.

How to Build an Effective Marketing Strategy for Your SaaS Business

aliyuyusuf9 — Mon, 17 Feb 2025 10:19:11 +0000

When it comes to marketing a Software as a Service (SaaS) business, the approach must be both strategic and adaptable. Unlike traditional products, SaaS offerings rely on customer retention and subscription models. That means your marketing efforts can’t just be about attracting new customers – they also need to focus on nurturing long-term relationships and enhancing customer satisfaction.

But creating an effective SaaS marketing strategy isn’t easy. With so many competitors in the space and a landscape that’s constantly evolving, you need to adopt a holistic approach that’s data-driven, customer-focused, and scalable. Here’s a step-by-step guide to help you craft a powerful marketing strategy that aligns with your business goals.

**Step 1: Understand Your Customer’s Pain Points
**A successful SaaS marketing strategy starts with a deep understanding of your customer. After all, if your product doesn't solve a real problem for your target audience, it won't matter how well you market it.

Begin by identifying your ideal customer profile (ICP) and create buyer personas. These personas should include key demographic details (industry, company size, job roles) and psychographic information (pain points, needs, buying motivations). Use these insights to ensure your product and messaging speak directly to your customers' challenges.

Conduct customer interviews, surveys, and research to identify recurring pain points that your SaaS product addresses. This will guide your messaging and content creation efforts.

**Step 2: Position Your SaaS Product Clearly
**In a crowded SaaS market, positioning is everything. You need to clearly articulate what makes your product unique and why potential customers should choose it over competitors. This is often referred to as your unique value proposition (UVP).

Your UVP should answer the following questions:

What problem does your SaaS solve?
What makes your solution different or better than alternatives?
Why should customers care about your product? Make sure that your UVP is front and centre in all your marketing channels, from your website copy to social media posts and paid ads.

Use testimonials and case studies to reinforce your UVP. Real-life examples of how your product solves specific problems can make a huge impact.

Step 3: Build an Engaging Content Marketing Strategy
Content is king – especially for SaaS businesses. Content marketing is one of the best ways to educate potential customers, showcase your expertise, and build trust. Your content can include blog posts, ebooks, case studies, videos, podcasts, and webinars.

The goal of content marketing for SaaS is to guide potential customers through the buyer’s journey:

Awareness Stage: Focus on educational content that addresses broad industry problems or challenges your audience faces (e.g., blog posts, industry reports).
Consideration Stage: Provide in-depth guides, case studies, and product demos that highlight the benefits of your SaaS solution.
Decision Stage: Offer product comparisons, testimonials, and customer success stories to help prospects make an informed decision.
Create an editorial calendar to keep track of your content themes, topics, and publishing frequency. Consistency is key!

Step 4: Leverage Paid Ads and Retargeting
While content marketing can help you build organic traffic, paid ads offer a powerful way to reach new audiences and bring in qualified leads quickly. Platforms like Google Ads, Facebook Ads, LinkedIn Ads, and Twitter can all be valuable tools for promoting your SaaS business.

Retargeting, in particular, can be a game-changer. Retargeting allows you to re-engage users who’ve already interacted with your website or app, reminding them of your product and its value.

Start small with paid ads and refine your targeting based on data. Use A/B testing to optimise your messaging, visuals, and offers to see what resonates most with your audience.

Step 5: Nurture Leads with Email Marketing
Email marketing remains one of the most effective ways to nurture leads and convert them into paying customers. Use email automation to send personalised messages at every stage of the customer journey.

For SaaS businesses, email marketing is particularly useful for:

Onboarding new users and helping them get started with your product
Sending feature updates and product announcements
Offering promotions, discounts, and upsell opportunities
Sharing valuable content like blog posts, webinars, and case studies
Use segmented email lists based on user behaviour and engagement. A highly personalised email will resonate more with your audience and drive higher conversion rates.

Step 6: Focus on Customer Retention
Customer acquisition is only half the battle. For SaaS businesses, customer retention is just as important. The key to long-term success lies in building strong relationships with your customers and ensuring they continue to see value from your product.

To keep customers happy and engaged, consider the following:

Provide excellent customer support with fast response times.
Regularly update your product with new features or improvements.
Offer educational content to help customers get the most out of your product. By nurturing your existing customers, you increase the chances of them becoming advocates for your brand, helping you grow through referrals and word-of-mouth.

Implement a customer feedback loop. Regularly ask for feedback through surveys or interviews, and use it to improve your product and service.

Step 7: Measure and Optimise Your Strategy
The beauty of digital marketing is the ability to measure everything. Use tools like Google Analytics, HubSpot, and customer feedback to track your marketing efforts and assess their performance.

Key metrics for SaaS marketing include:

Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC): How much it costs to acquire a new customer.
Customer Lifetime Value (CLTV): The total revenue you can expect from a customer over their lifetime.
Churn Rate: The percentage of customers who cancel their subscription. Constantly track these metrics, experiment with new tactics, and optimise your strategy based on the data. With time and iteration, you’ll refine your approach and boost your SaaS business growth.

Set specific, measurable goals for your marketing efforts (e.g., "Increase blog traffic by 20% in the next three months") and adjust your tactics as needed to meet those goals.

Marketing a SaaS business is a continuous process that requires strategy, creativity, and adaptability. By focusing on understanding your customer, positioning your product clearly, creating valuable content, leveraging paid ads, nurturing leads, and measuring your success, you can build a marketing strategy that drives long-term growth.

Remember, SaaS marketing isn’t just about generating leads – it’s about turning those leads into loyal customers and brand advocates. By consistently refining your strategy and keeping the customer at the centre of everything you do, your SaaS business will be poised for success

How to Create a Cross-Cultural Marketing Campaign: A Step-by-Step Guide

aliyuyusuf9 — Mon, 17 Feb 2025 10:13:39 +0000

In an increasingly globalised world, brands are no longer limited by borders. A well-executed cross-cultural marketing campaign can tap into diverse markets, build brand loyalty, and boost sales in regions you may have never considered. But marketing across cultures isn’t as simple as translating your campaign into different languages. To truly resonate with different audiences, you need to dive deeper into cultural nuances, values, and behaviours. It’s about understanding your audience beyond just their geography.

Creating a cross-cultural marketing campaign is an art. It requires a keen eye for detail, research, and sensitivity to the different cultural contexts in which your brand operates. So, if you’re ready to expand your brand’s reach and connect with customers in new regions, here's a step-by-step guide to creating a meaningful and effective cross-cultural marketing campaign.

Step 1: Understand the Cultural Landscape
Before you dive into creating content or designing ads, it’s essential to understand the culture you are entering. What works in one culture might fall flat or even be offensive in another. Start by researching the target market’s history, traditions, and local customs. You need to understand their values, beliefs, and social behaviours to ensure that your marketing efforts align with their worldview.

**Ask yourself: What is culturally significant in this market? **Understanding the local lifestyle, family dynamics, religious practices, and even humour is key to creating campaigns that resonate.

For instance, what may be seen as a positive and humorous stereotype in one country might be offensive in another. Be mindful of symbols, colours, and gestures that have different meanings in different cultures.

Engage local experts or cultural consultants who can offer insights into the market. Their input will help avoid any potential pitfalls that could harm your brand’s reputation.

Step 2: Adapt Your Message, Don’t Just Translate It
Language is one of the most obvious barriers in cross-cultural marketing, but it's also one of the most commonly misunderstood. Translation is a starting point, but it’s not enough. The tone, language, idioms, and phrases that work in one language might not have the same impact in another.

For example, what is considered friendly and informal in one language could be perceived as disrespectful or too casual in another. The goal is to adapt your message to resonate with the cultural values and communication styles of the audience.

Instead of just translating your campaign verbatim, localise it. This could mean adjusting humour, references, and even imagery to make it feel authentic to the target market. A culturally relevant message is far more powerful than a direct translation.

Work with native speakers and local marketing experts to ensure that your message communicates what you intend while aligning with local cultural nuances.

**Step 3: Choose the Right Channels
**The channels through which you market your product are just as important as the message itself. While some platforms like Instagram, Facebook, or Google Ads are universal, others may be more popular in specific regions. For example, WeChat in China, Line in Japan, or WhatsApp in many parts of South America.

Each culture may have preferred ways of consuming media, whether through social media platforms, TV, email, or even in-person events. Choosing the right channel can make or break your campaign’s success.

Also, consider the level of digital penetration in each country. In some places, people are primarily mobile users, while in others, desktop might still dominate. Be sure to optimise your content for the channels that work best for your target market.

Research the most popular platforms in the target market. Understanding how consumers interact with media in that region will allow you to tailor your content distribution strategy.

Step 4: Leverage Local Influencers
Influencer marketing has become a cornerstone of modern marketing, and this is especially true in cross-cultural campaigns. Influencers are often viewed as more trustworthy than traditional advertising, and they can help bridge the cultural gap between your brand and the target audience.

When selecting influencers, don’t just look for big names. Instead, focus on those who authentically connect with their audience and embody the values that resonate in the local culture. A well-chosen influencer can bring your campaign to life in ways that are culturally relevant and compelling.

Partner with micro-influencers who have a highly engaged local following. Their authenticity can enhance the credibility of your campaign.

**Step 5: Focus on Emotional Connection
**The best campaigns aren’t just about selling products; they’re about building an emotional connection with your audience. Emotion is universal, but how it's triggered varies across cultures.

For example, in some cultures, humour works well as an emotional driver. In others, a more serious tone that emphasises family values, respect, or tradition might be more effective. Understanding how to invoke the right emotional response in your target market is key.

This could mean using imagery or messaging that evokes a sense of belonging, nostalgia, pride, or even aspiration. The more your audience feels emotionally connected to your brand, the more likely they are to buy into it.

Use storytelling that taps into local values and aspirations. This could be through success stories, personal journeys, or testimonials that reflect local customs and beliefs.

Step 6: Monitor, Measure, and Optimise
Once your campaign is live, it’s time to track its performance. This is a crucial step in understanding what works and what doesn’t in each market. Use local metrics to gauge effectiveness: engagement rates, conversion rates, social shares, and overall brand sentiment.

Cultural differences can lead to varying responses to your campaign. Be prepared to make adjustments based on feedback and analytics. If something is not working in one region, don’t be afraid to pivot your strategy or make small tweaks.

Keep a close eye on cultural reactions. If any negative sentiments arise, address them quickly and be transparent. Brands that can handle cultural sensitivity well often build greater trust with their audience.

Conclusion: Creating a Truly Cross-Cultural Campaign
A successful cross-cultural marketing campaign requires more than just the translation of your content or the selection of international platforms. It requires an understanding of the cultural, social, and emotional landscapes of each market you enter. By doing thorough research, being mindful of local customs, adapting your message, and continuously optimising, you’ll be better positioned to make meaningful connections with your global audience.

If done right, cross-cultural marketing is an incredibly rewarding venture that allows your brand to transcend borders and thrive in multiple markets. Approach each market with the respect and understanding it deserves, and your brand can leave a lasting impact on customers around the world.

How to Launch Your First SaaS Product: A Step-by-Step Guide for Founders and Marketers

aliyuyusuf9 — Mon, 17 Feb 2025 10:07:29 +0000

Launching your first SaaS product is like preparing for a high-stakes performance on a world stage: exciting, nerve-wracking, and filled with endless opportunities for innovation and success. The SaaS industry is crowded, competitive, and constantly evolving, but with the right strategy, your product can break through the noise and make a lasting impact.

The road to launch is often long and filled with challenges. But by following a well-structured plan and learning from those who’ve gone before you, the process can be smoother and even enjoyable. So, let’s dive in and take you through the essential steps to launch your first SaaS product, from the initial concept to the triumphant moment of going live.

Step 1: Define Your Product and Understand Your Market
Every successful product starts with a clear understanding of why it exists and who it serves. As a SaaS founder or marketer, your first task is to articulate both the problem you're solving and the specific needs of your target audience.

Your product is not just a tool or service; it's a solution. Ask yourself: What pain point does my product address? Whether it’s streamlining business processes, improving team collaboration, or automating tasks, clearly defining the problem and your solution will guide all future decisions.

Once you've clarified your product's core purpose, it's time to identify your target audience. This is where customer personas come into play. Start by asking: Who are the people most likely to benefit from this product? Are they small business owners, enterprises, or perhaps tech enthusiasts seeking a specific feature?

A competitive analysis is a vital component at this stage. Know who your competitors are, what they offer, and where your product stands apart. Is it more affordable? More feature-rich? More user-friendly? This unique selling point (USP) will be key to your marketing and outreach efforts.

_Don’t be afraid to talk to potential users early on. Conversations with your target audience will provide invaluable insights that can shape your product and launch plan.
_
Step 2: Build a Lean MVP – Minimum Viable Product
Before you pour all your time and resources into developing the ultimate version of your SaaS product, consider building a Minimum Viable Product (MVP). The MVP is essentially a version of your product with just enough features to address the core problem for your users—nothing more, nothing less.

The key here is to focus on quality over quantity. Don’t try to be everything to everyone. Instead, prioritize the features that are absolutely necessary to solve your customers' problems. With an MVP, you're essentially testing your assumptions about what users want and how they interact with your product.

At this stage, don’t obsess over perfection. The goal is to launch quickly, test, gather feedback, and iterate. Many successful SaaS companies started with simple MVPs before expanding into the robust, feature-packed solutions we know today.

_Focus on delivering value to your early users. Offer them something that addresses their specific needs, even if the product isn't fully polished yet.
_
Step 3: Beta Testing – Refine with Real Feedback
Now that your MVP is live, it’s time to bring real users into the fold. This is where beta testing becomes critical. The goal here is to put your product in the hands of early adopters and gather feedback to refine it before the official launch.

Your beta testers should be a mix of ideal customers—people who represent your target market. Invite them to try your product and provide constructive feedback. What features do they love? Where are they facing roadblocks? Are there any features they’re missing? Their insights will give you a clearer picture of what works and what needs to be tweaked.

_Provide incentives to your beta testers, such as extended free access to the product or exclusive features. This motivates them to engage more deeply with the product and share more detailed feedback.
_
Step 4: Pricing Your SaaS Product
Pricing is one of the most critical elements in any product launch. It can make or break your SaaS business. If you price too high, you risk deterring potential customers. If you price too low, you might leave money on the table or undervalue your product.

The key is to choose a pricing model that aligns with your product’s value and your customers’ expectations. Common SaaS pricing models include:

Freemium: Offer a basic version of your product for free, with the option for users to upgrade to a paid plan for more features.
Tiered Pricing: Offer multiple pricing levels based on the features users need, such as basic, pro, and enterprise tiers.
**Per-User/Per-Usage: **Charge based on how many users are using the product or how often they use it.
Consider testing different pricing strategies and see which one resonates with your audience. Pricing is often a matter of trial and error, especially in the early stages.

_Offer discounts or limited-time deals for early adopters to create urgency and build initial traction.
_
Step 5: Craft Your Go-To-Market Strategy
A successful product launch isn’t just about having a great product—it’s about getting the right people to know about it at the right time. This is where your Go-To-Market (GTM) strategy comes in. A well-thought-out GTM plan will ensure that your product reaches the right audience and generates the buzz you need.

Your GTM strategy should address the following components:

Target Market: Who are your ideal customers? How will you reach them?
Marketing Channels: Which platforms (social media, content marketing, SEO, paid ads) will you use to drive awareness?
Sales Strategy: Will you use inbound marketing, outbound sales, or both to convert leads into paying customers?
Content Strategy: Create compelling blog posts, case studies, or videos that highlight the product’s value and educate users about its benefits.
The key here is to drive anticipation and excitement before the official launch date.

_Build a landing page or pre-launch website to collect email addresses from interested prospects. This will help you build an audience and keep them updated on the product’s launch.
_
Step 6: Marketing Strategies to Drive Awareness and Demand
Marketing your SaaS product effectively is vital for driving traffic, generating leads, and building a customer base. Your marketing strategy should be multi-faceted and include a mix of inbound and outbound tactics.

Content Marketing: **Create blog posts, webinars, and videos that explain the problem your product solves. Think of content as a way to educate your audience and generate trust.
**Social Media: Use platforms like Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram to tease your product, share behind-the-scenes content, and engage with potential users.
Paid Advertising: Once you’ve validated your product with early users, consider running paid campaigns on Google Ads, LinkedIn, or Facebook to reach a larger audience.
Influencer Marketing: Partner with influencers in your industry who can endorse your product and help spread the word.
By leveraging multiple marketing channels, you’ll create momentum leading up to and following your launch.

_Don’t just focus on product features—focus on how your product improves the lives of users and solves their specific pain points.
_
Step 7: Post-Launch: Optimize and Scale
The work doesn’t end once your product is live. In fact, your post-launch phase is just as crucial as the pre-launch period. You need to monitor key metrics, respond to customer feedback, and continuously improve your product.

Key metrics to track include:

Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)
Customer Lifetime Value (CLV)
Churn Rate (how many customers leave)
Engagement Rate (how often customers interact with your product)
Your goal is to optimize your SaaS product based on user feedback, tweak your marketing strategies, and improve your customer support. Continuous improvement is the name of the game.

_Set up a customer support system that includes live chat, ticketing, and a knowledge base. Happy customers will drive referrals, and loyal users are your best marketers.
_

Launching your first SaaS product is undoubtedly challenging, but it’s also an incredibly rewarding journey. By following these steps—defining your product, building an MVP, testing, pricing, marketing, and optimizing—you’re laying the groundwork for long-term success.

Remember, launching a SaaS product is not a one-time event, but a process of constant learning, adapting, and improving. Embrace the journey, and stay focused on delivering value to your customers. With the right strategy, your SaaS product has the potential to change the game for your users and for you.

CREATING A VIRTUAL MACHINE USING AZURE

aliyuyusuf9 — Fri, 14 Jan 2022 16:30:20 +0000

Hi, nice to have you back again. Did you read my last post on "Cloud
Computing Terminology and Concepts?" If no, simply click https://dev.to/aliyuyusuf9/cloud-computing-terminology-and-concepts-339c. Thanks as you do so.

In my last post, I wrote on different types of "Cloud Service Providers." The services they render and all. Well, in this post I will be focusing on AZURE VIRTUAL MACHINE CREATION. Let's hit it!!!

WHAT IS A VIRTUAL MACHINE?
A virtual machine, commonly shortened to just (VM) is a virtual environment that works like a computer within a computer. It runs on an isolated partition of its host computer with its own CPU power, memory, operating system (such as Windows, Linux, macOS), and other resources. End users can run applications on VMs and use them as they normally would on their workstation.

HOW DO VIRTUAL MACHINES WORK?
Virtual machines are made possible through virtualization technology. Virtualization uses software to simulate virtual hardware that allows multiple VMs to run on a single machine. The physical machine is known as the host while the VMs running on it are called guests. This process is managed by software known as a hypervisor. The hypervisor is responsible for managing and provisioning resources—like memory and storage—from the host to guests. It also schedules operations in VMs so they don’t overrun each other when using resources. VMs only work if there is a hypervisor to virtualize and distribute host resources.

STEPS ON CREATING A VIRTUAL MACHINE USING AZURE
Welcome to the first and most exiting part of your journey into cloud computing. Did you know that creating a Virtual Machine(VM) is one of the fundamental knowledge you need to have in your cloud journey? I am excited. Aren't you excited? Relax, let's create something.
All you need do is log on log on to your azure portal then we move. Below are the steps in creating a virtual machine. Please, do me a favour by practicing along. Thankyou!

STEP 0NE
Are you currently on Microsoft Azure portal? If yes, please look up for Virtual machine on the Dashboard, click on it and then click create

STEP TWO
Wow! You made it to the next step. Isn't that wonderful?
Please take note of the following instructions:

The Subscription should be left at Default - Azure Subscription 1

Create a new resource group, so click "Create new".

For the resource group- I will be naming mine "Firstservers"

Next is Region, you can leave this at the recommended default region.

Next is Availability, set Availability as No Infrastructure redundancy required.

Next is Image, please set this to Windows server 2019 Datacenter-Gen1

Next is Size, pick 'Standard_DS1_v2-1 vcpu,3.5Gib memory from the chart.

NOTE: for the Username and password, please make use of the username and password you can easily remember.

Wow! How did we get here? Now you have to select inbound Ports - Select the following;
HTTP(80) HTTPS(443) RDP(3389)

NOTE: PLEASE, DO NOT TOUCH THE MARKED AREA, LEAVE IT TO DEFAULT.

HURRAY! Now, review and create.

*OH YEAH! Deployment in progress
*

*WAIT A MINUTE! DID WE JUST CREATE A VIRTUAL MACHINE? *

STEP THREE
Hello! Thanks for not giving up, you owe yourself a coffee. Well, let's take this a step further.

Please, click on the button "Go to Resource"

Take a step further, click Connect and select RDP.
To Connect with RDP: IP address used Public IP address (20.115.38.92), it varies though.
Port number is set to 3389.

Don't give up. Click on Download RDP file and open the file.

Good Job. Please Click connect and yes to accept the certificate.

Do you know you're a goal getter? Enter the login credentials that you created within the Azure Portal. Depending on your network you may need to click on other account and enter \firstservers as the username and your chosen password.

Oh Yeah!

Here you have it. The Server Manager fully working

Do you know as long as you keep going, you'll keep getting better? So, let's keep going....Next step is to Click on Add roles and features. Please, do make sure to follow the wizard and leave all the settings in the default settings, keep clicking next until you get to Server Roles.

Now, go to the main menu of your computer and search for Internet Information Services Manager(IIS)

Just keep going. You never know how far you can go. Now you need to click on the > to the left of firstservers to open up the pane.

Oh you are here right? Simply, look for and copy the physical path which should be somethiing like *%SystemDrive%\inetpub\wwwroot.

Now that you are here. Enter the following text with no markup into the text document. Welcome to my initial web page. Next, Click File and save as index.html, Make sure to Change the Save as type as All Files and Click Save

Finally, we are done. When you go to the public IP address as seen earlier during the first stages of (VM) creation. You would see the home page you created with the text *"Welcome to my initial web page" *

Wow! Thanks for taking your time to practice through. Trust, you enjoyed every bit of information concerning steps on Virtual Machine creation. Please, feel free to drop your comments or suggestions.

CLOUD COMPUTING TERMINOLOGY AND CONCEPTS

aliyuyusuf9 — Thu, 13 Jan 2022 17:50:24 +0000

Hi, nice to have you back again. Did you read my introductory post on "Why it is called cloud computing?" If no, simply click https://dev.to/aliyuyusuf9/why-is-it-called-cloud-computing-13fo. Thanks as you do so.

Are you new to cloud computing, just like me? Do you know it is actually challenging trying to understand the cloud computing terminologies and concepts? Well, relax, I've come to your rescue, just follow me.

Just like every language, it is very important you understand the language in order for you communicate effectively. In this post, we will learn the basic language in cloud computing.

A quick reminder!!! Rome wasn't built in a day. It is possible you don't get to understand all the terminologies in one attempt. Please, don't stop, keep practicing. So let's hit it!!!

Basic Concepts and Terminology
Cloud Computing provides us means by which we can access the applications as utilities over the internet. It allows us to create, configure, and customize the business applications online. This tutorial will take you through a step-by-step approach while learning Cloud Computing concepts.

Cloud: This refers to servers that are accessed over the Internet, and the software and databases that run on those servers. The cloud enables users to access the same files and applications from almost any device, because the computing and storage takes place on servers in a data center, instead of locally on the user device.

On-Premise: On-premises is the software and technology that is located within the physical confines of an enterprise often in the company’s data center as opposed to running remotely on hosted servers or in the cloud.

Pay-as-you-go cloud computing (PAYG cloud computing): This is a payment method for cloud computing that charges based on usage. The practice is similar to that of utility bills, using only resources that are needed.

Serverless computing: This is a cloud computing execution model in which the cloud provider allocates machine resources on demand, taking care of the servers on behalf of their customers. Serverless technologies feature automatic scaling, built-in high availability, and a pay-for-use billing model to increase agility and optimize costs.

Edge computing This is a distributed information technology (IT) architecture in which client data is processed at the periphery of the network, as close to the originating source as possible.

Access: User access to applications (including on-premises, IaaS, PaaS, SaaS etc) with consistent security, reliability and performance.

Application Programming Interface (API): This is a software intermediary that allows two applications to talk to each other. Each time you use an app like Facebook, send an instant message, or check the weather on your phone, you're using an API.

_High availability: _This is the ability of a system to operate continuously without failing for a designated period of time.

Cloud elasticity This is the ability to gain or reduce computing resources such as CPU/processing, RAM, input/output bandwidth, and storage capacities on demand without causing system performance disruptions. This is often an automatic process in cloud computing.

Cloud database This is a database service built and accessed through a cloud platform. It serves many of the same functions as a traditional database with the added flexibility of cloud computing. Users install software on a cloud infrastructure to implement the database.

Redundancy: This is a system design in which a component is duplicated so if it fails there will be a backup.

Fault Tolerance: This refers to the ability of a system (computer, network, cloud cluster, etc.) to continue operating without interruption when one or more of its components fail.

Virtual machine: A Virtual Machine (VM) is a compute resource that uses software instead of a physical computer to run programs and deploy apps. One or more virtual “guest” machines run on a physical “host” machine.

Cloud networking: This provides the connectivity to and between, applications and workloads distributed across all variations of clouds, cloud-based services, on-premises data centers and edge networks.

Big data: Big Data is a concept that deals with storing, processing and analyzing large amounts of data.

_Internet of things _(IoT): Internet of Things is how we describe the digitally connected universe of everyday physical devices. These devices are embedded with internet connectivity, sensors and other hardware that allow communication and control via the web.

On Demand Self Service: Cloud Computing allows the users to use web services and resources on demand. One can logon to a website at any time and use them.

Distributed denial-of-service (DDoS): This is a malicious attempt to disrupt the normal traffic of a targeted server, service or network by overwhelming the target or its surrounding infrastructure with a flood of Internet traffic.

Domain Name System (DNS): The Domain Name System (DNS) turns domain names into IP addresses, which browsers use to load internet pages. Every device connected to the internet has its own IP address, which is used by other devices to locate the device. DNS servers make it possible for people to input normal words into their browsers, such as Fortinet.com, without having to keep track of the IP address for every website.

Broad Network Access: Since cloud computing is completely web based, it can be accessed from anywhere and at any time.

Resource Pooling: Cloud computing allows multiple tenants to share a pool of resources. One can share single physical instance of hardware, database and basic infrastructure.

Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) This is a cloud architecture model that combines network and security functions into a single cloud service, saving external traffic loads from routing back through the data center.

Cloud service provider:
A cloud service provider is a third-party company offering a cloud-based platform, infrastructure, application, or storage services. Much like a homeowner would pay for a utility such as electricity or gas, companies typically have to pay only for the amount of cloud services they use, as business demands require. The worldwide cloud market is dominated by four cloud service providers: Alibaba in China and Asia-Pacific, and Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft, and Google in other countries.

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WHY IS IT CALLED CLOUD COMPUTING?

aliyuyusuf9 — Thu, 13 Jan 2022 14:52:38 +0000

WHY IS IT CALLED CLOUD COMPUTING?

Do you know that rather than keeping files on a proprietary hard drive or local storage device, cloud-based storage makes it possible to save them to a remote database? Cloud computing is the delivery of different services through the Internet. These resources include tools and applications like data storage, servers, databases, networking, and software.

A fundamental concept behind cloud computing is that the location of the service, and many of the details such as the hardware or operating system on which it is running, are largely irrelevant to the user. It's with this in mind that the metaphor of the cloud was borrowed from old telecoms network schematics, in which the public telephone network (and later the internet) was often represented as a cloud to denote that the just didn't matter, it was just a cloud of stuff. This is an over-simplification of course; for many customers, location of their services and data remains a key issue.

Cloud computing takes all the heavy lifting involved in crunching and processing data away from the device you carry around or sit and work at. It also moves all of that work to huge computer clusters far away in cyberspace. The Internet becomes the cloud, and voilà—your data, work, and applications are available from any device with which you can connect to the Internet, anywhere in the world.

CLOUD COMPUTING DEPLOYMENT MODELS
Cloud computing can be both public and private. Public cloud services provide their services over the Internet for a fee. Private cloud services, on the other hand, only provide services to a certain number of people. These services are a system of networks that supply hosted services. There is also a hybrid option, which combines elements of both the public and private services.

What is public cloud?
Public cloud is the classic cloud computing model, where users can access a large pool of computing power over the internet (whether that is IaaS, PaaS, or SaaS). One of the significant benefits here is the ability to rapidly scale a service. The cloud computing suppliers have vast amounts of computing power, which they share out between a large number of customers -- the 'multi-tenant' architecture.

What is private cloud?
Private cloud allows organizations to benefit from the some of the advantages of public cloud -- but without the concerns about relinquishing control over data and services, because it is tucked away behind the corporate firewall. Companies can control exactly where their data is being held and can build the infrastructure in a way they want.

What is hybrid cloud?
A hybrid cloud is a combination of public cloud services and an on-premises private cloud, with orchestration and automation between the two. Companies can run mission-critical workloads or sensitive applications on the private cloud and use the public cloud to handle workload bursts or spikes in demand. The main reasons for choosing hybrid cloud include disaster recovery planning and the desire to avoid hardware costs when expanding their existing data center. The goal of a hybrid cloud is to create a unified, automated, scalable environment that takes advantage of all that a public cloud infrastructure can provide, while still maintaining control over mission-critical data. while still maintaining control over mission-critical data.

CLOUD COMPUTING SERVICE MODELS

Cloud computing is offered in three different service models which each satisfy a unique set of business requirements. These three models are known as Software as a Service (SaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), and Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS).

Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)
Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) is a self-service model for managing remote data center infrastructures. IaaS provides virtualized computing resources over the Internet hosted by a third party such as Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure or Google, Rackspace, and Cisco Metacloud. Instead of an organization purchasing hardware, companies purchase IaaS based on a consumption model. It is like buying electricity. You only pay for what you use. This model enables companies to add, delete or reconfigure IT infrastructure on-demand. Many IT organizations rely on IaaS because they are more familiar with IaaS, especially if they have years of experience with virtual environments or strict security and regulatory requirements that can only be met through IaaS.

Platform as a Service (PaaS)
Platform as a Service (PaaS) allows organizations to build, run and manage applications without the IT infrastructure. This makes it easier and faster to develop, test and deploy applications. Developers can focus on writing code and create applications without worrying about time-consuming IT infrastructure activities such as provisioning servers, storage and backup. PaaS brings more value to cloud. It can reduce your management overhead and lower your costs. Example includes; Windows Azure, Force.com, Google App Engine, and Apache Stratos. PaaS also makes it easier for you to innovate and scale your services on demand.

Software-as-a-service (SaaS)
SaaS is the superset of both, PaaS and IaaS as it offers the entire package from infrastructure, middleware, OS to applications deployed over the web, that can be seamlessly accessed, invariant to time, place and platform. Software-as-a-service (SaaS) such as; Google Workspace, Dropbox, Salesforce, Cisco WebEx, Concur, GoToMeeting, Zoom presents a comprehensive product that is run and administered by a cloud service provider/vendor. SaaS is a service in the cloud, extending an entire software suite in pay-per-use form. It is made accessible to the end-consumers over a ubiquitous network, i.e. the internet.

BENEFITS OF CLOUD COMPUTING
It has been stated that 94% of businesses have seen an improvement in security and 91% of businesses agreed that the cloud system has met up to their government compliance requirements.

Be it the public or the private sector, for dealing with any large applications, cloud computing has been the platform of choice. Especially in customer-facing ones which need to scale dynamically or change frequently.

Cost Savings
If you are worried about the price tag that would come with making the switch to cloud computing, you aren't alone 20% of organizations are concerned about the initial cost of implementing a cloud-based server. Cloud computing is probably the most cost efficient method to use, maintain, and upgrade your IT infrastructure. There are many pay-as-you-go packages and other scalable options available, which make it very reasonable for businesses of any size to switch from traditional on-premises hardware to the cloud.
Rather than shelling out large amounts of money on expensive server equipment, desktops, and licenses, followed by long hours of setup and maintenance – you can utilize cloud resources with many direct cost reductions and efficiency improvements.

Flexibility
Your business has only a finite amount of focus to divide between all of its responsibilities. If your current IT solutions are forcing you to commit too much of your attention to computer and data-storage issues, then you aren't going to be able to concentrate on reaching business goals and satisfying customers. On the other hand, by relying on an outside organization to take care of all IT hosting and infrastructure, you'll have more time to devote toward the aspects of your business that directly affect your bottom line.
The cloud offers businesses more flexibility overall versus hosting on a local server. And, if you need extra bandwidth, a cloud-based service can meet that demand instantly, rather than undergoing a complex (and expensive) update to your IT infrastructure. This improved freedom and flexibility can make a significant difference to the overall efficiency of your organization.

Security
There is always stress from the business owners which makes them protect their Data throughout the night. Well, with the advent of cloud-based technology this stress can be reduced. There are always arguments regarding the cloud-based platforms being at risk by the hackers. However, the heavy encryption of the data in the cloud reduces the risk of data being hacked.

Collaboration
The storage of the data in a cloud, it benefits the collaborating organizations as they are able to communicate easily rather than the traditional methods of communicating. People working on a project from different locations are highly benefited by cloud computing as they can get access to the same files. The cloud computing model can also be developed in a way for the secured sharing of records with the advisors or accountant.

Loss Prevention
Think about this, if your organization isn't investing in a cloud-computing solution, then all of your valuable data is inseparably tied to the office computers it resides in. This may not seem like a problem right? But the reality is that if your local hardware experiences a problem, you might end up permanently losing your data. This is a more common problem than you might realize computers can malfunction for many reasons, from viral infections, to age-related hardware deterioration, to simple user error. Or, despite the best of intentions, they can be misplaced or stolen (over 10,000 laptops are reported lost every week at major airports).
Imagine if you aren't on the cloud, you're at risk of losing all the information you had saved locally, oops! With a cloud-based server, however, all the information you've uploaded to the cloud remains safe and easily accessible from any computer with an internet connection, even if the computer you regularly use isn't working.

Wow! Thanks for taking your time to read through. Trust, you enjoyed every bit of information concerning cloud computing and it's services. Please, check my next post on cloud computing terminology and concepts.