You’re a business owner looking to utilize video as a marketing tool.
You’ve read the amazing stats about the benefits of video for increasing sales. One that says adding videos on your landing page can increase conversion by 80%.
Besides, you also read the Hubspot research report that about 50% of consumers prefer videos from brands rather than any other form of content.
“You’ve researched the video hosting options that you can use. You know that there is YouTube as well as other private video hosting platforms like Cincopa. You sit with your team and decide that a private video hosting platform will work best for your company.”
But that’s not the end, you notice that there are different solutions offered in private video hosting; on-premise, cloud, and hybrid. There’s a lot to consider when thinking about private video hosting.
As a businessman in this modern business era, a lot depends on your digital marketing methods. So, there’s a lot to consider when thinking about private video hosting.
We’re going to guide you and explain about on-premise video hosting as well as the other solutions offered.
The different video hosting solutions to consider
On-premise video hosting
With this solution, the videos are hosted on a physical data center in or near your location. This data center is usually owned by you and your business.
“With an on-premise video hosting solution, the business needs to set up its own infrastructure. The infrastructure includes the servers, operating system and personnel to manage the servers and system as a whole.”
You’re also going to need a cooling system as the servers can get very hot during use. The business will be required to maintain and update the system as well.
Once the infrastructure is set up, the video hosting provider will install its software in the servers for the company to deploy. It’s a good solution for companies that have security concerns and want the videos to be hosted behind their own firewall.
Cloud video hosting solution
This video hosting solution is the one commonly used by businesses; enterprise and small to medium businesses alike.
It uses a subscription-based model where you pay yearly or monthly to access and use the video hosting platform.
“With this solution, the video hosting company will handle the technical side of things such as infrastructure and maintenance.”
All you need to do is utilize their platform to showcase videos to your audience.
Hybrid video hosting solution
A hybrid solution gives you a bit of both world; cloud and on-premise.
With this option, you can store your videos locally and use the cloud platform for one-off events, for instance, in periods of high traffic.
There is no one form of implementation when it comes to Hybrid video hosting solution. Each video hosting company will implement it differently. Be sure to check with the platform before deciding to go with this option.
Now that we know the different solutions on offer (as far as video hosting is concerned), when do you need to use on-premise video hosting?
When you should consider on-premise video hosting
On-premise video hosting is not the best solution for every business. Let’s have a look at the scenarios where it makes sense to use on-premise video hosting.
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You have the infrastructure
On-premise video hosting has quite a high set up cost. It doesn’t make sense for a small business to go for this solution unless they have the infrastructure; however, it does for enterprises.
You’ll need servers, personnel to manage the servers, a high-bandwidth network connection, and a cooling system for the servers to name a few.
The cost to set this all up from scratch is quite high. It makes sense to use on-premise video hosting if the infrastructure required is already available.
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Security is a huge concern
Not all videos are meant to be seen by the public. As a business, you might have certain videos that are confidential and thus need to be stored in a secure environment.
With cloud video hosting, you outsource security to the platform that hosts your videos.
This is less than ideal when you consider that there have been many hacking activities and data breaches in recent times.
“With this in mind, on-premise video hosting becomes a better solution as you can have the videos behind your own firewall and within a local network “.
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You need full control of the platform
With on-premise video hosting, you have full control over the platform. You own the infrastructure and maintain the software as well.
Some video hosting providers will also allow you to customize their software to suit your needs. You can decide who gets to access videos, how they do it and at what speeds/bandwidth can be used. You control the platform with on-premise video hosting.
Which video hosting solution should your business adapt?
The video hosting solution your company/business should adopt will mostly depend on a few things.
To keep it short, there are some few scenarios you can consider when deciding on a video hosting solution to adopt.
Scenario 1: You have infrastructure that is constantly maintained
In the first scenario, you already have the infrastructure in place i.e. servers, personnel, and the whole setup.
On top of that, you’re maintaining this infrastructure as well.
In this case, you should adopt an on-premise video hosting solution. The setup cost won’t be as high and you have full control, which is great.
Scenario 2: You have the infrastructure, but you want to phase it out
A hybrid video hosting solution can work best for you in this scenario. You can use a hybrid solution in the short run as you transition to a cloud solution.
Scenario 3: You don’t have the infrastructure
Another question, we could ask on top of this is, do you have the money to set up the infrastructure?
If you have the funds, then go for an on-premise video hosting solution to avail the big advantages in terms of control, scalability and security are great.
On the other hand, if you’re a small business with no funds, go for a cloud video hosting solution. It’s much easier to maintain as the video hosting company will handle updates and maintenance.
All you and your team will need to worry about is video management and analytics. The above is a quick way to evaluate what solution your business should adopt.
There are many hidden costs that your business needs to consider as well in the decision process. For instance, the electricity bill.
With on-premise video hosting, your electricity bill will be higher when compared to other solutions like cloud video hosting. This is because of the servers and the cooling system required to make them functional.
There are plenty more of these hidden costs that you’ll need to consider when making the decision on which system to adopt.
Conclusion
On-premise video hosting is a great solution, mostly for enterprises as well as large businesses. This is because they have the funds to set up and maintain such a system.
As a small business, on-premise video hosting can get expensive quickly.
With that said, the benefits it offers are great and if you can afford it, we advise that you go for it. Otherwise, sign up to a cloud video hosting company.
Cloud video hosting is cheaper compared to on-premise video hosting and is easier to maintain. You can focus on the analytics and the video creation while the video hosting company handles the technical side of things such as updates and maintenance.
