Cloud Computing: Could Customer Service Be Its Waterloo?

The recent service outages experienced by Amazon (AMZN) and Google (GOOG) have raised additional concerns about the reliability of these services in particular, and the concept of 'cloud computing' and Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) in general.

In my last blog entry, I suggested that the term 'cloud computing' may be gaining widespread acceptance but could also be preventing many mainstream business decision-makers from getting their heads around the idea of utilizing web-based services to meet their corporate needs.

The faceless personas of Amazon and Google's cloud computing services don't help the situation. While traditional telephone support services have left a lot to be desired, they at least give customers a opportunity to seek help from a real person.

Neither Google or Amazon offer this form of customer support for their cloud computing services. Given the modest price for their cloud computing services, it is easy to understand why this form of support doesn't exist. These vendors, and others, may be planning to add fee-based customer support services later based on the level of demand for cloud computing services.

But, by omitting a customer support capability from their offerings at this stage, they are running the risk of driving away customers who don't want to put up with continuing service quality issues. They are also tarnishing the image of the overall cloud computing and SaaS movement, and could disrupt the growth of this market.

It is time for customers to ask questions about the quality of cloud computing and SaaS vendors' customer support capabilities in the same way they have been asking about the reliability, security, customization and integration capabilities of their on-demand services.

Comments

[Eric Novikoff:]

Our company is founded on the value proposition of delivering outsourced operations services, and we moved to become a cloud provider because it complemented our services offerings. Our founders come from an enterprise background and we each experienced a lot of frustration with outside (and inside) IT services that didn't quite manage to fulfill the needs of our business units to deploy projects quickly and easily at small incremental cost, so we wanted to fulfill that need. What we've found over 18 months of being in business is that many of the customers who come to us, come because of the operations and support services we offer, but that we also have considerable business from people who simply shop on price or choose us for other reasons (security, reliability, etc.) and don't purchase full operations services or even telephone support because they pride themselves in their technical capabilities. There's definitely room in the market for a variety of approaches, since the potential base of buyers for cloud computing is so diverse.

2008 Aug 17 03:26 AM

[Benson Schl...:]

I think your point is exactly correct. As is often the case, the first movers / innovators help push mindset toward the new way of doing things. But real adoption by the enterprise requires more experience and diligence than start-ups are able to bring to the table. Thus my opinion is that the most compelling cloud service offerings are still to come.

2008 Aug 17 06:43 PM

[Dan D. Guti...:]

By Dan D. Gutierrez
CEO of HostedDatabase.com,

You are right on with your observation. When my firm launched the web's first Database-as-a-Service in 1999, we knew early on that we had to provide excellent and free technical support because most businesses were totally unfamiliar with the SaaS delivery model. As something new, we had to prove its viability and therefore we had to be accessible. We also knew that our SLA had to stand for something, so we bent over backwards to make sure our availability was there. Fast forward nearly 10 years and our early efforts in these areas constitute the main reason we remain a strong contender in our industry.

2008 Aug 18 12:55 AM

[LA Tech:]

Can anyone find a customer service phone number on the Google web site? I certainly cannot.

This alone will prevent millions of small businesses and enterprise companies to never purchase Google Apps other than Postini (where you can find a customer service/technical support phone number on the Postini site).

Google can learn a lot from Postini if they listen!

2008 Aug 18 08:09 AM

[User 232593:]

regardless of what it is if the site doesnt have a phone # i dont deal with that business.locally,if the business doesnt provide an address i shun it.an ad should provide all the info.in todays world im even suspicious if the vehicle used by the co. doesnt have its name & phone.thats no guarantee that you wont get scammed but its better than not paying attention.for cloud computing,however it turns out,you better have backup.i dont know if the bbb has begun listing any complaints re this service.

2008 Aug 18 09:52 AM

[brez21:]

actually, Amazon offers a premium support service.

2008 Aug 21 07:00 PM

[MiamiWebDes...:]

Kudos to the Cloud Crowd for Re-Inventing the Wheel!

One thing 30 years in the IT industry has taught me is that the more things change, the more they stay the same. Another is that the only memory we seem to access is short-term. A third is that techno-marketeers rely on that, so they can put labels like "revolutionary" and "innovative" on platforms, products and services that are mere re-inventions of the wheel ... and often poor copies at that.

A good example is all the latest buzz about "Cloud Computing" in general and "SaaS" (software as a service) in particular:

tinyurl.com/6let8x

Both terms are bogus. The only true cloud computing takes place in aircraft. What they're actually referring to by "the cloud" is a large-scale and often remotely and/or centrally managed hardware platform. We have had those since the dawn of automated IT. IBM calls them "mainframes":

tinyurl.com/5kdhcb

The only innovation offered by today's cloud crowd is actually more of a speculation, i.e. that server farms can deliver the same solid performance as Big Iron. And even that's not original. Anyone remember Datapoint's ARCnet, or DEC's VAXclusters? Whatever happened to those guys, anyway...?

And as for SaaS, selling the sizzle while keeping the steak is a marketing ploy most rightfully accredited to society's oldest profession. Its first application in IT was (and for many still is) known as the "service bureau". And I don't mean the contemporary service bureau (mis)conception labelled "Service 2.0" by a Wikipedia contributor whose historical perspective is apparently constrained to four years:

tinyurl.com/5fpb8e

Instead, I mean the computer service bureau industry that spawned ADAPSO (the Association of Data Processing Service Organizations) in 1960, and whose chronology comprises a notable part of the IEEE's "Annals of the History of Computing":

tinyurl.com/5lvjdl

So ... for any of you slide rule-toting, pocket-protected keypunch-card cowboys who may be just coming out of a fifty-year coma, let me give you a quick IT update:

1. "Mainframe" is now "Cloud" (with concomitant ethereal substance).

2. "Terminal" is now "Web Browser" (with much cooler games, and infinitely more distractions).

3. "Service Bureau" is now "Saas" (but app upgrades are just as painful, and custom mods equally elusive).

4. Most IT buzzwords boil down to techno-hyped BS (just as they always have).

Bruce Arnold, Web Design Miami Florida
www.PervasivePersuasio...

2008 Aug 22 09:20 AM

[F. Andy Seidl:]

Despite what many pundits have to say, reliability issues will not be the downfall of cloud computing. Using cloud computing does not mean neglecting to architect solutions that meet their business requirements, including reliability requirements.

I wrote more about this idea here:

Cloud Computing and Reliability
faseidl.com/public/ite...

2008 Sep 10 01:03 PM