The first ever dynamic comparison website for information technology and communications has just launched, making it easier for businesses to compare and choose from a vast range of cloud delivered services, software and applications.

Imagine having a comparison website that makes it as easy to buy IT and communications as MoneySupermarket.com or Expedia does for finance, travel and insurance? The wait is over. CompareCloudware.com went live in September 2014 after 5 years of development and £400k of self-funding from its three British co-founders Gary Gould (pictured), Andrew Miller and Ian Wilson.

The site was purposefully launched in time for Global Entrepreneurship Week (17-21 November), an initiative that’s hosted in the UK by Youth Business International and is intended to encourage up and coming entrepreneurs to start their own venture.

Gary Gould, CEO, believes that Compare Cloudware provides a vital free service for businesses that do not necessarily have a strong knowledge of available cloud products, particularly useful to compare cloud based finance and accounting applications.

He says: “In less than a minute, you can get a set of results that you can filter by features, service and price. What used to take hours of research time has been condensed to a few minutes, allowing users to get the answers they need quickly so they can get back to running their business.”

Compare Cloudware offers up-to-date information on top products from vendors offering all manner of cloud solutions, including web conferencing packages, CRM systems, accounting platforms, storage and back-up facilities and cloud based telephone systems.

Andrew Miller, COO, is proud that a British team has delivered a technology start-up that you would normally find in Silicon Valley: “It’s rare to find a British start-up in this space, let alone developing and delivering a platform without any significant external investment.”

The Cloud has already become a mainstream concept, yet despite the use of high-speed internet connections, Western Europe and US small businesses have been slow to adopt cloud services across the board. Over 60% of SMBs have adopted at least one cloud service, with communication/collaboration (28%), file storage (20%) and email (19%) leading the way. Gary Gould says: “I put this down to lack of knowledge. If business owners knew they could do more and save up to 50% on cost, they would!”
Part of the launch strategy is to launch a collaborative blog section to help entrepreneurs and small businesses understand the value of the Cloud at different life-stages, whether they are managing start-ups or more established organisations. Andrew Miller is very excited about developing this platform. “Cloud providers, professionals and experts can gather together and share their knowledge, insight and best practice to help the small business community for the first time on a completely neutral platform,” he explains.