Thriving in Cloud Marketplaces: A Vision for the Future of Online Identity

Spending on global cloud services is expected to reach $680 billion in 2024¹—a significant jump from $490 billion in 2022.² 

However, what’s even more interesting is that despite overwhelming adoption, cloud-based services show no signs of slowing; by 2027, cloud service spending is set to exceed $1 trillion.¹

But there is still room to do so much more.

The market doubling in just five years signifies the necessity of cloud services in modern business. Today’s opportunities no longer revolve around groundbreaking, industry-altering innovations. Instead, opportunities lie in the greater cloud ecosystem—including services like hosting, web enablers, cloud infrastructure, and domain reselling.

But how exactly does cloud technology help businesses enhance their competitive edge? The answer lies in examining cloud services within the proper context. In this article, we will cover how cloud marketplaces not only drive growth but improve online identities for businesses and individuals, going beyond cloud applications and focusing on cloud infrastructure and how it can help drive business growth.

Understanding Cloud Marketplaces

According to the 2023 State of Cloud Strategy Survey, 76% of businesses are adopting, broadening, or considering a multi-cloud strategy. Notably, this trend is more pronounced among high-maturity companies, with 86% pursuing multi-cloud strategy, in contrast to just 54% of their low-maturity counterparts.³ 

Integral to these strategies are cloud marketplaces—platforms that connect cloud service providers with consumers. Cloud marketplaces facilitate the discovery, purchase, and management of cloud-based services and applications from vendors operating in verticals including (but not limited to)⁴:

• Infrastructure as a service (IaaS)
• Platform as a service (PaaS) 
• Software as a service (SaaS)

Cloud marketplaces such as AWS Marketplace, Microsoft Azure Marketplace, and Google Cloud Platform Marketplace are notable examples of success, but the narrative extends far beyond these giants. The cloud service ecosystem is vast and dynamic, encompassing web enablers, cloud infrastructure resellers, domain resellers, and many more.

This raises another question: In an era dominated by online transactions and digital agreements, how can businesses utilize the cloud not simply to sustain but to grow? 

What Are the Benefits of Cloud Marketplaces?

The capabilities that cloud technology offers businesses today have unlocked entirely new avenues for growth and scaling. Digital empires are built from laptops, where true progress is sparked by innovation, and platforms operate freely without the limitations of physical and logistical challenges.

It’s true, the cloud offers many advantages—and businesses poised to capitalize can benefit in several ways:

Massive Growth Potential 

Cloud marketplaces are on the brink of a significant expansion, with revenues predicted to surge from $15 billion in 2023 to over $100 billion by 2026—a more than 500% increase, according to Tackle's State of the Cloud GTM Report.⁵ This unprecedented rate of growth presents equally unprecedented opportunities for those within the cloud ecosystem.

Extended Reach and Visibility 

Since 2018, there have been an average of 900,000 new internet users every day.⁶ By showcasing your services on cloud marketplaces, you gain unmatched exposure and tap into new audiences of potential customers. Together, these factors elevate your brand recognition and open up new sales opportunities.

Co-Marketing and Co-Selling Opportunities

Through co-marketing initiatives, businesses can tap into the extensive network and promotional reach of the marketplace provider, enabling you to:

• Leverage established customer relationships and sales channels.
• Create joint marketing campaigns and promotional events.
• Reduce marketing expenditures through shared content and collaboration.

These partnerships allow you to amplify visibility and sales far beyond what you could achieve independently.

Access to a Diverse Ecosystem

Engaging with a cloud marketplace means entering into a rich ecosystem filled with potential collaborators. Whether it's through developing complementary services with partners, leveraging the latest innovations from developers, or directly responding to customer feedback, your participation in a cloud marketplace positions you to continuously refine and elevate your services, ensuring they remain competitive and relevant in a rapidly evolving market. 

Credentialing and Validation

Trust is a valuable currency in the digital world, and cloud marketplaces understand this well—offering credentialing or badge programs designed to validate the quality and reliability of your services. These badges signal to potential customers that your offerings meet a high standard of excellence, attracting new customers and building a foundation of trust that can lead to long-term loyalty. 

Insight Into Future Trends

Marketplaces are often at the forefront of innovation, providing a window into future trends that can inform your strategic planning and product development. 

Such insights can be obtained from an analysis of:

• Platform or service usage data
• Marketplace competitors 
• Customer feedback and surveys

These areas offer early insights into what technologies are on the rise, what services are in demand, and how customer preferences are evolving—allowing you to adjust proactively rather than reactively. 

Leveraging Cloud Marketplace for Business Growth

With a sharpened understanding of cloud marketplaces and their benefits, the critical question remains: How can you leverage them to maximize growth? The process can be boiled down to five key steps: 

Step 1 - Understand the Marketplace Ecosystem

By deeply understanding the dynamics of the marketplace, including the competitive environment, customer behavior, and prevailing trends, businesses can identify gaps and opportunities unique to their offerings. Tailoring your services to meet the distinct needs of the marketplace audience ensures that your solutions are not only relevant but also highly sought after.

Step 2 - Position Your Offerings Strategically 

In the vast and growing world of cloud services, distinguishing yourself is crucial. This involves clearly articulating the unique value propositions of your services, such as: 

• Superior scalability
• Enhanced security
• Greater cost-efficiency 

By highlighting key differentiators, you can capture the attention of the marketplace audience, showcasing how your solutions stand out from the competition. 

Step 3 - Invest in Marketing and Brand Visibility 

Participating in joint marketing campaigns with the marketplace can extend your reach to a broader audience. Additionally, utilizing the promotional tools provided by the marketplace, such as featured listings or sponsored content, can increase your visibility within the platform. 

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Actively engaging with the community through forums, webinars, and events can also help build your brand presence, establishing your company as a thought leader and trusted provider in the cloud services domain.

Step 4 - Focus on Customer Success

Demonstrating a commitment to customer success through exceptional support and resources can significantly enhance your reputation. This might include:

• Comprehensive onboarding processes
• Responsive customer service
• Educational materials to help customers maximize the benefits of your services 

A focus on customer success not only leads to higher satisfaction and retention rates but also encourages positive reviews and referrals, driving more business opportunities your way.

Step 5 - Leverage Analytics and Feedback

The analytics tools provided by cloud marketplaces are a goldmine of information. Regularly monitoring your performance metrics allows you to gauge the effectiveness of your marketing strategies, understand customer behavior, and identify trends in service usage. Additionally, actively seeking and analyzing customer feedback can provide insights into areas for improvement, helping you refine your offerings to better meet customer needs. 

Utilizing TLD Sales to Enhance Growth

Sources like the Harvard Business Review agree: the SaaS landscape is changing.⁷ 

The old mentality of “if you build it, they will come” no longer applies—gone with the easy sales that came from indiscriminate mass marketing. In this new era, to truly engage and convert customers requires intention, precision, and a frictionless path to purchase.

This is where the complementary nature of domain management and cloud services truly shines. Well-integrated domain management services address the needs of both customers and  enterprises by:

• Enhancing the customer experience with faster and more reliable access to websites and applications. 

• Streamlining sales and marketing operations through efficient domain deployment and maintenance.

This strategy is essential for businesses looking to grow and adapt their online presence for a solid digital identity. Domain management services further pave the way for top-level domain (TLD) sales and strategies, bringing a host of additional benefits: 

• Comprehensive solutions – Domain names naturally synergize with cloud services, allowing you to provide a one-stop shop for your customers to establish and secure their digital identity.

• Brand distinctiveness – Data shows that a growing number of startups prefer keyword-based descriptive domains.⁸ Offering these specialized TLDs (like .technology, .digital, or .software) allows businesses to stand out, aligning with global trends.

• Revenue and retention – Integrating domains and domain management services into your platform is a straightforward, low-cost way to increase revenue streams and boost customer retention through additional services.

• Market expansion – Diverse TLD options attract a wide range of customers, from startups to established brands, broadening your market presence.

Identity Digital’s Approach to TLDs and Cloud Marketplaces

With scalable domain solutions, a large portfolio of TLDs, and cloud marketplace integrations, Identity Digital is uniquely poised to meet the diverse needs of brands operating in the digital space.

As the synergy between cloud marketplaces and domain innovation redefines the meaning of digital identities, partnering with Identity Digital empowers your customers to carve their place in the digital frontier. Domain name integrations into the cloud marketplace foster growth through new revenue sources, a stronger digital presence, and better customer experiences.

The future is in the cloud—but with forward-looking strategies, customer-centric offerings, and the right partners, you can secure the digital edge needed to succeed.

Interested in harnessing the power of domain names and cloud marketplaces for your business? Connect with Identity Digital today to explore the possibilities.

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Sources: 

1. Gartner. Gartner Says Cloud Will Become a Business Necessity by 2028. https://www.gartner.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2023-11-29-gartner-says-cloud-will-become-a-business-necessity-by-2028‍
2. Gartner. Gartner Forecasts Worldwide Public Cloud End-User Spending to Reach Nearly $600 Billion in 2023. https://www.gartner.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2022-10-31-gartner-forecasts-worldwide-public-cloud-end-user-spending-to-reach-nearly-600-billion-in-2023
3. HashiCorp. 2023 State of Cloud Strategy Survey. https://www.hashicorp.com/state-of-the-cloud‍
4. CloudBlue. What is a cloud marketplace? https://www.cloudblue.com/explore/what-is-a-cloud-marketplace/
5. PR Newswire. Tackle Processes $5 Billion and Sees 100% Year-over-Year Transaction Growth Through Cloud Marketplaces, Dominating Cloud Go-To-Market. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/tackle-processes-5-billion-and-sees-100-year-over-year-transaction-growth-through-cloud-marketplaces-dominating-cloud-go-to-market-302000206.html‍
6. Demand Sage. Internet User Statistics In 2024 — (Global Demographics) https://www.demandsage.com/internet-user-statistics/
7. HBR. The Rebirth of Software as a Service. https://hbr.org/2023/04/the-rebirth-of-software-as-a-service‍
8. Entrepeneur. New Data Shows Startups Prefer Keyword-Based Descriptive Domain Names. https://www.entrepreneur.com/science-technology/new-data-shows-startups-prefer-keyword-based-descriptive/395260