Deploying Google’s Gmail for my start-up internet marketing business has allowed minimal and secure IT administration of my 8 websites (28+ email accounts). Supporting a mixed operating environment which includes Microsoft, Ubuntu and MacOS, multiple browsers, and document file formats from Microsoft Office, Open Office is made possible and easier with an in-the-cloud computing environment like Gmail.
So why would you consider cloud computing like Google Mail for your business, especially an SME (small medium enterprise)?
In a two words – security and compliance. E-mail security, web security and message compliance are the underlying benefits to solid business reasons to have your mail and office documents served through Gmail.
Compliance to Security and Retention Requirements
Whether your organization is 1 person or thousands of people in size, you are faced with accounting, legal and government regulations and standards that dictate acceptable levels of IT security and records retention for all electronic files and e-mails. Gmail can help ensure compliancy plus provide you with real business benefits in streamlining your document and email management. Deploying Google Mail is just smart business. Some benefits include:
1) Organizing and Filing (Archiving) your email the anyway you want it.
Google uses labeling as a way to file and organize your emails. You can tag an email with multiple labels. For example, an email from your accountant with tax information could be label as “Corporate Taxes”, “Accountant”, “IRS”, “Revenue Canada”. Gone is the restriction of having to choose only one file folder to which you move an email.
2) Keeping Email conversations or threads linked together.
Appearing like cascading file folders, emails on the same topic (subject) will be kept together in your inbox or to the multiple archived labels you have assigned. No searching for the email trail or thread of emails about a particular subject. They are visually represented like a group of stacked file folders.
3) A free unlimited storage repository for all your email and messages forever!
At 7 gigabytes per gmail user account and growing as of August 2008, the Google mail tagline is ‘ you’ll never need to delete another message’.
Takin’ Care of Business, instead of computer or IT Administration
Reducing the time spent on administration of your computer storage, security, backup and recovery allows you to spend more time building your business. Manage all your email accounts entirely from within one or two Gmail addresses. Once set-up, Gmail offers this low administration environment.
4) No Mail is downloaded or stored on your server, desktop, laptop or PDA. This eliminates any stress or administration angst associated with:
– searching for emails stored and scattered across multiple client devices – some emails on your PC , some on your laptop, some on your PDA
– scheduling backups of your email, contact list and documents
– recovery (and loss) of email & documents due to client device loss, failure or theft
– expanding storage capacity due to continuing email and document growth and retention
– remote or mobile access for all your email, attachments and documents
– managing, consolidating and keeping intact multiple email addresses and personalities
– off-site backup of select files for SOHO or Small Businesses
Document creation, management and simple online collaboration
5) Use Gmail online Office Suite to create, manage, store your business documents, spreadsheets and presentations. Read and write Microsoft Office formatted documents as well as all the open document variants. Securely stored at Google, eliminate HDD file storage and backup. No more MS Office licensing fees to Microsoft.
6) Store images and pictures using Picasa Web Albums. Manage your images on your PC using FREE Picasa Software – crop, adjust, special effects.
7) online chat and messaging integrated, stored and managed just like your email.
Reducing the complex e-mail security threats to your corporate data
8) Google yet again has an very intelligent SPAM filter that checks each message content and therefore does not arbitrarily blacklist the email address, just the specific email due to content. No emails are downloaded to your PC or an office application; therefore, no waste of bandwidth or risk of infected emails on your hard drive.
9) Google’s anti-virus checking is also performed away from your computer. All attachments are checked at the Google server for viruses and, if infected, flagged/moved to SPAM right away. No infected e-mail ever arrives on your computer’s hard drive.
Traditional server or computer-based email systems download ALL your email, passing it through a spam/anti-virus filter on your computer. This is a waste of bandwidth usage (downloading spam email) and, even worse, exposes you to the additional risk of having spam and virus-infested e-mails get closer to your data files on your computer hard drives?
So why you need to seriously consider using Google Mail for all your office needs?
– Complete office mobility – via any browser, access to your email, documents, images, chat
– Access anywhere, anytime through any browser
– No backups required of email, office documents or contacts
– Manage multiple user profiles and email accounts in one convenient place
– Includes Anti-Spam and Anti-virus checking away from your PC, Laptop or Server
– Gmail Free Unlimited file space
– Next to No Mail Administration.
Gmail is the perfect Mobile Office Utility for Small Medium and Enterprise businesses. Google Mail Cloud Computing environment will allow you to focus on your business operations and growth. Implementing the Gmail in-the-cloud computing model for your email security and compliance makes a whole lot of sense.
Keep your head in the clouds!