INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Back in 2006 when Google bought the web word processor Writely, the idea of running office apps inside a browser seemed barmy
We'd only just got used to checking our email on the web, and online apps just didn't have the power or the complexity to compete with
by dragging their own office suites onto the web in cut-down form
While it's true that desktop apps remain more powerful, the benefits of running everything in the cloud are many and varied: instant
saves, constant backups, easy file sharing and collaboration, the ability to access work from anywhere, and so on.Here we're going to check
out the state of G Suite in 2018, Google's comprehensive software offering for businesses, which includes Gmail, Calendar, Drive, Docs,
Sheets, Slides and much more for every user in your organization
Can it compete with the likes of Office 365 And is it the right choice for your businessG Suite: Pricing and setupYou've got three editions
The main differences are in the storage each user gets, but there are other benefits to taking out the two more expensive packages.These
benefits include the App Maker coding environment, Cloud Search for searching across the whole of your G Suite environment at once, some
improved admin controls (like set email retention policies in Gmail) and a few other extras that will appeal to bigger businesses
The good news is you can try out any of the plans for free for 14 days to see if you like them first.The sign up process couldn't be much
simpler: enter your business name, number of employees, country of residence and a few other essentials, and you're up and running (remember
there's a 14-day free trial, so you don't have to pay immediately).Once you've got through the registration process, you reach the main
It's here you can set up individual users in your company (if you're not just on your own), manage what apps and services they have access
to, and import data in from other services
You can also configure other admins and manage company devices.For the most part, everything is intuitive and simple to operate: users can
be granted access to certain apps and not others, you can monitor device use (and wipe devices where necessary), import data from a wealth
of other services, and more
website.When it comes to a public-facing company website, Google has partnered with the likes of Wix, Squarespace, Weebly and WordPress: G
Suite manages your domain, but all the website building is handled externally
Google Sites is still around, but it's all about internal sites now, letting you create pages for your teams on an intranet rather than
If that's what you need, it works very well, with an easy-to-follow drag-and-drop approach that needs no coding
If you can use Google Docs, you can use Google Sites.G Suite: Apps and componentsG Suite is made up of a suite of apps you might well be
your company's own branding and extra management controls for keeping teams organized.Another extra worth mentioning (on the Business and
covering Gmail, Google Drive, Hangouts and more
For example, you can use it to search through old chats, or export data to another service, or simply keep a record of corporate happenings
if you need to retain data for compliance purposes.If you need specific management or admin tools for your business then it's probably
worth checking in advance whether G Suite supports them (there's a wealth of information online about the service even before you sign up)
for web email nearly 15 years after it was introduced, Gmail is slick and fast and packed with features
it's now more tightly integrated with the likes of Google Calendar and Google Keep
intuitive interface with a stack of handy features
Compare calendars across colleagues, color-code events for easy reference, get time zones that adjust as you travel, attach guests lists and
files to your events it's another comprehensive G Suite app
Chat (a Slack-style app for chatting in teams) and Hangouts Meet (a video calling app for chatting with up to 30 people)
comprehensive online file storage locker and so much more besides
The mobile and desktop clients have come on leaps and bounds in recent years, making Google Drive one of the key components of G Suite and
vital in keeping all your business data together
while they don't have the complexity or the power of desktop programs (Microsoft Office), they're more than enough for most businesses
What's more, saving and sharing and collaborating on files is a breeze, because everything is handled in the cloud
at the moment, though if your company's team members want somewhere to share ideas or to connect with the outside world then it's still
You can't create a Google+ business page through G Suite at the moment though, which seems an odd omission
Check here for our full review of Google+.Your G Suite users have access to all the usual web apps and services that Google has made its
In fact, you might have forgotten just how many apps there are: Google Maps, Google Photos, YouTube, Google News, Google Earth and more
These apps might not play much of a role in your business operations, but they're still available if they fit in with the workflow of your
staff.G Suite: verdictA lot of you reading this will be familiar with at least some of Google's web apps through your personal accounts,
going to like them in a business context too.While it is true that Docs, Slides and Sheets can't compete with the complexity of Word, Excel
Suite are super-fast and lightweight inside a web browser
If you can get used to working exclusively online, you'll never look back, and never have to worry about unsaved work ever again.The G Suite
admin tools aren't perfect all of the time, but they do the job, and provide a useful overview of everyone in your team and what they have
Some of the business extras that Google has thrown in feel like works in progress, but to be fair to Google, progress on G Suite and its
features is usually relatively fast.If your business is entrenched in Microsoft Office then we wouldn't want to promise that life will be
However, for small businesses just getting started, G Suite makes a lot of sense.It's been built with the modern, web-based, connected
sluggish online web apps currently put forward by Microsoft and Apple
In this respect at least, Google is ahead of the curve.czSauDBdLvYX25DZXnZS4f.jpg#
