Apps for Small and Medium Business: Google Vs Microsoft.
Field services software, and cloud computing in general, are giving small and medium business a major new advantage. Google and Microsoft are both hustling for the top spot in cloud based apps for business, and as a result are providing smaller companies with tools that were previously either too costly or inaccessible.
With the emergence of Google apps for business has come a software suite that can be customised to suit a small or medium enterprise’s needs and budget. Included are Gmail (email), Calendar (scheduling and event booking), Docs (for sharing online word documents, spreadsheets and slideshow-style presentations) and Google Sites (for creating websites and wikis). These are all ‘cloud based’ applications, so users access them from any PC or mobile device (including iPhone, Android, Blackberry and Windows Mobile phones), as well as share them with other users simply by clicking ‘Share’ or giving colleagues a login/password.
Microsoft hopes to snare existing Office users by releasing Office 365 services. It works as a browser-based extension of their already widely used products such as Word, Excel and PowerPoint. Like Google app for business the Office 365 range offers complete online accessibility, but to reap the full functionality users would benefit from having an offline copy installed on their machine as well.
It needs to be pointed out that Google does have free versions of some of their applications (Gmail, Calendar, Google Docs and Google Sites) for individuals. However, paying for the business version provides more applications (Google Video and Google Groups for Business) as well as extra ‘premium’ options on those apps (essentially more storage space)
Both Google and Microsoft have trial versions: Google’s is 30 days for up to 10 users, while Office 365 allows for 25 users for 30 days. Beyond the trial period Google’s subscription based model start at $5 per user, per month; Microsoft’s at $7.90 per user, per month.
It has to be said that, at least on the surface Google offers the more attractive package – it’s cheaper and collaboration appears to be easier to setup. However, Microsoft gives Office users that familiar interface plus richer editing and formatting of documents. If Microsoft didn’t already have such a foothold in business software, Google would probably be the favourite in this race, but as it stands it will come down to how much people are prepared to step out of their comfort-zone and how each of the two companies evolve their products over time.
If you’re currently using either package, let us know what you think.
