I have been tasked at my day job to come up with a way for our CEO to commuinicate with all the stores (20) In our company.
All stores have internet access so email would seem to be the obvious answer. But there are restrictions. Only certain email addresses can be received and sent to. This can be done with filtering, but requires a mail server. (Which we don't have. We use a hosted solution).
I found several options for hosting our own server or groupware, but I decided to check the big G. I am now leaning toward that solution.
Google has Gmail for business and Google Apps. I think they had a free version at one time, but now it is $50 per year per user. A free 30 day demo is available but you have to give a credit card number and get billed after 30 days.
Hoping some of you out there are using it or have used it and can give me some feedback.
THIS IS NOT REGULAR GMAIL. This is Gmail for BUSINESS.
Just want to be clear so I don't get feed back for gmail. Which I have and I think it is great, especially for spam protection. I actually forward another account to Gmail address to filter the spam out...
Thanks in advance to anybody that replies. I will update this thread with my review as well if I decide to go with "Gmail for Business"
Check the terms of service before opting into any google product. Many say you lose the some rights. (They index everything: email, google docs, etc) even if not public. Would you want your biz secrets out there?
I have been using Google Apps for my own business for several years now. Must say, have not needed to upgrade to paid (I have the free option) yet because it's just me and a handful of people so it's definitely not in the same leagues as your company.
As a software, I love the ability to manage the emails. I do not like email management and email servers at all that's putting it mildly and nicely. So going Apps is certainly the easiest, and even if I paid $50/year for it, I'd do it because there's just so many problems managing emails it's a full time job on its own.
I haven't managed enterprise email server before but have managed an email service (autoresponder, mailing list). Let's just say things can go to hell in a short period of time and cost you to sprout gray hairs instantly sorry for being so dramatic, email management and me is like oil and water we just don't get along so having someone host and manage it for me is a huge peace of mind. I believe it would be for many companies as well.
If you are concerned about Google as a company itself - I was told that Google Apps data is treated differently. In fact, you'll often find neat features in Gmail you won't get on Apps but that's OK with me. Also, sometimes not always, when Gmail goes down, Apps seems to work fine.
They say they have passed an independent 3rd party audit for security and privacy but - like everything else you sign up for, you can only take their word for it. So that part, it's entirely on your court.
Gmail for Business and Google Apps
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sorry for being so dramatic, email management and me is like oil and water we just don't get along so having someone host and manage it for me is a huge peace of mind. I believe it would be for many companies as well.
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