Let’s cut to the chase here as well- If you don’t know what Google is, then sorry. The ship has taken off and you’re stranded on the desert island. The good news is that this is the search party. If you wave your hands and light a flare or two then we’ll swing by and pick you up. If you continue to ignore Google, it won’t be good.

1. It’s free- well there are no free lunches right? That’s Econ 101 right? Well for your ticket to use Google Apps you must be willing to see their ads in the margins as you use their highly productive tools. I’m in.
2. GMail is very effective at working with multiple email accounts. I have 3 different email accounts sent into GMail, but I can respond to to any email from my business email. Which is what I prefer because it has the free promotion from my signature byline. Ever have trouble with that one in Outlook?
3. GMail also allows you to never really delete email unless you want to- which I do. The labeling system in Google is far superior in my mind to a simple drag and drop folder system in say Outlook. In Google I can label an email with 3 different labels. Then later when my mind tries to find it through association I can look in two or three spots that jog my mind. Of course you can also search your emails using the most powerful search engine in the world. Integration it’s amazing isn’t it?
4. Google calendar allows me to create seperate calendars for my schedule ( My wife and I share calendars of course- meaning she can click on mine and I can click on hers at anytime). I have business calendar, a calendar where I schedule my customer site visits and organization jobs. We have a meal plan calendar for each month. I also access my backpack calendar with tasks via Google Calendar. How powerful for the small business owner!
5. Google Reader allows me through RSS to bring in all the blog and news feeds I like the best into one location. Instead of going to Doug Wead’s or Eric Schansberg’s blog every time I want to check for updates, I simply open up my Google Reader application and it’s all there for me. I keep up with 15-20 different blogs and news sources on politics, business, my Christian faith, organization and sports. The typical guy topics. Sorry ladies.
6. Google documents allows you to upload, share and access key files from wherever you are. Pretty straight forward but nice feature alongside all the others.
7. GMail has a feature to house all your contacts as well. I imported mine via an excel csv and it was pretty seamless. Now if you follow my lead you have email, contacts, calendar, RSS/blog reader and document sharing all in one web-based application via Google. You also would have everything else you need in Backpack. One is free and the other is a great value.
8. Igoogle may be my favorite Google application. I was slow to discover the power in igoogle but now I love it. Would you like to have exactly what you want on your homepage along with Google’s powerful and simple search engine box? If so give Igoogle a try. Pick your favorite news feeds or your favorite tools. I like the bible verse of the day, the google maps and mapquest boxes. How about a link to movies playing in your area or the local weather? I have a Youtube widget along with a craigslist search box. I use the digital and second hand clock widget telling me the time all day. Last but not least I have an ever-changing picture of a really neat place somewhere off in the world.
9. Google checkout has some powerful applications and is great for non-profits I’ve heard. I haven’t used it a lot myself but I’ve heard it’s great.
10. Do you really need a 10th reason to get started with Google apps? Even though they are free to use, maybe you need some assistance migrating your small business over to them. Give us a call and we can make that happen for your business. We have already helped other small businesses make this transition and they’re not looking back.