GMail for Business - anyone use it?
Discussion
Yes on the iPhone there's a bit more to it than just using IMAP. If you want proper "push" mail using the Mail App then bizarrely you need to setup the account as an exchange type as it uses activesync for this. I would consider using the Gmail app if possible though as it understands labels and have found it better for searching etc
Hoofy said:
How does either fair on an iPhone for viewing other people's calendars, inviting people to appointments who also use the system etc?
I use Google Calendars through the Apple Calendar app without any problems. Can share calendars with my wife easily etc.buggalugs said:
sidekickdmr said:
Who uses it on Iphone, do you use the apple "mail" app, or downloaded a spesific Gmail app?
The iOS mail app doesn't let you delete emails only archive so I use the gmail app. I also have the sheets and docs apps installed as I often work in shared docs with people.
tshow Microsoft have been with Win 10 I refuse to hand them a penny.Just had a mass roll out of gmail at one of my clients to several thousands users and the overwhelming response so fat has been people hate it. It was previously an MS\Outlook house though so as others have said if you are used to Outlook, it may not gel straight away.
Personally I also prefer the Outlook\OWA\O365 thing as they at least try to make an effort to make it feel like you are using a full fat mail client whereas gmail just don't bother so I find it's browser based functionality a little less intuitive.
However I can see why lots of companies are adopting gmail and that's basically because it is dirt cheap and it's all about cost saving\the bottom line these days. MS who used to be biggest player in town when it came to email\messaging are basically pricing themselves out of the market right now. If I was MS I'd basically be giving O365 away or at the very least the email part of it, otherwise they'll loose this race, the last 3 clients I've worked for are all abandoning Exchange\Outlook and moving to gmail and that's purely down to cost.
Personally I also prefer the Outlook\OWA\O365 thing as they at least try to make an effort to make it feel like you are using a full fat mail client whereas gmail just don't bother so I find it's browser based functionality a little less intuitive.
However I can see why lots of companies are adopting gmail and that's basically because it is dirt cheap and it's all about cost saving\the bottom line these days. MS who used to be biggest player in town when it came to email\messaging are basically pricing themselves out of the market right now. If I was MS I'd basically be giving O365 away or at the very least the email part of it, otherwise they'll loose this race, the last 3 clients I've worked for are all abandoning Exchange\Outlook and moving to gmail and that's purely down to cost.
We moved from Microsoft Exchange to Gmail and Office 365 in my previous business. At the same time I moved my current business to Gmail.
I like it as much as I hate it.
It works well in browsers, the app is okay, it's "easy" etc.. but the downsides....
If you create folders like my office manager seems to like doing then I can never find emails and they often don't come up in search even though I know the email is in there
We have a LOT of domains we can't send to, which is really annoying as it's mostly suppliers and other contacts. We need to use another free gmail account for certain people. Not sure why this is.
I can't get my calendar to sync to my iPhone in the native app so things I create on my phone don't end up in my Google Calendar, the google Calendar app is rubbish.
If you use the app and look at the latest in a series of emails it likes to keep jumping back to the first email that person sent, very annoying.
There's various other issues I don't like as well. The MD of my previous company hated it too. We stuck with it because despite the bugs it was awesome for linking to Google Calendars for running 20 staff day to day. It just worked well for scheduling, keeping in touch and using the Google Drive.
So basically now that my main business has less staff and no scheduling requirements I intend on moving to Office 365 with MS email. I am going to do it with two of our lesser users accounts (different domains) to test the waters then I'll move the main business account.
I like it as much as I hate it.
It works well in browsers, the app is okay, it's "easy" etc.. but the downsides....
If you create folders like my office manager seems to like doing then I can never find emails and they often don't come up in search even though I know the email is in there
We have a LOT of domains we can't send to, which is really annoying as it's mostly suppliers and other contacts. We need to use another free gmail account for certain people. Not sure why this is.
I can't get my calendar to sync to my iPhone in the native app so things I create on my phone don't end up in my Google Calendar, the google Calendar app is rubbish.
If you use the app and look at the latest in a series of emails it likes to keep jumping back to the first email that person sent, very annoying.
There's various other issues I don't like as well. The MD of my previous company hated it too. We stuck with it because despite the bugs it was awesome for linking to Google Calendars for running 20 staff day to day. It just worked well for scheduling, keeping in touch and using the Google Drive.
So basically now that my main business has less staff and no scheduling requirements I intend on moving to Office 365 with MS email. I am going to do it with two of our lesser users accounts (different domains) to test the waters then I'll move the main business account.
They must be doing some discounts there because basic 365 and g-suite are about the same cost? £3.10/£3.30/mo
I personally prefer the gmail interface to Outlook, because a) the search is better and b) you can use it a lot with the keyboard shortcuts making it fast to cull down a load of email. Easily faster than Outlook to use. And c) you can sit down at any PC and be straight in there.
One thing that people really hate is the grouping of conversations. Yes you can turn it off but people don't want to faff. They just feel scared and lost cause they feel like they can't see all their emails. It's an immediate bad impression. Google have always clung to that default and I really think that most people would prefer it the other way.
Ultimately though work PC's and software are there for you to do your job they are not provided to appease people's whining for their personal favourite bit of software. Can you use Gmail to get your work done? The answer is yes you can so get over it. (not aimed at anyone personally)
I personally prefer the gmail interface to Outlook, because a) the search is better and b) you can use it a lot with the keyboard shortcuts making it fast to cull down a load of email. Easily faster than Outlook to use. And c) you can sit down at any PC and be straight in there.
One thing that people really hate is the grouping of conversations. Yes you can turn it off but people don't want to faff. They just feel scared and lost cause they feel like they can't see all their emails. It's an immediate bad impression. Google have always clung to that default and I really think that most people would prefer it the other way.
Ultimately though work PC's and software are there for you to do your job they are not provided to appease people's whining for their personal favourite bit of software. Can you use Gmail to get your work done? The answer is yes you can so get over it. (not aimed at anyone personally)
MrSparks said:
We
We have a LOT of domains we can't send to, which is really annoying as it's mostly suppliers and other contacts. We need to use another free gmail account for certain people. Not sure why this is.
Usually this happens when SPF and DKIM records haven't been set. What that means in plain English is that you are asserting that the emails actually come from you and are not being spoofed. We email with 50%+ of the FTSE 250 and have never had problems. It could well affect you when you move to O365 so worth checking out. We have a LOT of domains we can't send to, which is really annoying as it's mostly suppliers and other contacts. We need to use another free gmail account for certain people. Not sure why this is.
Amateurish said:
We avoid Gmail because of Data Protection. Gmail data is kept in the US whereas with other providers you can ensure that customers' and employees' personal data is kept in the UK or EU.
It's a bit of a moot point with email though as messages you send could end up being stored anywhere by the recipient - it's out of your control as soon as you press the send button. Fine if you never intend to send or receive any email though!Gassing Station | Business | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff