Managing a business can sometimes be a nightmare. One of its main challenges is organizing your office and keep everything in place. IT infrastructure is expensive and a small business cannot afford to shell out a big chunk of money. There is a recent trend in small businesses for replacing this expensive infrastructure with affordable web based business applications that will enable them to collaborate further. Google Apps is a cost effective alternative to the traditional IT infrastructure that businesses requires, with over 3 million business already enjoying its benefits.

Google Apps has a wide range of applications like Google Docs, Gmail, Google Sites and Google Calendar. The whole application is entirely free for a business with under 50 people to operate. But with more than 50 employees, Google Apps cost is minimal compared to other applications available. With a Premier Edition you can pay $50/year per employee for a lot more services it has to offer like unlimited number of users, sync with Blackberry Enterprise, Google Videos, 24/7 customer support, migration and integration tools, and increased security.

Google Apps for business makes collaboration and online sharing of files easier and more efficient than the traditional PC-based network that has limited resources, adding to that is the difficulty to share files if you are in an off-site location. Google Apps is also a great choice for businesses working with remote staff. Here are three great reasons why Google Apps can help your small business.

1.E-mailing System

Google Apps has an integrated email application called Gmail, that features a threaded message interface making it more convenient for your employees to track down conversations and correspondence. You have the option to mark an email as Starred to remember important memos and announcements. They are currently rolling out priority inbox to users to help organise higher priority emails and position them at the top of your inbox. It also features 25GB of email storage, so deleting messages should never be a problem.

2. Documents, Spreadsheets & Presentations

Google Docs is like Microsoft Office online. You can create documents, spreadsheets, drawings, and power presentations online, and they are safely stored on the cloud server, so you will never lose a document because of a computer glitch or power outage again! Google Docs features online collaboration, which enables your team to work and share files real time. Since it works in a browser, Mac and Linux compatibility will not be an issue.

3. Calendars

In a business, time is of the essence, that is why it is important to keep track of your calendar. Google calendar will make integration to Gmail very easy. You can send out invitations, and it will manage RSVP’s and integrates with your email system. It can be used through your mobile phone, making it easy for member of you staff to stay in touch even if at a meeting or doing field work. There are many ways to share a calendar with your staff, such as company-wide, through selected co-workers or staff groups with sharing permissions. Google calendar will make scheduling meetings or events hassle-free for everybody in your team.

Google Apps is the obvious choice for businesses wanting easy collaboration of files with staff, backup of files on Google servers and easy access to all their documents.