Business email thread

[digp]

There used to be a business email thread, I think pre-dating o365 and gworkspace.

Would be nice to start again with a fresh thread?

[ioneja]

Good idea, would be useful... a lot of things have changed in the last few years.

[TenFour]

IMHO most businesses, big or small, should just go with Google Workspace or one of Microsoft's offerings. If you need Ms Office then the choice is obvious. Really no other choices worth considering. Having everything integrated into one interface is so useful and a huge timesaver, plus there are infinite sources of support for any sized business. Since email is often the most important business communication channel you need something that is rarely down, has tremendous support, and is mainstream so that when something does break you can find out what to do and fix it very quickly. I also think it is critical to have dedicated desktop and phone apps built and supported by the same company. Where I work probably 90% of our business communication is via email, internally, with other businesses, and with consumers. We can't afford to have it down.

[ioneja]

Originally Posted by TenFour

IMHO most businesses, big or small, should just go with Google Workspace or one of Microsoft's offerings. If you need Ms Office then the choice is obvious....

All good points for many, if not most typical businesses. There really are only two primary business choices for a lot of people, sadly. However, both of those choices are terrible for some customers that require more in terms of privacy, jurisdiction, related policies and track record, custom user/business agreements, integrated options for encryption, specific threat models, and/or other various related issues. Additionally, there are HIPAA and other requirements around the world that might be a factor (although, for example, Google does offer a business associate agreement option for HIPAA, etc....).

Additionally, in the last few years, the idea of integrated cloud workspaces outside of Google and MS has really picked up steam and a number of providers have some options that are now improving as they add some productivity features/functionality. Integrated calendars, cloud/file sharing, document editing, etc... while limited, can be used in conjunction with open source office suites like LibreOffice that can work great for many businesses. And of course if you want to take a step into implementing your own "cloud," there are platforms like Nextcloud that could work for some businesses, coupled with one of the providers below. Also, there are other considerations for business email that are worth investigating, such as workflow innovations, where some new service providers are trying to be creative and break new ground (i.e. Hey.com, etc.).

In my case, I've jettisoned Google and Microsoft from all my business communications and I've done just fine working with my clients/customers, using other providers.

My favorite non-Google, non-Microsoft providers that would work for a lot of people for business include, in no particular order, the following (and each has different advantages/disadvantages for different needs/workflows):

• Proton
• Mailbox.org
• Mailfence
• Tutanota
• Hey.com
• KolabNow
• LuxSci
• *I really like StartMail too but they are currently (as of May 2022) still restricting aliases on your own custom domain, which is a problem for many businesses, so this one is great for personal use, but not so great for business use right now, until they add back more flexibility with custom domains
• *Keeping an eye on Skiff since the collaborative document editor is already pretty good, they just launched a "Silicon Valley" version of privacy-oriented email, that might eventually tick some boxes for some business email users as they add more features

Additionally, there are other really good collaboration tools on the market -- some which are by design privacy-focused too -- that can "make up" for the missing features from Google/Microsoft, so that you could actually put together a suite of tools that work great for your business needs.

Personal side note, I've stopped using Fastmail for business since I've had very lousy customer support turnaround time in recent months, and I'm not a fan of Zoho due to their privacy policy and jurisdiction, but both Fastmail and Zoho could work for some people -- they are just not on my own list anymore.

[TenFour]

Here in the USA Office programs like Microsoft Word and Excel are absolutely required if you are in business--I routinely receive documents in Word or Excel from other businesses and consumers and must be able to fully utilize, edit, save, and share these documents with no workarounds or fiddling. With that requirement, I think most businesses are better off just using Microsoft 365 for their email too. Though, very techy businesses with plenty of young people find that Google's offerings are much better understood and familiar to employees since they have been using them continuously since before college. Many elementary schools and high schools utilize Chromebooks and Google stuff almost exclusively, and even many colleges too. I noticed this happening a few years ago when hiring college interns. They were almost completely unfamiliar with Microsoft Word, though they were totally comfortable with all the Google stuff.

[ioneja]

Originally Posted by TenFour

Here in the USA Office programs like Microsoft Word and Excel are absolutely required if you are in business--

I work in the US, and we get away with not using Word and Excel 98% of the time and my clients aren't the wiser. And in a few cases we've had the pleasure of a conversation about alternative tools (especially open source and privacy-oriented tools), and those conversations have resulted in making our business relationships even stronger with those clients. We don't push it though. We're very diplomatic.

However, to your point, it all depends on your business and clients, and what their needs are. Clients come first, you don't want this to be a source of friction. So if you need to use Office, then get Office. But that doesn't mean you have to use Microsoft's cloud services too.

So if needed, you can buy a minimum number of licenses of Office and then use one of the non-Microsoft providers for cloud services and you come up with a mix of tools that solves your specific needs.

BTW, in the industry where I spend most of my time, there are "standard" tools in the US, but in Europe the matter is anything but settled, so we just try to be flexible when needed, and 99% of the time, our clients care mainly about our service/support and of course the end results, not really the tools we use to get there. But your business will have its own needs.

[TenFour]

BTW, in the industry where I spend most of my time, there are "standard" tools in the US, but in Europe the matter is anything but settled, so we just try to be flexible when needed...

I used to work for a company that provided services for close to 1,000 other companies all around the world and in the business we were in Microsoft Office was the standard for everyone no matter where they were located.

[ioneja]

Originally Posted by TenFour

I used to work for a company that provided services for close to 1,000 other companies all around the world and in the business we were in Microsoft Office was the standard for everyone no matter where they were located.

Yeah in that case, I can definitely see where you're coming from. As I mentioned before, if you need Office, get Office, it can't be a source of friction for your business. So in your prior situation, it was no-brainer for sure!

I think times are changing though, I've found the rising/younger generation in business, even in the US, gets along just fine with or even prefers Google, and they are *also* used to newer cloud collaboration tools, so they are already primed to be more flexible. But again, it just comes down to your business situation. Government/institutional-oriented businesses in the US are definitely still on the Microsoft train though.

The main industry I spend time in has been going through big changes and for the most part, we've been able to break the stranglehold of Microsoft, less so with Google, but at least there is appreciation for and/or more tolerance for different tools. Fortunately, I've been able to get away from both Microsoft and Google for the most part, and it's been fantastic to basically close that chapter of my business and life. But every once in a while it's a pain in the neck! Overall, it's worth it for me. Everyone has different needs though.

I think the biggest point I'd make is that customers/clients come first, and you want to make sure you can communicate via the methods they need. So listening to customers/clients and being flexible with your toolset is super important to any business success today IMO.

[SideshowBob]

Originally Posted by ioneja

...we get away with not using Word and Excel 98% of the time and my clients aren't the wiser.

What do you recommend?

Years ago I tried OpenOffice, but documents saved from it didn't look quite right in Word.

(This thread is a few months old, but it got temporarily bumped by a spam).

[somdcomputerguy]

Originally Posted by SideshowBob

Years ago I tried OpenOffice, but documents saved from it didn't look quite right in Word.

You could try LibreOffice. I don't know specifically if that would 'work' right (in this context), it's just a suggestion.

- Bruce

[TenFour]

Oldish thread revival. I'm very interested in online cloud office solution options other than Google or Microsoft. For my sole proprietor business I mainly need an online word processor that is 100% compatible with Microsoft Word, with an occasional need for a spreadsheet that is 100% compatible with Excel. So far the closest and most reliable I have found is the Google online stuff. Libre Office usually works, but Collabora online is not very good in my experience. The big requirement, for me, is that the office suite be 100% in the cloud, but with the option of working offline on documents. A lot of work is done while traveling and frequently to places with no Internet. Tough requirements, which have kept me using Google and Microsoft stuff, which have come closest to meeting my needs.

[somdcomputerguy]

Have you looked at Get your private Cloud-Office - ownCloud.online?

- Bruce

[TenFour]

Have you looked at Get your private Cloud-Office - ownCloud.online?

I have not tried them, but unless I am misreading it looks like it is 15 Euros a month for 500GB of storage plus 4 Euros a month for OnlyOffice, or about 228 Euros per year. Pretty steep pricing.

[pjroutledge]

Tried Zoho?

[TenFour]

Tried Zoho?

I've experimented with Zoho a few times. I find it less intuitive and easy to use than Gmail or Outlook.com, plus it doesn't have a dedicated photo upload and storage service. It probably is the next tier down from Google or Microsoft, so worth considering. They certainly offer a compelling suite of services if you need them.