An Introduction to G Suite by Google Cloud

For many companies considering the versatility and scalability of the cloud, G-Suite is the ultimate productivity package. A collection of cloud-based services intended to give companies, non-profits, and educational facilities a new way to connect and create online, G-Suite is transforming the business environment one step at a time.

With new solutions emerging like cloud video intelligence and machine learning, G-Suite appears to be in a state of constant evolution, leaving people to wonder what they actually get when they migrate to this set of cloud tools.

To help you better understand the possibilities of G-Suite and determine whether it might be right for your organization, we've put together this comprehensive introduction to Google on the Cloud.

G-Suite Editions: Choosing Your Path to The Cloud

The first thing you need to know about G-Suite is that it comes in many different shapes and sizes to suit a wide range of companies. If you're looking for a G-Suite strategy that suits your budget, there's something out there for almost everyone. Including basic packages, and editions for specific sectors, like non-profit or educational organizations.

G-Suite Basic

Every edition of G-Suite adds more administrative capabilities to Google's suite of collaborative tools. With the basic set-up, you'll get:

• Gmail

• Google Calendar

• Google Docs

• Google Drive

• Hangouts

• 30GB of storage per person

Your administration or IT team will also be able to receive 24/7 support from Google experts, remotely manage a mobile fleet, manage user accounts and security settings from an advanced console, and control access to services and features.

G-Suite Business

G-Suite Business Edition comes with everything you would expect from the Basic offering, and then some. For instance, you get unlimited cloud storage, or up to 1TB of storage per user for enterprises with up to five users. There's also:

• Audit reports to track user activity

• E-Discovery for chats, emails, and files

• Archive and set retention policies

• Smart search with "Cloud Search"

• Google Vault

• Advanced mobile device management

G-Suite Enterprise

G-Suite Enterprise is the most advanced option for G-Suite users, offering a premium suite of office features with enhanced admin controls and a range of solutions for the most demanding organizations and companies. Features include:

• Data loss prevention

• Email secure multipurpose exchanges

• Encryption

• Enterprise-grade access control with security key enforcement

• BigQuery Gmail log analysis

Different Licenses for Different People

The great thing about G-Suite is that it offers different billing plan options depending on your cloud computing strategy. For instance, you can choose to purchase a range of licenses and attribute them to unique users in your organization depending on their needs and preferences. This is a great way to keep productivity high and costs low.

What Does G-Suite Include?

You know that G-Suite is a selection of cloud-based apps and that it comes in different package options depending on the needs of your company. However, before you're ready to make the switch to G-Suite, you're going to need to understand what this cloud portfolio has to offer.

Essentially, G-Suite is all about giving companies complete access to productivity and efficiency tools on the cloud, regardless of where they are. The services available through G-Suite can be separated into four distinct categories:

• Apps for connectivity

• Apps for creativity

• Apps for access

• Apps for control

G-Suite Apps for Connectivity

Today's companies need to stay connected if they want to be as productive as possible. Unfortunately, collaboration is becoming increasingly difficult to manage in a world full of dispersed remote workers. The good news is that G-Suite is situated on the cloud, which means that any employee can access it, regardless of where they are. The G-Suite apps for connectivity include:

Gmail

Private, secure, and professional, G-mail allows you to create professional business email accounts on behalf of your company. IT admins will have complete control over how accounts are distributed, and Gmail can even keep logs of team emails to make sure that you're up-to-date with the latest expectations in compliance. You can even remotely wipe an employee's device from Gmail when it's lost or stolen. This is why so many people prefer to use G-Suite, rather than sticking to Gmail as a single application.

Google Contacts

Need to make sure that your workers have access to all the right information in the right place? Google Contacts ensures that you're always connected to your most important clients, coworkers, and shareholders on a business device. Open an email, and you'll find that Google Contacts is already in there, showing you details so you don't have to remember any pesky phone numbers or addresses.

Google Calendar

Staying connected to your team members isn't just about making sure that you all have the right email accounts or conferencing tools. G-Suite helps companies to spend less time planning and more time making a difference in their organization with a calendar that automatically manages appointments to suit everyone's schedule. Plus, it integrates seamlessly with Google Drive, Gmail, Sites, and Hangouts so you never miss an appointment.

Google Hangouts

Separated in to "Chat" and "Meet", Google Hangouts is the solution that brings the intimacy and engagement of video conferencing meetings to your business. If you need a way to talk with coworkers and make sure that they're paying attention, Hangouts allows you to jump into quick video and voice calls with all the essential people in your team. With the "Chat" feature, you can keep the conversation going all day long through an instant messaging service.

G-Suite Apps for Accessibility

One of the biggest benefits of moving your data and communication strategies to the cloud is the fact that you'll be able to access the information and support you need at any time, wherever you are. All you need is an internet connection and the right credentials to connect to your network. G-Suite's apps for accessibility ensure that today's enterprises are equipped with the tools they need for a productive workflow.

G-Suite Drive

Google Drive is a system that allows companies to store, access, and share their files over a secure connection. Today's brands need somewhere safe to store all the spreadsheets and documents that their team creates, and Google Drive can offer you just that. Either with 30GB of storage per user for basic companies, or unlimited storage on the $10/month per user business plan, you can store every file your firm needs, and ensure that experts can access them any time on mobile and desktop devices.

G-Suite Cloud Search

Knowledge is power, and that's certainly something that holds true in the business environment. Using the power of Google, you can search through your company's entire content portfolio in G-Suite, from Gmail, to Docs, Calendar, and more. Google Cloud Search is perfect for when you need to access recorded information in your business.

G-Suite Apps for Creativity

Any business, no matter which vertical it might be involved with, needs to be creative at times. G-Suite offers a range of exciting apps that give companies everything they need to deliver on a project or bring a new idea to life.

G-Suite Docs

If you've ever worked in the online world, then there's a good chance you've heard of Google Docs - everyone's favorite solution for enterprise collaboration. Docs is the application which, alongside Gmail, started to make the cloud a more effective place for businesses. You can create and edit text documents directly within your browser with no need for dedicated software, and several people can work together on the same file at once, with changes saved automatically.

G-Suite Sheets

Spreadsheets were probably one of the most compelling original apps for PCs, and Google Sheets remains to be one of the best reasons to sign up with G-Suite today. This spreadsheet app can pull information from the web and allow your team members to access the same presentation at the same time. There are more than 351 supported functions, as well as a range of add-ons available that work to solve just about any number crunching issue you might have.

G-Suite Forms

In a world where data rules supreme, G-Suite Forms are a great way to access easy-to-create forms for anyone and everyone. Google Forms is the tool that allows you to create custom forms and surveys you need to gather information about your customers. Because it integrates naturally with Google Sheets, you can instantly transfer the data you collect over into a spreadsheet and start getting actionable insights in no time.

G-Suite Slides

If you need help presenting your findings to a shareholder or showing off the impressive nature of your business, then G-Suite Slides might be able to help. Google Slides is a quick and easy way to ensure that you can make presentations about everything and anything. Users can create and edit polished presentations from their browser without the need for specialist software.

G-Suite Sites

Another fantastic solution for companies who want to make the most of their online presence, G-Suite Sites allows you to mockup landing pages, report websites and more with as little initial investment as possible. You can quickly add photos, text, and video into your pages, then embed the Google files option for an easy way to show off your work. Work with teams to create engaging, high-quality sites for any project or event. Don't worry, your creations will look great on any device.

G-Suite Keep

Keep hold of what's important with G-Suite Keep. The easiest way to save the information you find online, jot down ideas, or simply brainstorm project concepts, Google Keep is a simple but effective notes app for G-Suite. Just like other apps in the G-Suite portfolio, you can invite your team members to check out your notes and give their thoughts too!

G-Suite for Control

Finally, for any organization to feel comfortable on the cloud, they'll need a certain level of control. Security has always been a major concern of people considering the cloud journey, and G-Suite has made sure to keep your mind at ease with their fantastic security and control solutions. G-Suite has everything a CIO needs to manage users, data, and devices with simplicity and safety.

G-Suite Admin

Manage G-Suite access for the rest of your organization with G-Suite Admin, a simple and easy-to-use interface that centralizes the administration experience. You can set up groups, add new security options like 2-factor authentication, and configure settings to determine which of your team members should have access to certain data.

G-Suite Vault

Make sure that you're secure and compliant with archiving and eDiscovery solutions for chat, files, and email. With G-Suite Vault, you can retain, search, and export important information from your business. As part of the Enterprise and Business editions of G-Suite, Vault offers access to archiving for G-Suite products like Drive, Teams, Gmail, Hangouts, and more.

G-Suite Mobile Management

Be ready for the business environment of tomorrow with an easy-to-set-up and secure solution for managing Android, Windows, and Apple devices (among others). Device management comes as standard with G-Suite, so you don't have to worry about setting up extra services. All you need to do is enable the mobile section on your Admin console, and then anything accessed from your team will be secure and ready to manage.

What Makes G-Suite Different?

By this point, you're probably wondering what makes G-Suite so different from the other productivity suites available on the web today. The simple answer is that this smart portfolio comes with all the expertise and innovative-thinking you would expect from a giant like Google. For instance, G-Suite users can tap into:

Machine Intelligence

With industry-leading machine intelligence, you can minimize the amount of time you spend focusing on mundane everyday tasks like scheduling meetings and formatting slides. Machine learning ensures that teams can accomplish more in today's ever-more competitive environment.

Advanced Cloud Infrastructure

G-Suite also offers access to the most advanced cloud infrastructure available, with comprehensive security on every layer. Dedicated security professionals are available to offer brand support and assists with the protection of information. This is why many of the world's most discriminating industries stick with G-Suite.

Guaranteed ROI

A Forrester report on the impact of G-Suite found that Google has a great deal of potential to offer business customers. For instance, with G-Suite, your organization can enjoy:

• Up to 304% return on investment. Over a period of three years, Google G-Suite generated around $17.1 million in benefits, outweighing a cost of $4.2 million.

• $8 million in collaborative efficiencies: You know that G-Suite can make your business more efficient with Google Slides, Docs, and Sheets - but what you probably didn't know, is how valuable those things are. According to Forrester, these systems save employees up to 2 hours a week - which adds up to more than $8 million in cash saved.

• $9 million in mobility and legacy savings: G-Suite creates an environment in which employees can innovate and share ideas anywhere. This flexibility saves organizations more than $5 million while reducing the need for expensive legacy systems, saving yet another $4 million.

Google and G-Suite give enterprises access to some of the most innovative tools in the network. It's no wonder that Google achieved the title of "Leader" for Gartner's 2017 Magic Quadrant for Content Collaboration technology.

Top Considerations for Choosing G-Suite

By this point, you know what goes into G-Suite and what makes it different from its competitors. Now's the time to figure out whether it's worth switching to Google for your business.

With some of the best office tools in the world, designed to make your business more productive and lucrative, G-Suite could be one of the most important upgrades you make to your team's workflow. All you need to do is create an account for your company and customize it to suit the needs of your enterprise.

Before you can decide whether it's time to switch, you'll need to evaluate some of the following things:

1. The Price
2. Familiarity and Ease-of-Use
3. Simplicity
4. Convenience
5. Compatibility
6. Security

When it comes to budget, G-Suite is an attractive option for many customers. Offered in a range of diverse versions and tiers, you're sure to find the G-Suite solution that fits your needs. By contrast, the monthly cost for a business version of other application software suites, like those offered by Microsoft, are much higher, even though you don't get any additional features with Office 365.

The only way you can unlock the true benefits of a cloud productivity suite is to make sure that it's adopted by everyone in your industry. The good news is that G-Suite makes migrating to the cloud easy. Thanks to G-Suite's position as an iconic brand, there's a good chance that most of your employees are already familiar with things like Gmail, Google Docs, and Google Sheets. This means that adapting to using G-Suite is something that will require only a very small learning curve. You won't have to worry about training your new staff to use a new set of tools.

G-Suite is designed to make productivity in your organization as easy to access as possible. With a single login, you can access the entire suite of apps, and users in the same workgroups will be able to automatically share information that updates and saves securely on the cloud. This means that improving collaboration in your firm couldn't be easier.

There's even a huge advantage for teams when it comes to email organization too. After all, instead of locking up your computer hard-drive with recorded information, you can archive your messages easily in the cloud and ensure you don't have to worry about syncing them with another device.

As a cloud-based productivity suite, G-Suite is convenient and easy to use. Employees can access the information they need to be more productive from any device with an internet connection. If your team members can't get an online connection, they may still be able to access the documents they need offline too.

Google makes it easier to collaborate. With G-Suite, you don't have to carry around a thumb drive just so that people can collaborate on the same document. This will be increasingly important for companies who want to take advantage of the mobile workforce.

As mentioned above, G-Suite is fantastic for simplifying group editing and document sharing. Instead of passing around word documents and attempting to keep track of different editions, various editors can work together on the same Google doc at the same time. The great thing about Docs is that you don't need to download specialist software to use it. After changes are made to a file, users can simply download it and convert the file into any format they prefer.

Finally, no matter what your business does, it's safe to say that you'll have a strong focus on security - particularly in recent years when attacks have been more prevalent than ever. G-Suite gives customers access to a range of administration tools that help to keep systems safe and secure. What's more, the G-Suite portfolio is protected according to all the latest security standards. Because it's stored on the cloud, G-Suite can be instantly updated with updates and patches to ensure that your data stays out of the hands of criminals.

Is It Time to Move to G-Suite?

It's clear to see that Google has everything the modern business needs for productivity, efficiency, and performance. If you're already using Google apps, then the transition to G-Suite couldn't be easier. Even if you don't have a pre-existing connection with Google, the G-Suite format makes it simple for any business to take advantage of the flexibility of the cloud.

Whether you're looking for secure storage, collaboration features, or the ability to excel and create on the cloud, the G-Suite system has it all. Even if you're just curious, you can start your adventure today with a 14-day free trial and see how G-Suite feels for your brand.