Formerly known as Office 365, Microsoft 365 is a suite of cloud-based productivity apps that can help small businesses stay competitive while keeping costs low. Let's take a look at some of the most useful apps in this post.
1. OneDrive for Business
As Microsoft 365's cloud storage solution, OneDrive for Business gives small businesses an easy way to store, sync, and share their files. It even integrates seamlessly with Office Online, enabling users to edit Office documents directly on their web browsers.
OneDrive for Business also boasts features that keep an organization's data secure. For instance, users can control who can access and edit their files, as well as set expiration dates for shared links. This capability is especially crucial considering how vulnerable to data breaches small businesses tend to be.
2. Office Online
Microsoft Word, Excel, and Powerpoint are among the most popular productivity applications in the world. Office Online brings these programs to the web, allowing users to create and edit documents over the internet, without having to install the Office suite locally on their devices. This makes Office Online incredibly useful to small businesses with remote teams or those that need to save on storage space.
3. Microsoft Planner
Planner lets users create visual task lists, set deadlines, and assign the right person to specific tasks. It also makes it easy to track the progress of projects. Essentially, it helps small businesses become smarter in how they manage their time and resources and ensures that work gets finished on time and within budget.
Planner provides users with a channel in which they can post updates, have discussions, and share resources related to particular tasks. This makes collaboration smoother and helps reduce the need for time-consuming meetings.
4. Microsoft Teams
Microsoft Teams enables users to communicate and collaborate effectively no matter where they are, making this application a key factor in the success of remote and hybrid teams. Additionally, Microsoft Teams may be combined with other Microsoft 365 components, making it more than a simple communication platform. For instance, it can integrate with Planner, Microsoft 365's task management tool, to help users keep track of their tasks.
5. Microsoft Outlook
Outlook is Microsoft 365's email client, and it comes packed with features that can help small businesses manage their emails. By enabling users to sift through their emails and separate important messages from those that are not, Outlook helps in creating a focused and productivity-boosting inbox.
Outlook also has powerful cybersecurity features. For example, it can warn users about malicious attachments and links, as well as filter out spam emails and potentially dangerous messages. This is crucial considering how small businesses are three times more likely to be targeted by email scammers than larger businesses.
6. Microsoft Defender
Cyberthreats are constantly evolving, so small businesses need a robust security solution that can keep up with the latest threats. Microsoft Defender, Microsoft 365's security platform, uses cutting-edge technology to detect and respond to cybersecurity threats. It can protect users from malware, phishing attacks, and other malicious content.
Microsoft Defender is also designed to work seamlessly with Office Online. For instance, it can scan Office documents for malware before they are opened. This reduces the risk of small businesses inadvertently infecting their systems with malware from email attachments and downloaded files.
7. Microsoft SharePoint
SharePoint lets users create, store, and share documents online, as well as track who has accessed and edited them. This is especially useful for small businesses that need to manage large numbers of documents or that have remote teams.
SharePoint also has features that help businesses keep their data secure. For example, it can encrypt documents so that only authorized users can access them. This is important for small businesses in highly regulated industries, such as healthcare, finance, and education.
Small businesses may not have the same resources as bigger companies do, but they can stay at the top of their game by using powerful solutions like Microsoft 365.
If you need help getting started with Microsoft 365 or making the most of its enterprise-grade features, our IT experts at Complete Technology Services will be glad to assist you. Contact us today to get started.
