Microsoft Office is still the dominant software used by small businesses for software productivity applications such as word processing, spread sheets, presentations, and in-office communication. But, Office is a suite of desktop applications. Outlook can be accessed remotely, but Word and Excel files are stuck on your office computer. Sure, you could then log in to your GoToMyPc account to access your business computer’s files, but doesn’t that sound like a mess, and it’s expensive! Here are five reasons why I think small businesses of 100 employees or less should consider Google Apps for the business productivity solutions:

1. Every employee gets an email account using Gmail’s web app interface.

The recently upgraded Gmail platform allows for easy labeling and organizing emails. Also, the filters are very easy to set up. And the best part is that you can access it from anywhere you get an internet connection, and it can easily be pushed to the iPhone mail application.

2. You can create, share, and access Google Documents. Ever have a project that you were working on with a co-worker, and you kept emailing a copy back and forth for revision or addition? Pretty annoying, huh? Well, you can work on a document in Google Docs in real-time together, and it will update the changes every time you refresh the page. Also, I bet many people didn’t know that you can export Google documents and/or email them to clients or co-workers in Microsoft Word or Adobe PDF format with one simple click of a button.
3. Calendar goes everywhere you go. It’s very easy to sync with your iPhone or Blackberry.
4. Take your work home without taking your computer home. How much money do you think companies spend on employees having a desktop and a laptop for their job? If you’re using Google Apps, everyone can have a laptop and take their productivity applications with them no matter where they are.
5. Worried about losing critical company information? When all of your work is on the web, you never have to worry about backing up your files. Ever lost your company laptop and worried that the information went into the wrong hands? Everything is password protected with Google Apps. Very few employees use a password to access their Outlook, Word, and Powerpoint documents.

This isn’t a paid advertisement for Google Apps, I just believe it’s a better solution for small businesses than Microsoft Office. Technology is quickly moving to the point where hard drives will be outdated and everything will be stored on the web. Does that thought freak you out? I know, but don’t worry, it’s not being stored in space somewhere, and it’s much more secure than your personal computer full of gaping security holes.