Just as you thought, you had the latest, brand spanking new Microsoft Office package, along comes another…and another. Office 365 is constantly evolving which is great news for the modern way of life and work. Traditionally, we had the option of purchasing and downloading Office for student, home and/or business, Now Microsoft has developed the platform to make the most of working via the cloud through Office 365.
Understanding the Office 365 options
Office 365 packages for business are split between small business and Enterprise.
For small businesses:
Office 365 Business Essentials stores all your files online so you have access wherever you are. Create, edit and share documents in real time and store them online for security and easy access
With Office 365 Business, services are available online and as downloadable applications. Collaboration is simple as documents can be shared and edited by anyone, including clients.
Office 365 Business Premium brings together all the benefits of Business Essentials and Business package while keeping your office updated across all devices. This package also includes Skype for business for instant messaging, voice calls, and video calls.
For large businesses:
Office 365 ProPlus is designed to be your office wherever you go. Included is Office 2016 apps for desktop and a fully shared experience, which enhances your security and compliance.
Office 365 Enterprise E1 is built for more mobile teams to collaborate and work on files at the same time. This package can be fully tailored to your team and how they work.
Office 365 Enterprise E3 is great for remote working, to get the Office experience across all devices with advanced IT controls and file sharing.
Office 365 Enterprise E5 is for large teams and networks to simplify your calling, sharing, digital storytelling and data analysis. This is the full singing-and-dancing-run-your-whole-business-in-Microsoft package.
As you can see, Office 365 for business comes in seven different tailored packages, which often leaves people wondering what is best for them. The most popular package for our clients, who range from sole traders to companies of 200 or more employees, is Office 365 Business Premium. Let’s have a look why.
Why Office 365 Business Premium?
As a Microsoft Certified Partner, we are always making sure we match the needs of our customers to the right Office 365 package. Office 365 Business Premium meets the requirements of the majority of our clients, making it our most popular. We work with a range of clients from 1 to 200 employees, from charities to large Industrial companies, who use this package for the following reasons:
Functionality
For a small to medium sized business, Business Premium has all the features you need to help your business grow. Simple applications make it easy to use on any device. It keeps the traditional formats we are used to with Word, for example, while updating them to be used via the cloud to suit our modern ways of working through mobile devices and out of the office.
Familiarity
All the latest Microsoft products including Word, Excel, Powerpoint, Outlook, OneNote, Publisher, OneDrive are available online and are downloadable as apps. As mentioned above the benefit of Office 365 is not to change drastically the way we work, but to allow for the ease of working remotely as many of us now do.
Collaboration
Being able to share files anywhere, with anyone, quickly and in real time, is a huge attraction to using Office 365. As more and more employees work remotely, it is essential to be able to work on documents together as a shared file and know the latest version will always be up to date.
Communication
With the integration of Skype for Business, online conferencing video, voice and instant messaging moves beyond email and telephone calls and offers users an integrated way to work from anywhere in the world on the same file, while seeing each other as if they are in the same room. A must have for global and international companies and remote workers.
The extras
As if the above was not enough for your small business, Microsoft has thrown in some added extras, Yammer and Sway, for good measure. For many of our clients who are growing and looking for new ways to work, Sway and Yammer are great tools for reporting, presenting and creating a corporate collaboration network, quickly and effectively without the need to purchase individual software to do this.
We think Office 365 Business Premium is the most cost-effective Microsoft package. It offers a full solution for small and growing businesses without overpowering the end user with the Enterprise structure. As companies adopt the cloud and subscription models, Office 365 cleverly integrates what we are familiar with, with the new modern way of working online, while offering a chance to expand consumer’s digital knowledge through some new applications in Sway and Yammer.
We salute you Office 365 Business Premium!
If you would like to know how Office 365 can work for you, or would like some advice about which package is right for you, fill in our contact form or call us on 0117 933 0570