As a small business owner you recognize the importance of a reliable email system and a secure place to store valuable information.  If the server is down and important information can not be accessed, your business could be set back for days.

Enter Google Apps.  Google Apps is Google's solution to cloud-based computing.  With a platform devoted specifically to businesses, Google Apps is becoming increasingly popular among businesses of all sizes.  But Google Apps for Business (http://www.cloudsherpas.com/google-apps/google-apps-for-business/) works especially well for small businesses, as it provides all the same tools as it would to an enterprise, but at a cost that fits your budget.  At $5/user/year for the entire Google Apps for Business platform, there is not much about which to complain.

Making the switch to Google Apps is guaranteed to enhance your communication and collaboration capabilities.  Google Apps for Business includes a unique domain for your company, and the custom email addresses (user@company.com) can give your small business a larger appearance.  The Google Apps suite includes access to Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Docs, Google Sites, and Google Groups, among other features.

The easy-to-use Gmail system makes email simpler than ever before.  With Google-powered search built right in, you'll never have to waste time looking for past emails again.  And Gmail's 25GB of storage, which is 50 times the industry standard, means you can stop worrying about email quotas.

Google Apps features like Google Docs and Google Sites are guaranteed to take your small business' collaboration to an entirely new level.  With Google Docs, users can create documents, presentations, and spreadsheets, all of which are stored in the cloud.  Owners of documents can adjust the privacy settings so that coworkers or clients have access to them.  This feature allows for enhanced collaboration as multiple people can edit or view a document simultaneously.  Google Sites build on these capabilities by enabling users to create websites or intranets for team projects. Users of Google Sites can share documents, calendars, and set agendas all within the team site, putting all necessary information in one location.

In addition to improving collaboration, Google Apps can help small businesses make the most of their valuable time.  Through Google Docs, users can create templates that employees can access to streamline everyday tasks.  And with Google Apps' 99.9% uptime guarantee, small businesses no longer need to worry about losing working hours because of system failures.  Additionally, Google Apps' universal access feature means that employees can access their accounts from any web-enabled device in any location, so they can essentially work from anywhere.

It's especially important for small businesses to focus their efforts on their clients rather than wasting time on IT issues, and now with Google Apps you can do just that.  Because Google Apps is hosted 100% by Google, it is entirely web-based.  This means that the Google Apps suite does not require any additional hardware or software, and therefore cuts down on time and money spent dealing with IT problems.

With the communication and collaboration benefits of Google Apps for Business along with the time and money saved by switching to the cloud, can your small business afford to run without Google Apps?

This blog post is brought to you by Cloud Sherpas. Cloud Sherpas is a leading Google Apps cloud service provider. As a Google Apps Authorized Reseller and Google Enterprise partner, we have migrated over one million users across all major industries from legacy, on-premise messaging systems to Google Apps, helping organizations adopt cloud computing to innovate and dramatically reduce their IT expenses. Get to know our company by checking out our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/cloudsherpas.