Survey Results

We’ve included lots of brief surveys in our blog postings.  This is thanks to a technology called Survey Monkey and the development talent of one of our team members, Peter Hornberger.

Peter also took the liberty of summarizing the results from our surveys.  His summaries are below.  You can get to the associated articles by clicking on the summary title.

Microsoft Office vs. Google Apps

In the analysis of our survey results, we found that more than half of our readers are currently using Office 2007 or higher. Also, more than half of our readers are considering a move to Google Apps with reasons of cost, frustration with Microsoft, a preference towards the Google web based experience, the excess of unused Microsoft features, and a feeling that Google Apps is the way of the future.

What to do when Yelp Bites Back 

All of our responders had a knowledge of the business review site Yelp. Of the readers that responded, only 50% have Yelp accounts, but more than half have used Yelp to find products and services. About a third of our respondents have received business due to Yelp and the same number have gotten a bad review on Yelp.

Another Social Media Blog

The results of our Social Media survey showed that Facebook and LinkedIn are the big players in the social media market, with Twitter close behind and other services trailing. All of our respondents have posted status updates or tweeted before and surprisingly, more than half have been recruited via social media outlets. While recruiting through Social Media appears popular, winning business seems much less common, as not one of our respondents has ever won business through Social Media.

When Disaster Strikes

From our survey regarding disaster recovery, we found that all or our readers that responded have written business continuity procedures. The majority of our respondents use off-site servers and data as their business continuity technology and two-thirds feel that they would be well prepared in the event of a disaster.

Microsoft Office vs Google Apps: Training is the Key

For years, small businesses only had one real choice for business productivity software: Microsoft Office. But that may change as web-based applications, delivered via the cloud, flood the market.

For many, Google Apps represents a viable alternative. However, before a firm chooses to shelve its investment in Microsoft Office there is a lot to consider.

To begin with, software packages evolve over time to accommodate the customer’s requirements. As a relatively young software solution, Google Apps is less complete than the more established Microsoft solution. It is extremely difficult for any company, even Google, to anticipate the real-world requirements for a full-featured solution right out of the gate.

The “completeness” of Google Apps may be less important because of the way its software is delivered. Google Apps is “cloud based”, allowing popular feature requests to be rapidly developed, tested and deployed without the end user having to upgrade his or her software. Once deployed, the new features just appear the next time the user logs in.

Microsoft Office has its benefits too. For example, it has been around for a very long time. A benefit best illustrated by a story I recently read in Network World about Microsoft Windows turning 25 years old. I am including a link to the full article here.

Network World also included a cool slideshow with screenshots of the different versions of Windows through years. To view the slideshow click here.

Just like Windows 7, Microsoft Office 2010 inherits all the lessons learned from the previous decades of end-user feedback, research and development. However, a large number of users do not use or need many of the more advanced features offered in Microsoft Office.

Regardless of whether your organization chooses to use Microsoft Office or Google Apps, end user training is a real key to success.

Google Apps is not a “Webified” version of Microsoft Office. It sorts and presents e-mail differently, key function buttons are positioned in different places and working within a web interface takes some getting used to.

Microsoft Office 2010 has made several user interface changes that will take some getting used to and many of the advanced features that can help business users become more productive need to be pointed out and configured. Once that is completed, end users need to be trained on how to utilize the new features.

As the technology changes and as we get more sophisticated as technology users the way we use our core productivity software will evolve. Firms that embrace this change and seek to apply it in creative ways will gain real-time savings. Time that can be refocused on finding new customers, making current customers happier and finding new ways to more efficiently operate the business.

We spend a lot of time analyzing our client’s productivity needs as part of our outsourced IT service. If you feel like it might be helpful to discuss your needs, click here and we can schedule some time to talk in person!

I am including a brief survey about productivity software. If you have the time, I hope you will complete it. We plan to publish the survey’s results in a future blog posting.

Why choose a Managed service for your small business computer network? A better question is why not?

Traditional IT outsourcing options are limited:
• Network and server maintenance is performed intermittently (once per week/month) or not at all
• Resolution time on staff computer problems is poor, and internal staff resources are often required to assist
• Response time for server and network-related problems is often inadequate
• Time-consuming and tedious-yet critical-tasks like desktop maintenance frequently go undone
• Maintenance tasks that require a system to be off-line or rebooted are difficult and often ignored
• Strategic thinking and guidance is insufficient or nonexistent
• Costs are high and unpredictable

Managing IT internally has other drawbacks:
• Full-time IT employees are very expensive. The average salary for a Network Administrator in northern California is $60,000/year, not including payroll taxes, workers compensation, benefits, and soft costs such as time off, office space and equipment
• Turnover in IT is high and the cost to recruit is significant, not to mention the cost of going without IT support while looking for replacement staff
• Because IT is a rapidly changing field, it is time-consuming and expensive to provide the training necessary to keep IT employees up-to-date
• Many IT management tasks are most efficiently performed when automated with tools and technology. This is the only way to ensure consistency. Yet the tools and technology to do this are outside the financial reach of most small businesses.
• One technician, no matter how good, can’t match the knowledge and experience of a full team of engineers. A company that specializes in IT can maintain experts in areas that may only be needed a few times in a year. A team of IT professionals can share their information and skills, giving each member the benefit of the entire team’s knowledge.
• Dealing with IT is a distraction from an organization’s core business and absorbs time and other resources that can be better allocated elsewhere

A Managed service eliminates these and many other problems commonly associated with traditional IT outsourcing and Internal IT staff. Managed services frees small businesses to concentrate on what they do best, confident that their networks are being managed by trusted experts who are dedicated to helping their business succeed. Managed services combine highly trained IT professionals with sophisticated automation and remote management technology. Managed services ensure your network is always reliable by preventing most technology problems and resolving others quickly. Simply put, there’s not a better IT solution for your small business.