5 Things Smart Business Owners Realized After Upgrading to Microsoft Office 365

If you know anything about the Washington DC metro area, high tech is everywhere. Cloud-based applications have become the gold standard of business tools for smart business owners in DC for years. From Potomac Street NW up to Connecticut Avenue NW. Over to 1^st Street NE and all the way down to 4^th Street SW. And yes, even at Pennsylvania Avenue.

Even though Cloud computing’s first milestone was first seen as far back as 1999, the shift from software on the device to applications in the Cloud continues increasing, with no end in sight. This thirst for working anywhere and at any time, from the road or your home, is still in high demand.

With that kind of demand, your IT Management teams find more and more reasons to keep researching. With the amount of ongoing research being done in the local metro area, the time has come to share with you some of the findings your team has uncovered.

So, today’s post has a different slant than what you’ve come to expect. It’s not going to be business as usual. More like, we’ll pull back the curtain, and let you in on what’s being said, by your local business owners, who upgraded and what they realized after using the product.

Before we start, you’ll note that the title of this piece is, “5 Things Smart Business Owners Realized After Upgrading to Microsoft Office 365“. Not, the 5 things they are looking for before upgrading or the 5 things to consider before deciding to upgrade.

There’s plenty of that type information online. If you do any online researching, you will quickly find your fair share of those websites touting the top 5, 10 or 20 great things about Microsoft Office 365.

You’ll read those pages and find all the great benefits you and I already know exists. Such as:

• COLLABORATE EASILY
• COMMUNICATIONS TOOLS
• MOBILE ACCESS
• SCALE-UP OR DOWN
• INTEGRATES SEAMLESSLY

So, let me ask you. Is that really what you’re looking for? Only the benefits? Doubt it.

You didn’t become a smart business owner, looking just for benefits, when you upgraded to Microsoft Office 365. You’re too savvy to be shortsighted. You want to know the good, the bad and the ugly, ahead of time.

Such as: What do you do when your system has a hiccup and goes down, in the middle of a transaction, on a busy shopping day and how are you going to get it fixed, fast?

Who do you call? Are they local? Have they seen this happen before? What’s this going to cost you? Will they get you back up and running today? Can they fix-it, now?

There is no room for guesswork when your system is down. This is a critical time for you and the worst possible time for you to search for help. To have solutions beforehand and be prepped and ready to assist you at a moment’s notice, your team has to gather what is called “unfiltered feedback” far in advance. Long before you need it.

Where does your team find that information? They get it from smart business owners in your area, who have been down this road, long before you.

That means your team proactively hits the ground running. Going out into the community. Knocking on doors. Shaking the business owner’s hand. In real time. On their turf. Getting the unbridled dirt on Microsoft Office 365, after the upgrade, you don’t hear or read about online.

When your research team returns and all the data is sorted and sifted. The responses show a mixture of opinions and beliefs.  But that’s the “unfiltered feedback” Intelice Solutions looks for and needs. They look at it all. Good. Bad. And yes, even the Ugly.

So, in no particular order, here are the 5 Things Smart Business Owners Realized After Upgrading to Microsoft Office 365:

Pros:

1. Less Downtime
2. Low Maintenance
3. Decreased Cost
4. Reduced Risk
5. Increased security

Cons:

1. Sync Issues
2. Needs Stable and Strong Internet Connection
3. SPAM filtering is limited
4. Picking a plan is confusing
5. Keeping up with frequent changing features

Neutral:

1. Simple to learn
2. Can work anywhere
3. Getting use to the web versions
4. Pay-as-you-grow plans
5. Customization limitations

As you can see from the research findings, your team has the knowledge you’d come to expect when you need them most.

Ash Bonebrake, the CEO, of Washington DC-based Intelice Solutions, a leading provider of Microsoft Solutions to Small and Medium business, agrees with you. Like you, he wants his IT management clients to know the real scoop, the low down if you will, ahead of time too.

The viewpoint is simple,

“When you’re the leading solutions provider of Microsoft Office 365 in the metro area, you talk with 2 business owner types.

• Those who use the product daily
• Those who recently upgraded

They are the ones with real-world experience. They put the application through its paces. Sometimes what you hear isn’t pretty. Which is why we must constantly be on the lookout and continue researching. We never want our clients experiencing any hiccups or system failures. If they do, we must have the right answers and fix-it fast solutions.