When comparing Google Workspace and Microsoft 365, it’s inevitable to come across blatant misconceptions in terms of superiority. Some of them are relatively reasonable, while others only seem to praise one software to the detriment of another.
As you know, comparisons should be educated and well-researched. That’s why, when deciding on the best collaboration toolkit for your team, you’re looking for true statements. With that in mind, let’s debunk some of the most common misconceptions we hear about Google Workspace.
“All the ‘big guys’ use Microsoft 365”
Granted, large businesses have used Microsoft 365 for years before transitioning to the cloud. But today they have more options than ever, and while Microsoft 365 is one of the best collaboration software out there, huge enterprises rely on Google Workspace to streamline their work. Are Carrefour and Woolworths big enough companies for you? They’re just two of Google’s big customers.
“Microsoft is more secure”
While both platforms offer the most cutting-edge security systems in the market, Microsoft is known for its history of data leak scandals. Google Workspace has had its own misconfiguration and data leak issues, but in terms of security, it hasn’t been exposed in the news as much as Microsoft, recently.
If you’d like to know more about some of Microsoft and Google data leaks and developer errors, you’ll want to check out this article.
“Google uses our business data for advertising and sells it to third parties”
False. Google does not sell its users’ data for advertising. According to Google Workspace’s Terms of Service, “Google will not process Customer Data for Advertising purposes or serve Advertising in the Services.”
Additionally, Google’s Security & Trust Center highlights privacy and trust as the cornerstone of their partnership with users. That means no customer data is sold to third parties. It’s the customer who owns their data, not Google. Therefore, rest assured that Google will never collect your sensitive data for advertising purposes, ever.
“It lacks enterprise features (e.g. device management, Data Loss Prevention)”
It doesn’t. Google Workspace offers endpoint management, which allows users to access and manage their Google accounts from all devices (smartphones, laptops, tablets), while increasing teams’ productivity and keeping their data secure across those devices.
Plus, Google offers Data Loss Prevention (DLP) tools for Drive, which protects existing sensitive data while alerting users against potential breaches.
“I can’t work offline”
Yes, you can. In Google Workspace, you can set up offline access to apps like Docs, Sheets, and Slides in Google Drive.
All you have to do is sign into Chrome, go to your Google Drive settings, and enable offline access by clicking “Create, open, and edit your recent Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides files on this device while offline.”
“I can’t live without Excel!”
Then you’d love to know that Google Sheets are almost the same thing, feature-wise. You’d also love to know that Google Sheets files are automatically saved in Google Drive and that Sheets is often preferred as an online collaboration tool.
What’s more, you can open your Excel documents directly in Google Sheets.
“My documents are available to everyone in my team”
No, they aren’t. Unless you have shared a document with someone and vice-versa, your documents are private by default. In Google Docs, just below the option of creating a new document, you can choose to view the documents that are owned by you, as well as the documents owned by everyone else by your team. These would be the files you have given or received permission to collaborate on.
“My computer is more secure than the cloud”
It’s tempting to believe that the files stored in your PC aren’t safe inside the massive storage system that is the cloud. Yet, the cloud was built for this exact purpose: to keep users’ data safe with strict processes such as encryption, which protect them from hacking and theft. At the same time, storing your files in the cloud gives you more flexibility to safely access your files from anywhere.
“My customers use Microsoft 365, so I need to use it too”
Not at all. Even if your customers are avid users of Microsoft, you can still bridge both software using Google Drive, and natively edit Word, Excel files without installing licensed Microsoft software. Google understands that flexibility is important for collaboration, so it works with what your customers are currently using. You can even collaborate on Google Drive without the user needing a Google account.
“It will be hard to switch to Google Workspace”
It isn’t. In fact, Google has got you covered with a massive checklist and full instructions to help your team make the switch, fast. as a Google partner we have helped lots of customers make this jump too.
“I can’t change to a partner if I already use Google Workspace”
You definitely can, and we’d even suggest it. Changing to Google Workspace resellers is a huge time-saver for busy teams. They do all the work of data migration, offer friendly support around the clock, and simplify processes by catering to your team’s needs in terms of storage.
“Partners are more expensive”
There’s this common misconception that if you get Google Workspace via Google partners, you’ll end up paying more. But that’s false. We know that because SixFive is a Certified Google Cloud Partner, and we add value to the relationship.
The fact is: joining Workspace through a Google partner will save you support costs and learning time while completing basic admin tasks as part of your fee. This is generally much less than the price you’d pay (and the time you’d spend) doing the work by yourself.
What we do is make sure your business is up and running as it should, with qualified Cloud collaboration and fast expert support, so you can focus on building your business and earning money.
Hopefully, there are no excuses left now. If you’ve been meaning to make the switch or start using Google Workspace, now’s the time to give it a try.
