Gmail is one of the most famous email services in the world, which is used for both personal and business purposes. Thanks to the popularity of the gmail.com domain, it quickly became popular and works great for personal use. However, sending emails to your business partners from an e-mail address such as [email protected] can no longer be called professional.

Building credibility and a positive corporate image is very important. Digitalization has made it possible for customers to find hundreds of thousands of products and services with a single click, so you shouldn’t risk looking unprofessional or not serious. To meet the needs of business customers, Google created Google Workspace (formerly known as G Suite). But what are the advantages of using the professional version of the free Gmail mailbox? Which one is better? In today’s article, we will uncover all you need to know about Google Workspace and free Gmail, so at the end of the article, you will be able to decide which one is the best for your company!

Google Workspace features that free Gmail doesn’t have

Your own domain in your email address and alias

If you want to create a positive brand image, it is helpful to use e-mail addresses that are not only easy to remember, but also suggest professionalism. If a customer visits your website, for example, bestcatfood.com leaves their contact information and then receives a reply from the address [email protected], they will immediately assume that they are dealing with an unprofessional business or phishing.

Other than that, Google Workspace allows you to replace the generic @gmail.com domain with your website’s unique address. It is enough to add the domain in the admin panel and check the authorization in a few simple steps to enjoy the benefits of a professional-looking email address.

The Gmail service of Google Workspace also allows you to create email groups and aliases. Aliases are alternative addresses assigned to a mailbox. You can have up to 30 alternative addresses by subscribing to a single email account. And groups allow you to create a common email address for several employees. For example, for all those who work in tech support. If the customer writes an email to the group address [email protected], the email will go directly to the mailboxes of all designated people, such as customer service employees.

More space for data in the cloud

All free Gmail users get 15 GB of data storage. Most private users will never reach this limit, but those who save photos, files, and attachments from Mail or want to backup data from their phone should expect to clean up their storage from time to time. By activating the Google Workspace package, the storage space for files and photos increases immediately.

But let’s see some numbers:

• The Google Workspace Business Starter basic package provides 30 GB of storage space for data.
• In the Google Workspace Business Standard package, each employee has 2 TB of storage.
• With a Google Workspace Business Plus account, you can store up to 5 TB of files in the cloud.
• And Google Workspace Enterprise users have unlimited storage on Drive.

More storage means easy access to all your documents, projects, backups, and other files from any device connected to the internet.

Shared Drive for better collaboration

Google Workspace is a service that maximizes collective efficiency and facilitates collaboration. So here’s a unique tool for businesses: Shared Drive.

Shared Drive does not have a single owner, as it is a multi-user collaborative storage space. Files stored on a Shared Drive are owned by anyone who has access to the drive. It is enough to share the drive with all the employees of the given department so that they can freely work on the files and access the results of joint work. Shared Drive has many practical benefits as they offer:

• Access to files even after the employee leaves. Usually, when an employee leaves the company, their account is deleted. If you forget to change the owner of the files beforehand, you will lose all data irrevocably. Shared Drive allows you to keep your files even after you’ve finished working with that person.
• Improved sharing rules. All team members see the same disk content, but you can give users different levels of privileges defined by roles.
• Easier access to content. When you add a person to a discussion group, they are automatically added to all drives in the group.
• It is possible to share the drive with people outside the company to conveniently collaborate with your partners. If you don’t want your company data to go outside your organization, you can easily block it.

Security and account management in Google Workspace

Google Workspace administrators can stay in control from anywhere in the world thanks to an intuitive and functional settings console. The administration panel enables remote management of the company’s data security. This is where you can apply, among other things, blocking access to important files by users outside the domain – this protects sensitive data from unauthorized persons, thus preventing it from being leaked.

The administrator can verify if users use sufficiently strong passwords when logging in to mailboxes. Additionally, for added security, you can require password changes every 30 days and see what devices employees log in on so you can respond to suspicious activity. The free version of Gmail does not allow this.

When a company uses free Gmail, individual accounts are owned by employees. In Google Workspace, the administrator manages the accounts of all employees. Thanks to this, when one of them leaves the company, business correspondence will still go to the company, and not to their private email address. In addition, the administrator has the option to block access to files for people who are no longer part of the organization’s structures.

Spam filters for greater comfort and safety in the workplace

Gmail offers basic spam filters. However, sometimes it also treats important emails as sensitive attachments or hides them as spam. Google Workspace allows you to easily set up spam filters. Among other things, you can add the IP address of a partner to the white list, which guarantees the delivery of messages.

Automatic backups

Users of a free Gmail account cannot use the automatic data backup feature. The situation is different with Google Workspace. The administrator can order automatic backups on Google Drive. This ensures that damage is minimized in case of accidental deletion of files or failure of any device.

Final Thoughts: Which one is better?

In conclusion, while the free version of Gmail is a great tool for personal use, it may not be the best option for businesses. On the other hand, Google Workspace, formerly known as G Suite, offers a professional solution for businesses. It includes features such as your own domain in your email address and alias, more storage space, Shared Drive which allows better and more effective collaboration, security, and account management, and better spam filters.

By using Google Workspace, businesses can create a positive brand image, collaborate more efficiently and keep their data secure. These features allow businesses to be more productive and professional in their communication with both customers and partners. Ultimately, the decision on which to choose, Google Workspace or free Gmail, will depend on the size and needs of the company. What do you think? Which tool are you currently using?