I’ve learned to love Google. Not just because I work there (that helps), but because they make great products that I used daily to help me run my business.

A few years ago I was trying to figure out a good workflow for my digital life. There are so many options. Which email provider would I use? How would I keep track of my files? Do I store my files on my computer or in the cloud? What’s the cloud? How could I collaborate with partners and clients more efficiently? When considering the right tools and resources for running the digital side of your  business the questions can continue forever.

However, Google has become a core component to the way I manage both my personal life and business. The products are ideal for anyone just launching themselves into business. Whether your business is brick and mortar or strictly online, Google has products to help you increase your efficiency. The question is which products do we use and for what purposes?

Here are 3 of many Google products I use to run my business:

Gmail

Most likely you use Gmail as well, and if you don’t you should. It’s time to put away the Hotmail, Verizon, and please don’t have an AOL email account. Unfortunately, these email providers are perceived as outdated. Gmail, in my opinion, is by far the best provider.  Some of my favorite features include:

• • Auto save, it saves me all the time and puts emails that are not complete in a draft folder.
  • Inline compose box allows you to search and refer to other emails while you’re writing a new one.
  • Labels allow you to organize, tag, and call out important emails.

Calendar

“If it’s not schedule it’s not real.” I use this product religiously. Both to manage my personal life and business. Not only do I find it easy to use but it syncs across all devices. So I’m able to keep up with my daily agendas while I’m on the go. Some of my favorite features of calendar include:

• • Multiple calendar, allow you to have both personal and business events in one calendar view or you can hide them as needed. You can also set up shared calendars for business partners or your spouse to use.
  • Reminders, not much more to say except that they keep me moving.
  • Color coding, allows you to attach a color to certain types of time blocks. For instance you can have consulting times in green, while workout times in red. And so on.

Google Voice

Google Voice it such a great product, and I can’t believe that it’s free. With Google Voice you’re able to setup a FREE phone number for your business. You can assign your Google Voice number to multiple cell phones, set specific time frames for each and take calls no matter where in the world you are. You can even download the app. Here are some of the cool things it offers:

• • Call from you computer. I do this all the time. My cell phone reception isn’t the most reliable, however as long as I have wifi available I can make calls without a problem.
  • More than just voicemail.  Not only do you get the generic voicemail experience that you’re use to. Google Voice also can transcribe the voice call into a text message or email. It also keeps a history of your voicemails that you can always refer back to.
  • Do not disturb. You can set up specific office hours for this phone number.

Next I’ll cover critical and more strategic Google products that are a MUST have for your business.

In the meantime if you haven’t use these products closely I suggest you give them a try. Like anything else there’s always a learning curve, but if you need to figure something out you can always Google it!