I have recently set up Google Apps for several companies. I can highly recommend it as it is proving a very useful technology which addresses a real business requirement.

The key aspect of Google Apps it that it enables your existing company email accounts access to all the cutting-edge functions of Google web services - including Gmail, Docs, Sites, Calendar and many other collaborative tools.

The issue with email accounts provided by web hosts is that typically they are accessed via a very basic, limited web mail program or needed to be downloaded via POP mail. This is simply out-of-date technology.

Even more importantly Google Apps Standard Edition is FREE with GBs of storage whereas many web hosting accounts limit storage to 20MB per address with each extra 20MB costing about €20 extra per year – so it makes great sense financially to switch!

Google Apps Premier Edition has many more features and is charged per address per year but these advanced features are only usually required by large enterprises.

I would encourage all businesses to consider switching their email accounts to Google Apps Standard Edition as an instant and major upgrade of IT infrastructure - essential to be part of the Irish Smart Economy.  The switch requires some technical changes to the server setup but can be made quickly and without disruption of service. Then you have all the functionality of webmail from Google accessible via the Internet or mobile phone anywhere using your existing email addresses eg. yourname@yourdomain.ie

See Google Apps http://www.google.com/apps/intl/en-GB/group/index.html for further information or contact me on 087 2886398 and I will do the technical setup for you.