Item: Dropbox Business
Rating: 8
Author: Justin Roodman

Overall Satisfaction with Dropbox Business

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We use Dropbox Business to share large video files with customers. We are a media company and some of the end products that we produce are explainer videos and video advertisements which are too large to send through email. Dropbox gives us the flexibility of controlling who can access specific files both internally and externally.

Pros and Cons

Pros

Cloud storage of large files. Makes for easy sharing and downloading.
Activity tracking allows us to see when files were downloaded and by which users.
Able to sync files across devices, so when updates are made they can be pushed to desktop, laptop, etc.

Cons

If you sign up to Business Advanced plan with unlimited storage you still start out with 3TB of storage. You must ask support to increase your current limit before hitting 3TB to take advantage of the extra storage.
Editing files with their Office 365 integration requires purchasing a separate license for the 365 software.
Minimum business package requires three licenses. Dropbox is already the more expensive option compared to GoogleDrive and OneDrive and this may not work for small businesses.

Return on Investment

Dropbox allows us to share files internally and externally with employees and customers. It's definitely a useful tool that contributes to overall productivity.
Version control allows us to make sure we are sharing the most up to date files.

Alternatives Considered

OneDrive and Google Drive

Dropbox Business is the more expensive option when compared to Google Drive and OneDrive. The Standard Business plan for Dropbox is the same price as the Office 365 Business Premium plan from OneDrive - which includes Office 365 tools in the cost. You must purchase a separate 365 license to use the software with their integration. Google Drive supports its own document editing tools which are part of the Google Docs tool suite (Sheets, Docs, etc). These tools are generally compatible with files created using MS office applications. Ultimately we decided to go with DropBox because most of us were familiar with it from past usage on personal plans.

Performance

The Dropbox site and tools load in a reasonable amount of time. I don't feel like their site and app performance is any better or worse than any other paid product that I've seen offered by any other large company. Compared to a competing product like Google Drive, the performance is probably about the same.

Usability

The functionality and user interface of Dropbox features are simple enough that most users should be able to use them productively with little to no learning curve. The platform offers advanced features, but depending on your industry and application, you may never need to use them or care about them. For example, if you are in the legal or medical industry, your focus on security and compliance may be a lot greater than businesses in other sectors.

Likelihood to Recommend

Dropbox is well known in the cloud storage industry. It has been around for years and has a relatively good reputation. The interface is easy to use and it makes sharing files relatively painless. The price point for the business version may be too high for small businesses, so they may want to consider a different version or competitive pricing with products like GoogleDrive or OneDrive.

Dropbox Business Feature Ratings

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Dropbox Business: Cloud Storage Platform