Storage, document creation, real-time collaboration... a must for business!
April 26, 2016
Storage, document creation, real-time collaboration... a must for business!
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Overall Satisfaction with Google Drive
I primarily use Google Drive for its cloud storage and even cloud composition via Google Docs and Sheets. I am a small business owner and use Drive collaboratively with independent associates outside my business. I love having the ability to compose a Doc that is immediately stored via secure cloud, accessible and editable via web or mobile, and can be shared with others while setting desired permissions. I prefer to share docs with comment only permission so I control what is actually written and edited, but others are allowed to share their feedback and essentially require my approval. Also, working in a document simultaneously with someone else is amazingly convenient as each part can see each others actions in real time.
- Controlled permissions of who can view, comment on, or edit all my documents and files.
- Ability to store ANY file type and access almost anything via mobile as well.
- Ability to compose new documents or spreadsheets and export as .docx, .pdf, .xlsx etc.
- Very reasonable rates for paid storage above the free 15gb. I use the 100gb plan for my business.
- I used to have trouble with pasting from other sources and the format getting messed up until I learned Ctrl + Shift + V to paste without formatting. This has made a big difference knowing this.
- Google Drive desktop app seems to lose connectivity or even close itself frequently without notifying me. I find myself often closing and reopening it to continue sync.
- Sometimes files fail to sync but do not provide a reason why. Sometimes they seem to never sync but other times sync when trying again so the reason remain unknown.
- The ROI comes in time saved more so than calculated expense/revenue. It is really the opportunity cost I am saving of how much time I would be spending without all the benefits my business has gained from Google Drive.
- I actually keep track of my basic accounting inside a Google Sheet so I can always access the current version and make changes.
- I also keep track of customers/leads inside a Google Sheet in addition to a separate CRM.
- Box, Dropbox, OneDrive, Copy and MediaFire
Having the ability to create, edit, and collaborate in a real time environment is hands down what set Google Drive above all the competitors for my business. I have stored files in Box, Dropbox, OneDrive, Copy, and even MediaFire. Once I was set on Google Drive, I increased my storage plan and migrated all files into one source and it has been so efficient!
Google Drive Feature Ratings
Evaluating Google Drive and Competitors
Yes - I had files stored across many different cloud platforms but DropBox was my primary previously. I saw they partnered with Microsoft, adding the ability to edit documents but I did not like the interface as much. I loved Google Docs/Sheets but disliked that it was stuck in a Google file format... or so I thought. As soon as I realized I could save/export the file as .docx/.xlsx/.pdf I knew this was all I needed.
- Price
- Product Features
- Product Usability
The single factor that sold me was the real-time environment for collaborating on documents. Seeing each active user inside the document highlight by a different color is great. Actually seeing where their cursor is and watching characters appear as they type... this kind of collaboration is amazing to me and I would never change to another product unless it offered the same at a minimum.
Honestly, if all you need it for is file storage then I could compare Drive, Dropbox, and Box for who has the best price. Each has a mobile app that accesses all your files quite easily. However, if you are looking for collaboration with editing permissions, I don't think there is any reason to consider anything but Google Drive in my opinion.