One year ago today, I made the decision to ditch Microsoft Outlook and move everything over to Gmail. And I have never looked back!
Why did I do it? Outlook at the time was continually locking up, crashing my PC and I was completely fed up. In the back of my mind, I had always considered moving it over to Gmail but was too afraid to take the plunge because it was so different than I’m used to. Then one day, after too much frustration, I did it. And it was so much easier than I thought.
So what are the Pros for leaving Outlook for Gmail? Here are a few of the great reasons:
- Easy to use! If you are used to Google and any Google apps at all, you will easily be able to find your way around Gmail.
- Access to your email from anywhere. Any computer with internet, any mobile phone, Mac or PC. That means if you buy a new computer, the transition instructions are so easy: 1. Turn on computer 2. Login to Gmail.
- Like I mentioned above, you can access anywhere, that means it syncs everywhere. No worrying about double entry or deleting emails you’ve already received in other locations.
- If you are used to using “Folders” and rules in Outlook, then “Labels” and filters work the same way, and even better.
- Your Gmail, your Docs, Calendars (which syncs everywhere too!) is accessible in one dashboard
- You can pull in multiple email accounts via POP3 if you use different email addresses for different things (you are not stuck with only @gmail.com addresses). You can do up to 5 POP3 accounts for free in regular Gmail.
* I should note that I did not move my domain’s mail hosting to Google Apps. I have a dozen or so emails associated with it, and my host is awesome so I didn’t want to rock the boat. I really wanted to keep it simple! Regular Gmail suffices for me (luckily I don’t have more than 5 POP3 accounts to pull in).
I will most likely be switching to 100% Google over the Christmas holiday break. I already use Google Apps & pull my email into Outlook via POP3, but leave the emails on the server. I also have my Outlook calendar sync with my Google calendar, so really all I have to do is bite the bullet & STOP using Outlook…there really is not a “transition” I have to do other than the mental transition, which is always the hardest part for me!
Thanks for commenting Sherra! I must have hemmed and hawed for about 6 months for the exact same reasons as you before I finally pulled the trigger. But I am so glad that I did. And my computer at the time was happy that I did too.
Well done! I had a conversation with a virtual assistant colleague earlier this week about Outlook – and how I prefer Gmail over it. Gmail totally rocks and I love all the additional plug-ins available in the Google Marketplace. Happy Gmail Anniversary, Megan!
I totally agree, the plugins in the Google Marketplace rock!! Thanks Carla!