Who Is Winning the Office Apps War?
When Microsoft came out with its Office 365 platform, businesses both large and small jumped on it. This made Google scramble to catch up. It’s convenient to be able to pay a subscription and access products indefinitely. This contrasts with Microsoft’s traditional model of upgrading anytime a new release of its software was available. Google is doing its best to compete in the space with its office app suite known as Google Apps for Work.
Both platforms provide cloud-based storage and allow for collaboration. The toolset included in both are similar as well. It’s clear when one platform introduces a new feature, the other will catch up. Both platforms allow users to have the most up-to-date versions of all the packages included in the software suite of tools.
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It’s difficult to pinpoint which platform is better. You could declare that Microsoft wins this month only to find Google surpassing them in the next. The bad news for both platforms is it is not that difficult for companies to switch between the packages if they are unhappy with one over the other.
The features of both software suites are likely to remain competitive well into the future. Therefore, both companies will need to find innovative ways to keep customers happy. This can start with great customer service. In an article back in November 2015 by Business Insider, Microsoft had an edge over Google due to its higher quality of service. Google had stated in that article that the information regarding its service was stale and that Google has come a long way in improving the service.
In a recent article by SurveyMonkey.com, it shows Microsoft lagging behind Google in every category, including spreadsheets. They state this as a big surprise as Excel users tend to be purists when it comes to using spreadsheets.
Businesses have another advantage when choosing app suites such as Office 365 or Google Apps. They can reduce the work needed to be done by IT departments. In the past, any new releases had to be tested, approved, and installed by IT departments. Now, it’s all done via the cloud.
While the dominance for market share swings back-and-forth over time, there is one clear winner, and that is businesses. Both app companies will need to pay attention to what businesses are looking for and change quickly to entice these businesses to stay. Businesses will continue to get consistent updates and prices are likely to stay low.
