Google is your Friend
Everybody knows Google as a search engine, but it has so much more to offer. Here's the top 5 Google apps that we use in our office on a daily basis and generally make our hectic lives a little easier and lot more organised.
5. iGoogle
Sign up for an account with Google here, login from the Google homepage and you have instant access to a huge range of useful free gadgets for your default homepage. Every time I open my web browser, I am greeted with a wealth of information from the weeks weather forecast, to my latest favourite website RSS feed articles, from movie and music reviews to upcoming appointments in my Google Calendar. The advantage for me is that I can login into your iGoogle homepage from any computer and still be presented with the same information, making it a great way to get access to all my internet favourites in a couple of easy clicks.
4. Google Maps
Need directions, don't know how long it's going to take to travel to that meeting... Google Maps can help you. Enter an address anywhere on the planet and Google will guide you there. Add your business to Google Maps, allowing others to find you easily. Add google maps to your website ,allowing you to add a 'live' location map to your website 'Contact Us' or 'Find Us' page. Zoom in and out to your hearts content, pan left and right, try flicking to the satellite view. Try downloading Download Google Earth, and get view the world from your desktop!
3. Google Docs
Create, share and edit Microsoft Word and Excel and OpenOffice compatible documents online. Google docs is great for collaborating and sharing information with others. You invite friends to participate in your documents and they can access, review and edit docs while chatting in a conference style situation. Import existing documents or start a new document instantly online, these files can easily exported to work on as normal at your desktop. Again allows me access to my important documents while out on the road.
Sync up your Outlook Calendar with Google Calendar, making your diary instantly available anywhere you have internet access. Make and change appointments, invite others and even share your calendar with colleagues allowing them access to your schedule. In fact I have a small app for my Blackberry (goes everywhere with me) that allows me to access Google Calendar on my handset, this gives me complete mobile access to my diary and the schedules of those working back in the office.
1. Google Analytics - Website Statistics
Google Analytics is simply one of the best tools out there for analysing traffic to your website. Set up involves adding a snippet of code to every page in your website. This code is then read everytime someone views your website recording useful information such as who is coming to your site, what they're looking for, and how they're getting there. You can find out how long people are spending on your website, what pages they viewed and what keywords they used to search for you, all measurable on a daily or weekly basis. Teamed up with Google Webmaster tools, Google Analytics is our number one Google App recommendation!
