Full Integration with Microsoft 365 Ecosystem
Microsoft Outlook and Google Gmail are among the most popular email services. Both have great features, but Outlook stands out for business professionals and power users. Whether managing corporate communications or scheduling your tasks, Outlook offers tools designed to increase productivity by improving user collaboration and experience.
Outlook is built from the ground up to work seamlessly with everything in Microsoft 365 — Word and Excel, for example, but also OneDrive and Teams. The result is a collaboration solution that enables you to connect and work on documents, as well as reach cloud files directly within Outlook. For instance:
- An email attachment can be linked directly from OneDrive, saving you the upload step.
- All meeting invites are automatically synchronized with Microsoft Teams and you can easily move from an email document to a virtual conference.
Gmail works well with Google Workspace apps (Docs and Drive, for example), but the suite of tools Microsoft 365 provides offers more powerful features suited to large enterprises or organizations.
Superior Calendar Management
With stronger and more intuitive calendar features than Gmail, Outlook users can:
- Multi-layer the calendars so you can toggle multiple views on or off all in a single interface — like work & personal.
- Make good use of color coding for events.
- Create reminders periodically and receive alerts on all devices.
- Present schedules to your co-workers who will then be able to see what time works best for group meetings.
On the other hand, Gmail’s calendar is less full-featured — for example, features for multiple time zones or complex meeting schedules are not available.
Offline Access & Desktop App
The full offline experience for email comes from the desktop version of Outlook, where emails can be read, written, and managed even without an internet connection. Once restored, you can send emails and update your inbox seamlessly. While Gmail does provide some offline functionality through a web browser, the app for Outlook is even more inclusive of off-the-grid activity, which is particularly ideal for professionals on airplanes or traveling to remote locations.
Managing and Organizing Your Email
Outlook offers a more powerful setup for managing your emails with plenty of organization tools and folders. Some key features include:
- Focused Inbox: Outlook sorts out your important emails from the less urgent ones to make it easier for you to focus.
- Rules and Conditional Formatting: Allows you to set up rules that can sort emails into specific folders, mark them as high priority, or even color code any email from a particular contact.
- Power Search: Outlook provides search filters to let you discover emails according to the sender, subject, date, etc.
Though Gmail offers labels and filters, Outlook presents itself as more sophisticated when it comes to organization, especially for those who receive a ton of emails or work across broad environments.
Enhanced Security and Compliance
Outlook is equipped with enterprise-grade security, making it the favorite among businesses where compliance matters (think GDPR, HIPAA, etc). Some of the most notable security features include:
- Secure email sending with encryption options.
- MFA (multi-factor authentication) to secure account access from unauthorized parties.
- The ability for original senders to recall their emails or set an expiry date for important content.
- Data Loss Prevention (DLP) tools — for blocking the sharing of sensitive information.
Both Gmail and Outlook have good security, but we believe Outlook’s features are more appropriate for enterprises with a larger amount of regulated activity, such as finance or healthcare businesses.
Customization and Add-ins
There are many add-ins and third-party integrations available to extend Outlook’s capabilities, including CRM tools, project management apps, and custom-built solutions. As G-Suite no longer exposes direct integrations like it used to, the focus now shifts towards where Outlook’s programming becomes more fitting for workflow solutions in enterprises, while Gmail remains a simple email client.
Consolidated Interface for Email, Calendar, and Contacts
Like a Swiss Army knife, Outlook provides much more than just your email in one place — you can also manage contacts and calendars from the same interface. This layout allows you to:
- Toggle between inbox and calendar view quickly.
- Access contact information straight from your emails.
- Manage your tasks with in-line reminders.
These features are more fragmented in Gmail, requiring you to switch between different apps like Google Calendar and Contacts. For professionals juggling a variety of communication channels, an all-in-one design gives Outlook an efficiency advantage.
If you’re looking to enhance your business communication and productivity, contact eMazzanti today to learn how we can help you leverage Microsoft Outlook and other Microsoft 365 tools effectively.
