Everything you ever wanted to know about Office 365

Microsoft Office is used by 1.5 Billion people making it one of the most popular software suites in the world. Businesses nowadays rely on the suite’s tools to communicate, create/save documents as well as balance their books. But there’s a lot more to Office than you realize, particularly since the release of Office 365. If you are interested or you would like to find out more about Office 365 continue reading and see below a list of the most frequently asked questions. 

1) What is Office 365?

.Office 365 is a cloud-based, subscription model version of Microsoft Office. Office 365 still contains the same core applications as traditional versions of Office, these include: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote, and depending on the plan purchased, may also give you use of other apps and services such as Publisher, Planner, OneDrive, Exchange, SharePoint, Access, Skype, Yammer, and Microsoft Teams.

There are a number of different packages available when licensing Office 365, these versions can be used for the following:

-Personel use

-Multi-user household

-Students

-Businesses

-Non Profit organisations

-Education institutions

Lets not forget Office online which includes online- and mobile -only versions that provide users access to feature-limited versions of Office apps for free.

2)How is Office 365 different from previous versions of Office?

Office 365 is a subscription-based service, meaning rather than buying a copy of the suite outright for a one-time, up-front cost, users instead pay a monthly subscription fee to access the service at a level of their choosing. This allows users access to the latest versions of office 365 as microsoft updates the platform on their end making this suite both fast and very efficient.

Another reason why office 365 is different to that of previous versions is the fact that it is designed to be used online, meaning all applications, services and data generated by Office 365 are hosted on microsoft servers.

Office 365 comes with mail hosting and cloud storage space so users can host their files online and have access to them anywhere at any time, all they require is a suitable device that connects to the internet.

3)Who uses Office 365 for Business and why?

The core applications of Office 365 still provide businesses with the basic tools they need to perform everyday tasks such as managing data, creating documents and communicating information. Office has evolved into a suite of intelligent tools that allow organizations/businesses to be more productive and efficient when using this platform. With the various plan options available on Office, companies of all sizes can get access to these tools instantly.

Services such as Outlook can provide a professional-looking platform through which businesses can build brand recognition, create brand awareness and market their services. Outlook’s extensive calendaring features can also help organizations better collaborate and manage their time.

All Office applications and services are connected, both to each other and to the web, facilitating and improving teamwork, saving employees time and enabling them to work better together through tools such as team chat, online meetings, co-authoring, sharing files and group emails. Office also allows organizations to work from anywhere with secure access to conversations, chats, emails, tasks and schedules making the business run smoothly and efficiently no matter where you are.

4)How can Office 365 help businesses grow?

The Office 365 suite makes performing tasks like finding information, sharing documents, communicating with colleagues and processing data much faster and a lot more straightforward. This ultimately reduces time spent on administrative duties/tasks allowing the business more time to innovate, create and move forward instead of back.

Apps recently added to Office 365 furnish business users with even more essential tools to help them grow, including:

– Microsoft Connections, a basic email marketing tool and customer engagement platform.

– Microsoft Invoicing, an app used to generate and send professional invoices to customers and accept payments on the go.

– Microsoft Listings, a tool used to assist organisations in order to manage their business information/data on platforms like Facebook, Google, Bing and Yelp.

– Outlook Customer Management, a simple customer management add-on for businesses who don’t require a full-blown CRM system.

– MileIQ, a mileage logging platform that automatically classifies and submits business travel.

– Microsoft Bookings, which allows users to manage customer appointments and schedules.

– Business center, a central access point for all office 365 business app, through which users can track metrics such as invoices, email subscriptions and bookings.

5)What is Microsoft SharePoint?

SharePoint is a web-based collaborative platform that integrates with Microsoft Office. Many Office 365 plans include SharePoint Online, a cloud-based service, hosted by Microsoft, for businesses of all sizes. This platform allows employees the ability to create sites to share documents and information with colleagues, partners, and customers.

SharePoint allows users to:

– Keep teams/colleagues up to date by using document libraries, tasks and calendars.

– Create, manage and share documents with colleagues.

– Ability to share news, documents, events and updates related to the business.

– Protect important data and content

– Download and have access to documents off-line.

– Communicate with colleagues in real time within the Sharepoint Online Interface.

6)What is OneDrive?

OneDrive is Microsoft’s cloud-based file storage service, where all files, documents, images, videos and music are stored for Office 365 users. OneDrive also allows files to be synced across desktops, browsers, and mobile devices provided they have internet.

7)What is Skype for Business?

Skype for Business is a version of the popular chat and conferencing service designed specifically for commercial use. Organizations can access all the telecommunications tools they might need on a daily basis, including send instant messages between colleagues, utilize video conferencing features, record conversations, share screens, give presentations and hold meetings making this tool both effective and productive in the business world.

8) What is Microsoft Teams?

Microsoft teams is a chat-based collaboration product, its main function is to facilitate teamwork and promote productivity, with three key areas of functionality such as: chat, project management and extensive integration with Office 365.

This tool brings together the chat capabilities of Skype for Business, along with collaboration tools like document sharing, useful AI-powered features such as chatbots and online project management tools.

9) What is Yammer?

Yammer is a social network used by employees to communicate and connect. It creates space to communicate across different departments within the business in the forms of engagements, news, messaging and announcements. This platform is designed to be a fast and intimate sharing tool, making it easy to collaborate with project teams.

10) What is Microsoft Exchange?

Microsoft Exchange is Microsoft’s email server solution. Everything that happens in outlook including incoming and outgoing mail, tasks, contacts, calendars ect are all stored on the Exchange server. Microsoft Exchange allows organizations to create their own, independent mail system.

11) What plans are available for Office 365 for Business?

There are currently two licensing models for business users wanting to implement Office 365. Companies with less than 300 users can opt for one of three Office 365 for Business plans and for larger companies, there are four Office 365 for Enterprise plans, all of which support unlimited users. License types can be mixed to suit the needs of the business.

Below displays all of Office 365 business plans for both SMB;s and Enterprises:

Office 365 for business pricing plans for SMB’s and Enterprises:

	Office 365 Business Essentials	Office 365 Business	Office 365 Business Premium
Apps included	Web versions of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint	Desktop versions of Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Access, and Publisher Web versions of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint	Desktop versions of Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Access, and Publisher Web versions of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint
Services included	Exchange SharePoint Skype for Business Microsoft Teams 1TB of OneDrive file storage and sharing Microsoft Planner 24/7 phone and web support	1TB of OneDrive file storage and sharing 24/7 phone and web support	Exchange SharePoint Skype for Business Microsoft Teams Email Hosting 1TB of OneDrive file storage and sharing Microsoft Planner Microsoft StaffHub Microsoft Connections Microsoft Listings Outlook Customer Manager Microsoft Invoicing Microsoft Bookings MileIQ Business center 24/7 phone and web support
Email hosting	50 GB mailbox and custom email domain address	None	50 GB mailbox and custom email domain address
Device licensing	Services for use on 5 phones and 5 tablets only	Office apps and services on 5 phones, 5 tablets, and 5 PCs or Macs per user	Office apps and services on 5 phones, 5 tablets, and 5 PCs or Macs per user

Office 365 for Business pricing plans for enterprise

	Office 365: ProPlus	Office 365: Enterprise E1	Office 365: Enterprise E3	Office 365: Enterprise E5
Apps included	Desktop versions of Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Access and Publisher Web versions of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint	Web versions of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint	Desktop versions of Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Access and Publisher Web versions of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint	Desktop versions of Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Access and Publisher Web versions of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint
Services included	1TB of OneDrive file storage and sharing 24/7 phone and web support	Exchange SharePoint Skype for Business Microsoft Teams Yammer Microsoft StaffHub Microsoft Planner 1TB of OneDrive file storage and sharing 24/7 phone and web support	Exchange SharePoint Skype for Business Microsoft Teams Yammer Microsoft StaffHub Microsoft Planner Unlimited personal cloud storage 24/7 phone and web support	Exchange SharePoint Skype for Business Microsoft Teams Yammer Power BI Pro Microsoft StaffHub Microsoft Planner Office 365 Cloud App Security Advanced Data Governance Customer Lockbox Exchange Online Advanced Threat Protection Unlimited personal cloud storage 24/7 phone and web support
Email hosting	None	50 GB mailbox and custom email domain address	100 GB mailbox and custom email domain address	100 GB mailbox and custom email domain address
Device licensing	Office apps and services on 5 phones, 5 tablets, and 5 PCs or Macs per user	Office apps and services on 5 phones, 5 tablets, and 5 PCs or Macs per user	Office apps and services on 5 phones, 5 tablets, and 5 PCs or Macs per user	Office apps and services on 5 phones, 5 tablets, and 5 PCs or Macs per user

12) Can Office 365 be used with previous versions of Office?

Many existing Office customers who currently run a perpetually licensed, on-premise version of Office can use Office 365 and enjoy all the features that cloud connectivity brings with it. Office 365 works best with Office 2016.

13) Is Office 365 secure?

Office 365 is a cloud-hosted platform, many new and prospective customers will have questions about security and privacy. A company’s data is its most valuable asset, and as we’ve seen in numerous high-profile data breach cases in recent years, the consequences of failing to adequately secure business data are severe.

Office 365 data is held in Microsoft’s global data centers, where dedicated threat management teams actively anticipate, prevent, and mitigate malicious access 24/7; a level of security that virtually no company can operate in-house.

 

14) What Admin Centers exist for Office 365?

 

There is now one single admin center for Office 365, known as the Microsoft 365 admin center. All Office 365 customers will use this admin center, whether they license Office 365 as part of a Microsoft 365 plan or not.