Wireless Platform Tuned For Small Biz
What’s more, many competing products are geared to the consumer market, and solution providers are often disappointed by the lack of compatibility with office systems and a skimpy feature set. A business-centric product such as GoodLink is a much better fit for small-business needs.
Because many small businesses and professionals rely on client relationships and conduct business from the field, this market is prime for mobile communications technologies such as wireless e-mail, instant messaging and scheduling.
In the past, many of these technologies have been limited to the enterprise because of the high cost of wireless messaging servers, but Good Technology is one enterprise vendor that has scaled its offering for small business. With the GoodLink Small Business Edition, integrators can offer a comprehensive wireless synchronization package to businesses with fewer than 75 users for about $330 per user per year.
GoodLink is designed to work with dozens of smartphones, cellular-equipped PDAs and other wireless devices that already exist in small-business environments. The product is also designed to run on Microsoft Exchange and work in a single-server environment. That translates to compatibility with any business running Microsoft’s increasingly popular Small Business Server 2003. Savvy integrators can bundle SBS 2003-based solutions with Good Technology’s products to create all-in-one server and communications platforms that will suit most any small office’s needs.
There are a few critical elements solution providers will need to deliver these advanced services to customers. The first is Microsoft Exchange 2003, which is conveniently bundled with SBS 2003. Another is a compatible smartphone or wireless device. A quick visit to Good Technology’s Web site will help an integrator find the latest list of supported devices. Other basic requirements include a live Internet connection, e-mail accounts and administrative rights to the server.
Once all of those elements are in place, installation is a simple matter of downloading the latest version of the software and installing it on the Exchange server. Good Technology’s excellent technical support, clear documentation and intelligent installation wizards make the product simple to install.
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One of the biggest advantages of GoodLink is the ability to wirelessly provision a compatible device. Devices can be synchronized simply by adding the device’s information to the user management section of the GoodLink management console. This capability is crucial for employees who are rarely in the office. Another notable feature is the ability to push other applications to a mobile device, allowing integrators to install a range of customized packages. For security, the GoodLink platform offers the ability to remotely disable a device and wipe it clean if it is lost.
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While the platform offers plenty of integration opportunities, solution providers will also be able to derive revenue from managed services. GoodLink subscriptions include access to a management portal that can be used to manage devices, generate reports or drive other administrative needs. Using this portal, solution providers do not need to invest in any infrastructure to accomplish the goal of setting up a managed service.
Good Technology has also created a hosted version of GoodLink. The hosted version is a service-based method of hosting users’ e-mail accounts and controlling wireless access to those accounts. The hosted solution would be a good fit for ultrasmall businesses, such as those with fewer than 10 employees.
Good Technology’s products are not the only option for integrators addressing this market, but the balance of features puts the product head and shoulders above the rest. Other solutions either require that the user’s PC be left on 24x7 or require a dedicated individual server for e-mail and scheduling processes. Comparable systems often lack full synchronization capabilities, such as scheduling or to-do elements.