There’s nothing like sneaking off to the beach or the links on a warm summer day. And while I’m not advocating you take your work with you – what’s the fun in that? – you may feel better about playing hooky if you can stay connected to your business while you’re away.
Your Microsoft Office Live Small Business service can help make that happen if you pack along your laptop, PDA, or smartphone and can find Internet access. Here’s how:
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Remotely access e-mail. If you’ve got a smart phone or a laptop, you can duck into a coffee shop or cabana that offers wireless and quickly access your Web-based e-mail, calendar, and tasks.
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Easily access documents. Check the status of a contract or proposal with Document Manager, an online repository for important company documents, pictures and information that you can access on the Web anytime, anywhere.
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Monitor sales. If you’re using Store Manager to sell products on your Web site or eBay, you can easily generate real-time sales reports to stay on top of revenue and orders.
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Receive e-mail alerts. Set up event-based e-mail alerts to keep on top of any changes in key areas of your business, such as new business inquiries, document updates, and more. That way you’ll know instantly if someone fills out a form on your Web site, updates a document in the Document Manager, updates a contact record in Contact Manager, assigns you a task in Task Manager or Project Manager, and more.
The trick to all of this, of course, is finding the right balance between staying connected and having fun – and you should probably avoid dripping sunscreen on your smartphone’s keyboard too.
See you at the beach,
Skip Chilcott