If you are a small business owner (online retailer or otherwise), using the free Google Apps to manage your business is a no-brainer.
You can get your own customized email addresses (For example, if you own www.greentoys.com, then you can set up email addresses for your employees as joe@greentoys.com, support@greentoys.com etc). You can also store documents (word documents and spreadsheets) online and access them from any computer (from work, from home, while on the road)
And best of all, you don’t need to install anything on your computer. All the applications (email clients, document sharing) run in your web browser. And Google takes care of archiving and backups for you.
And all of that free of cost to you.
So how easy is it to set up Google apps for your small business? Very easy indeed.
If you purchase your domain name via Google, then setting up the Google apps is a breeze. Get started at the Google Apps setup page.
If you have already purchased your domain name via GoDaddy or another provider, then Google gives you detailed instructions on how to configure your Google Apps. They also list a few consultants who can help you through the setup process in case you need any help.