An accounting firm with eight staff contacted us about lost messages. Some of the invoices they sent never reached clients, and others landed straight in spam. The diagnosis took twenty minutes: email ran through the website hosting with no SPF or DKIM records configured, and the domain sat on several blocklists after an old incident with a compromised account.
Moving to Google Workspace fixed the problem in two days. The more interesting question is why it got that far. The firm was paying for email bundled into a hosting plan, nobody monitored deliverability, and every employee kept files on their own laptop. One failed drive would have cost more than three years of subscription.
This article covers what the move to Google Workspace looks like, what deserves attention, and which technical settings nobody should skip.
What Google Workspace is
Google Workspace is a bundle of Google business services built around a company domain. The core is Gmail with addresses like [email protected] instead of a free mailbox, but the bundle also includes Drive for files, Calendar for scheduling, Meet for video calls, Docs, Sheets and Slides for documents, plus an admin console for managing users.
The difference from free Google accounts is control. With Workspace the company owns the accounts. If an employee leaves, access is suspended while their files and correspondence stay with the company. With free accounts everything walks out the door with the person.
Why business email is not cosmetic
An address like [email protected] tells a client something before they have read a word of the message. On a quote worth several thousand euro, that matters.
There is a technical side too. Free mailboxes do not allow authentication under your own domain, which means your messages ride on someone else's reputation. Your own domain with correct records gives you control over deliverability.
Plans and what they include
| Plan | Storage per user | Key features | Suitable for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Business Starter | 30 GB | Email, Drive, Meet up to 100 people | Small teams up to 5 |
| Business Standard | 2 TB | Meeting recording, shared drives | Most companies |
| Business Plus | 5 TB | Vault archiving, advanced security | Regulated activities |
| Enterprise | Custom | DLP, data controls | Large organisations |
Business Standard is where most companies settle. The main reason is not the storage but shared drives. There, files belong to the team rather than an individual, which solves the classic problem of documents locked inside the account of someone who has left.
Pricing is published per user per month and changes periodically, so check Google's current terms before deciding. Provider pricing for the Bulgarian market is quoted in euro.
Setup step by step
1. Verify the domain
The first step is proving the domain is yours. Google supplies a TXT record you add to the DNS zone. If you are unsure where the zone is managed, check with the domain registrar or your hosting provider.
2. Create users
Create the accounts before migration, but do not redirect mail yet. That gives you time to confirm everything works while the old mailbox still receives messages.
3. Point the MX records
This is the moment email actually moves. The old MX records are replaced with Google's. Propagation takes anywhere from minutes to a few hours, so schedule the change for a Friday evening or outside working hours.
4. SPF, DKIM and DMARC
These three records determine whether your messages reach the inbox. They are skipped most often, and they are exactly what causes deliverability problems.
SPF declares which servers may send on behalf of your domain. One record listing Google and every other system that sends as you, for example your newsletter platform or your online store.
DKIM adds a cryptographic signature to every message. It is generated in the Google admin console and added as a TXT record.
DMARC tells receiving servers what to do with messages that fail those checks. Start with a monitoring policy, collect reports for two weeks, and only then tighten the rules.
5. Migrate existing mail
Google provides a data migration tool that copies old messages from an IMAP server. Run it after the MX change and let it work overnight. For large mailboxes the process can take several days.
6. Two factor authentication
Enable it for every account, starting with the administrator. A compromised business mailbox is the most common entry point for invoice fraud, where someone impersonates your accountant and changes the bank details.
Google Workspace or Microsoft 365
Both cover similar needs. The choice usually comes down to how your team already works.
Google Workspace wins on real time collaboration, on teams that live in the browser, and on simpler administration. Mail search is noticeably better.
Microsoft 365 wins on heavy Excel work and complex documents, on companies with existing Windows infrastructure, and where desktop applications are mandatory.
For a small or mid sized company without specific requirements, Google Workspace is usually the faster option to roll out.
What not to skip
Group addresses. Create office@, sales@ and support@ as groups rather than separate paid accounts. A group distributes mail to several people and costs nothing extra.
Aliases. One user can hold several addresses at no additional cost. Useful after a name change or when working with two domains.
Backups. Google stores data reliably, but it does not protect you from your own mistakes. A message a user deletes disappears after a set period. If the data is critical, add an external archiving service.
Offboarding rules. Write the procedure down in advance: suspend access, forward mail to a colleague, transfer file ownership. Half a page of text that prevents panic.
The website connection. Contact forms on your website must send through an authenticated channel, otherwise those messages will land in spam despite correct mail settings.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use Google Workspace for email only
Yes, nothing forces you to use Drive or Meet. Many companies start with mail alone and add the rest gradually. You are paying for the bundle either way, so it is worth at least adopting shared drives.
Will I lose old messages during migration
Not if you migrate properly. The data migration tool copies messages from the old server without deleting them. Common practice is to leave the old mailbox active for another month until you are confident everything transferred.
Why do my messages land in spam
The usual causes are a missing or incorrect SPF record, a missing DKIM signature, a blocklisted domain, or sending identical messages to many recipients without consent. Check the three records first, then the domain reputation.
How many accounts do I need
One for every person who sends mail under their own name. Shared addresses such as office@ are set up as groups and do not count as paid users. Do not share one account between several people, as it breaks both auditing and security.
Can I migrate myself or do I need help
A small company with two or three accounts and empty mailboxes can handle it in an afternoon. With ten or more users, old archives and integrations with other systems, help from someone who has done it before prevents downtime.
Next step
Moving to business email is one of the few changes with a clear and immediately visible effect: messages arrive, files sit in one place, and departing staff no longer walk off with company data.
If you want a migration without downtime, with SPF, DKIM and DMARC configured from day one, get in touch. We review your current setup, plan the switch for outside working hours, and send an individual quote within 24 hours.
