What makes trades IT different
Your team works from phones. People change more often than in an office business, with subcontractors and seasonal labour coming and going. And trades firms are a regular target for invoice fraud: someone gets into a supplier's or customer's mailbox and sends new bank details just before a big payment.
What we set up for trades firms
- A proper email address for everyone who needs one, on your own domain.
- The right licence for each person. Email only for site staff who just need email, full Office for the office. Mixing plans keeps the monthly bill down.
- Shared mailboxes for quotes@, accounts@ and jobs@, so nothing gets lost when someone is on holiday.
- Multi-factor authentication on every account, set up on the phones your team already carries.
- A leavers process, so a former subcontractor cannot still read the quotes inbox.
If your team is sharing one login now, our guide to shared logins in Microsoft 365 explains why it costs more than it saves.
Invoice fraud
Any email asking you to pay a supplier at new bank details should be checked by phone, on a number you already have, before the money goes. That one rule matters more than any setting. We set up the technical side, including alerts when a mailbox starts forwarding email outside the business, and help you write the rule down.
Your website
Most trades work comes from recommendations, and most people who are recommended look you up before they ring. A one-page site that shows what you do, where you work and how to reach you is often all you need. We build them from £350, and our guide on why a small business needs a website covers what it does and does not do.
Which Microsoft 365 plan
Usually a mix. Office staff on Business Standard or Premium, and site staff on email only or Business Basic. Shared addresses do not need a licence at all. See licence prices, and our guide to which plan each person needs.
What we can do for you
Microsoft 365 Setup
Set up properly, with the right licence for each person and security switched on from day one.
Security Health Check
A written review of nine areas of your Microsoft 365, with a plain-English traffic-light report.
Business Websites
A one-page site written and built for you, then hosted, backed up and looked after from £15 a month.
We are two engineers, not a call centre. Everything is a fixed price agreed in writing, and no work starts until you have accepted the quote. If what you have already works, we will tell you that and charge you nothing for saying so.
Common questions
Do all our site staff need a Microsoft 365 licence?
Anyone who needs their own email should have their own account, but site staff usually only need email or the basic plan, not the full Office apps. Shared addresses like quotes@ can be shared mailboxes, which do not need a licence.
Can a whole team share one email login?
It works until something goes wrong. With one shared login you cannot tell who sent what, cannot use multi-factor authentication properly, and cannot remove one person's access without changing it for everyone.
How much does IT for a trades business cost?
Microsoft 365 setup is from £499 and a one-page website is a fixed £350, with care plans from £15 a month. Klariq is not VAT registered, so no VAT is added.
Talk to an engineer, not a salesperson.
Tell us how your business works and what is bothering you. We will give you a straight answer and a fixed quote, and if what you have is fine, we will say so.
Get in touchWe also set up IT for accountants and bookkeepers, law firms, estate and letting agents and counsellors and therapists. We cover Wigan, Skelmersdale, Ormskirk, St Helens, Warrington, Greater Manchester and Merseyside.