I am proud of my almost 6 year career at Microsoft. The company has some great products that, when put together offer a great solution. (They do have some challenges telling the story though, see: Microsoft's "Cool Hand Luke Problem" and CRM story.)

There is a threat looming however.

Now that I am sole proprietor, I don't have the massive MSFT infrastructure behind me (nor its resources), but I still need the functionality.

As a start-up, cash is king.

Here's how I set up my "corporate infrastructure" for under $100 (plus about 10 hours of my time ).

Phone

• I use GrandCentral which gives me one phone number that can simultaneously ring my cell phone, my SkypeIn number, and my new home office line (MagicJack). I don't have to say "oh, call me on my cell." I give out that number and wherever I am, I pick it up.
• A word about MagicJack. This is a great device (though it shouldn't be used on your primary computer b/c of packet loss.) For $40, yes you read that right. And no, not per month, you plug in a phone (I bought two handsets at Costco for $39) and you've got a VOIP line.

Infrastructure

• Bought the www.jer979.com domain at www.1cheapdomains.com for $8.95/year
• Paid $40/year for hosting of Graffiti CMS (awesome blogging/ web platform) at www.appliedi.net (great customer service)
  [BTW, Graffiti for-profit use software costs $400, but you could use a regular blogging engine w/a bit less functionality for free)
• Set up Google Apps for your domain for free. This gave me
• corp email
• a web-based calendar which I can synch w/Outlook and share out
• a GoogleDocs workspace to share w/clients and partners
• GoogleSites so I can collaborate with extended team members on a by-project basis
• a customized home page

So, the threat for Microsoft is: why would I but Small Business Server for $600 plus hardware plus services to configure?

And here's the bigger threat...as my company grows (hopefully) Google is providing a migration path (both in terms of storage, etc.), but also with integration/partnership with SalesForce.com for opportunity management.

My bet: they come out with additional "hooks" such as Quicken, etc. that small business owners need.

It's the "Long Tail" approach. They can cost-effectively service a population of 1 (me) and let me move up at my own pace.

What's most remarkable is how 10 years ago, for me to get all of this functionality, it would have been $30k worth of software/custom development. Now, it's a matter of hours.

Ok, so maybe a bit more than $100, but not by much....