Note: This is NOT a sponsored post – This is a genuine plea from me to all of you to please make backing up your data the #1 priority while you’re sheltering at home. This week I heard from a client who they lost everything. All their photos. Documents. All of it. Nothing was backed up to the cloud. Nothing saved on an external hard drive. This one hit close to home. Keep reading…

During the organizing expert webinar series we’ve had the great fortune of hearing from experts on a variety of topics. FOR FREE! They have graciously offered their expertise in an effort to inspire and motivate us during our at-home time. So grateful to have them join us and excited to continue sharing them with you. I choose the interview topics based on what I consider priority / hot topics. The pain points I hear about most often. The pain points I see in the homes I organize. The questions I’m frequently asked from the online community. I’d say at the tip top of the list there are a few zingers and for sure leading the pack is how to safely back up files and photos.

How to do it easily. How to do it at a comfortable cost. And what is the best platform.

Most people I communicate with think backing up is a complicated process. It’s not! It couldn’t be easier and it simply happens in the background, even while you’re working on your computer.

Today I’m not here to compare back-up companies and break down their benefits, services and costs. In fact, I’m only talking about one because it’s the only one I have experience with. I can honestly say it works and is easy to use because I actually use it and have for years. And the clients love it as well. And this is the company I hear referenced the most within the professional organizing community. (Backblaze did their own comparison by the way, which can be found broken down here. They did the work for us!)

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN BACKING UP AND SYNCING?

I NEED to begin with this very important point because it was something I spoke about with office organizing expert, April Merritt, as well as photo organizing expert, Adam Pratt. AND it’s something that tends to confuse all of us.

What is the difference between syncing and backing up? And why are both equally important?

Syncing documents on Dropbox or Google Drive is great for sharing and syncing with your other devices. Backing up ensures that anything you’re working on is automatically being backed up…and backing up secures your photos, videos, music, and allllll of them items you are not pulling into Dropbox or Google Drive for example. Most of our most precious items live on your computer…not in a backup drive or an external drive. So if you lose your computer or it’s stolen or damaged = it’s gone.

Syncing gives you the ability to access from anywhere. But Backblaze, Carbonite, etc…these totally secure your everything without you having to think about it.

You can read a very detailed blog post about the difference here – they explain it much better than I do!

THE ONLINE BACKUP SERVICE I USE AND RECOMMEND

The Investment

Backblaze is the online backup service I have used for years and it’s only $6 per month. Or $60 for the entire year. This price includes unlimited data which is a key feature for me when referring clients. I don’t like when a company has tiered pricing depending on volume. They make it easy and simple. So if you think it’s expensive – I just proved you wrong.

Backblaze has been a NAPO partner for years, which is how I came to know them. I’ve heard their employees speak at organizing conferences. And love their easy, friendly approach to backing up.

What Systems Are Compatible?

It’s compatible on Mac and PC. It works seamlessly with Mac because Backblaze was started with some team members who worked at Apple building great products.

What Does The Back-Up Include?

Once you have signed up – they have a free trial to begin – back-ups happen automatically and include everything; photos, files, movies, music. It even backs up all of your attached external hard drives.

What About Safety and Security?

I’m sure this is across the board for any back-up company, but Backblaze takes security VERY seriously. You data is secured in datacenters with 24 hour staff and biometric security. Sounds fancy but biometric security means the datacenters have rigorous safety measures with employees including facial recognition, iris or retina pattern recognition or use fingerprint patterns. Each employee has ID checks and certain areas of the center require badge-level access. You can read all about their security here. But you can rest assured it’s all safe!

More Great Features

In addition to automatically backing up your computer and important stuff, if you ever lose a computer they can help you locate it! Not only will your info be safe in the cloud BUT yes, they can even help find your lost or stolen computer. SO cool!

There’s a mobile app for iphone and android.

You can restore old versions for 30 days…1 year…or forever.

You can share your backup too!

HOW DO I DO IT?

It could not be more simple! All you do is download the Backblaze software, install and it automatically begins backing up your computer. That’s it.

I mean it! That’s it.

If you want to get a little fancy you can decide what to not include in your backup but with unlimited data, why?

After hearing from my client last week it was important for me to remind you of this simple and easy “chore” you can get done during your time at home. I hope you never have to experience the terrible feeling of losing your photos, videos and files. It is heartbreaking!

I’ll be back soon to talk more about Adam’s AWESOME interview last Thursday. It was 90 minutes and we didn’t even make it through half of the 60+ questions coming in from those attending live. A great outcome of nearly 350 attendees. Go check out the interview and I’ll post an update with the highlights soon!

xx,

Sam