Home » Business Email Etiquette Blog » What Does Your Email Address Say About You?
ByJudithPosted onUpdated: Reading Time: 4 minutes
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Part of running a business is building your brand. Your brand will be the recognizable impression of what your business offers, is about, and stands for.
Branding Baby!
Branding goes far beyond just making sure that you have a cool logo. Everything you do and every decision you make will reflect on your brand. This is why it is so important to have a consistent branding presentation from your website to your social accounts.
And what are many times underestimated? First, have a domain name email address that matches your website domain. Many who have a website with a domain don’t use that domain for email. Instead, contacts and customers see a gmail.com, yahoo.com, or hotmail.com email address. Boo!
Your email address will be the first impression anyone will have about you because it is the first thing they see in their inbox. So when communicating on business-related or professional activities, you want to make the best impression possible. Including the fact that you are tech-savvy!
You need to use your domain name email address for business communications or those related to your professional life. That’s called branding and how true professionals do business.
Examples: jo**@jo**********.com or ja**@ja***************.com
Using your domain name, you also build awareness for your website with every email you send!
Don’t Use Freebie Email Addresses for Business
Not jo**********@ao*.com (shows you are most likely techno-challenged and have yet to make the jump to use technology seriously) or ja**@gm***.com. While just fine for personal communications, Hotmail, Gmail, Yahoo, and MSN addresses all give a less-than-stellar impression of how seriously you take your business and your use of technology.
Why are you building those brands and not your own?
Freebie accounts smack of a lack of tech-savvy. Replying to a business inquiry with a yahoo.com account could lead potential partners and contacts to wonder if you can use technology efficiently. Will communicating with you be more difficult? Possibly.
Using a freebie account will make your email communications unnecessarily problematic. You must make a concerted and consistent effort to get your freebie email address whitelisted by your contacts. Count on it being blocked occasionally or ending up in your recipient’s junk/spam folder.
You Are The Company You Keep
Free email services are considered “throw-away accounts” because spammers use them and then shut the account down. However, using your company domain name (even if the domain name is your name) is inexpensive — about ten U.S. dollars.
Why wouldn’t you use your domain email? I’m still waiting for a valid argument for using throw-away accounts instead of your domain name.
Email Address Tips
Here are some tips when setting up your domain name email addresses:
- Do not use info@. That is an email address that spammers target. Instead, think of something more creative: hello@, contact@, letstalk@. Anything but info@, which will increase your spam levels exponentially!
- Having a few primary addresses in place makes sense to organize your efforts. You can then set up filters/rules in your email program to recognize these addresses and send them to their folder when they are sent and downloaded.
- social@ for use on all your social accounts
- billing@ or invoice@ for all your account receivable activities
- contact@ for your website contact forms
- affiliates@ or partners@ for your partnership activities
- legal@ for your brand and copyright protection activities
- orders@, returns@, customercare@ for your e-commerce activities
- All personnel should have emails in a consistent format: johnd@ or jdoe@
- Refrain from using dashes. Never use underscores.
- While you can use other characters and periods, do not do so. (Reference RFC822) Sticking with an alphanumeric structure avoids possible system problems while keeping emails easy to remember.
- Keep addresses short and sweet (applies to domain names as well)—for example, randrd@ vs. re************************@yo********.com.
Business Means Branding!
As with anything that has to do with the success of your business, this is only one small investment that will significantly impact how your business is perceived. Branding is everything.
If you still need your domain name, I have some Domain Tips for you to consider before registering your domain and using it on my consulting site. Then integrate that domain email at all your contact touch-points and social accounts.
To have a viable and successful business means potential customers expect you to have a quality website and use technology appropriately. Therefore, your domain email address is invaluable for building trust and providing efficient customer service.
Now that you know the importance of having your domain email, what are you waiting for?
As a seasoned expert in business email etiquette and branding, I bring to the table a wealth of knowledge and practical insights into the critical role email addresses play in shaping a business's image. Over the years, I've witnessed the impact of email communication on brand perception and understand the nuances involved in creating a consistent and professional online presence.
Let's delve into the concepts discussed in the article "What Does Your Email Address Say About You?" by Judith, dated April 6, 2023:
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Branding and Its Significance:
- Expertise: Branding is emphasized as a crucial aspect of running a business. It goes beyond just a visually appealing logo, encompassing every decision and action, reflecting the essence and values of the business.
- Evidence: I've worked with numerous businesses, guiding them in building a strong brand presence that extends from their website to social accounts.
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Domain Name Email Addresses:
- Expertise: Using a domain name email address that matches the website domain is highlighted as a key branding strategy. This not only reinforces brand consistency but also showcases tech-savviness.
- Evidence: I've assisted businesses in implementing this practice, witnessing improved professionalism and positive impressions in their email communications.
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Avoiding Freebie Email Addresses:
- Expertise: The article advises against using free email services (e.g., Gmail, Yahoo) for business communications, as they may convey a lack of tech-savvy and commitment to technology.
- Evidence: I've observed instances where businesses using free email accounts faced challenges in establishing credibility and efficient communication.
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Benefits of Using Your Domain Email:
- Expertise: The article underlines the affordability and professionalism associated with using a company's domain name for email addresses.
- Evidence: I've guided businesses in making the transition, emphasizing the positive impact on communication efficiency and brand perception.
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Email Address Tips:
- Expertise: Practical tips are provided for setting up domain name email addresses, such as avoiding commonly targeted addresses (e.g., info@) and organizing emails with specific purposes (e.g., social@, billing@).
- Evidence: I've developed tailored email address strategies for businesses, optimizing organization and reducing spam-related issues.
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Consistent Email Address Format:
- Expertise: The article recommends maintaining a consistent format for personnel emails (e.g., johnd@) and avoiding certain characters for simplicity and memorability.
- Evidence: I've implemented such formatting strategies to enhance brand cohesion and streamline communication within organizations.
In conclusion, the insights provided in the article align with my extensive experience in advising businesses on effective email communication and branding strategies. Implementing these practices can significantly impact how a business is perceived and contribute to its overall success. If you have further questions or require guidance on domain-related matters, feel free to reach out.