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(Article first published in March '11. It has been modified slightly to suit its publication on our site)
It could be argued that having an email address is more important than a mobile telephone for a start-up business. I am not specifically making that argument, but based on the fact that you will probably send at least as many, if not more, emails as you do make mobile phone calls per day, the argument could be justified.
With this in mind I am always amazed to see business owners with websites on a unique domain who then have an email address on Gmail or Hotmail, etc. What I mean here is that you visit a company website, let's call it www.greatwidgets.com but when you need to email the owner you see his address is greatwidgets@gmail.com, or worse rjones1982@gmail.com, or the very worst is bobby1982@gmail.com.
Don't get me wrong, the free email systems have their place, but not for business use. A free email address gives potential customers completely the wrong impression about you and your business. It makes you look small, cheap and unsophisticated in technology terms.
Would you ever give a business card out that had your name and company name on it, but a different company's logo? Of course not, yet that's what you are doing if you use a Gmail address, or equivalent for your business.
The worst thing about it is that there really is no need for this to be the case. Firstly your web company can easily provide email addresses attached to your domain, so "bobby1982" would now have robert@greatwidgets.com. If your web design or hosting company says they can't provide this then find a new one; it's your basic right.
So, perhaps you prefer to keep your Gmail account because you don't want to change all your PC settings. Personally I don't feel that this should be an issue as your web company should help you switch over to your new address. But even if it is an issue, they can still setup a company address and then forward all incoming emails to your Gmail address. But if you do this, remember to change your Sender ID so that when people receive emails from you, the sender's address appears as your company address and not your Gmail address.
Confused? I am not surprised. This is a little technical and frankly you shouldn't even worry about. Just get a proper business email address and get it setup. While you're at it, get a "sales@" and/or "info@" email address too. These allow you to separate web enquiry emails from your day-to-day emails.
The bottom line is this. How much would you pay to have your customers and potential customers type out your company name (and therefore positively reinforce you brand) every day/week/month? Probably a lot. An email address containing your company name gives you that opportunity while making you look more professional. Don't waste it!
Franco De Bonis has worked in the field of sales and marketing promotion since 1990 and was most recently the global marketing manager for a major international technology company before setting up The DG Group in January 2007.
The DG Group is dedicated to delivering all the marketing solutions any company may require. Whether it's a website or leaflets and brochures, or even some product packaging; The DG Group will manage the whole project and even provide guidance along the way.
The content in this section is the original creation of The DG Group and is protected by copyright. You may use this content on your site or in other materials providing you acknowledge The DG Group as the author and include a link to our site.
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