Thinking about email certainly isn’t the most exciting aspect to running a business. But it’s a necessary consideration all the same. Email communication is what connects businesses internally to coworkers and partners and externally to clients or consumers. So take some time to consider the implications of your email address and how it represents your brand.
Here’s what your email address reveals about your business.
Do You Really Have to Use a Business Email?
Now some readers might be thinking, Why do you need to give everyone at your company a special email if they already have their own personal accounts?
There are a few reasons for this. On the most basic level, you want to consider customer perceptions of your company. Clients are going to be confused if they’re receiving emails from a random assortment of addresses. Furthermore, they won’t know which emails to trust; which can have some negative effects on client/customer security and privacy. We live in a world of data breaches, after all. And you can’t ask customers to open links sent from an unverified email address. Your digital communications will appears to be much more legitimate if all your employees use the same email domain.
Additionally, services tend to work better when users are all on the same network. Certain features might not translate between different types of email accounts. Getting all of your employees on the same page in regards to email will alleviate headaches in the long run.
Non-Branded Accounts Make You Look Cheap
You don’t want your business to give off the appearance of cluelessness. But customers will have this perception of your company if you use free email accounts. Why? Because it’s really not that expensive to just get branded business emails through companies like Yahoo Small Business. This is something that can easily fit into the tight budgets of fledgling SMBs.
By cutting corners with your business emails, customers will naturally wonder if you skimp on the services or goods provided too.
Addresses Should Adhere to Company Branding
Just like everything else in your organization, your email addresses should adhere to your branding message. What does this mean? It really depends on your business.
Let’s think about a law firm. This kind of company wants to project an image of competence, expertise and professionalism. Their email addresses should comply with this identity. When doing business with a law, consulting, or accounting firms, you want to be confident they’re going to deliver on your expectations. A straightforward First.LastName@LegalFirmName.com is going to be the best bet for this hypothetical legal organization.
But not every company wants to be straightforward with their branding. Creative organizations, or companies that brand themselves as being a bit goofy, can incorporate this into their email addresses. For example, an local ice cream company may prefer CEO@SprinklesOnTop.biz to something humdrum like CEO@LocalIceCreamCo.com.
Every detail counts when you’re branding your organization. Give a bit of thought to how you can make your email fit in with your overall message. But realize this: It’ll be a pain to change your email addresses later. This will require you to totally reset contact lists, which is a massive time suck. So don’t choose something that’s just going to be the flavor of the month.
Don’t Use an ISP Email Address
Back in the day, it was pretty common for people to use email addresses provided by their Internet service provider (ISP). But there’s a big reason why you don’t want to use an @att.net email for your company emails. People will think you’re clueless! No one who’s trying to legitimately portray a professional appearance uses this kind of email. It’s harsh, but true. Customers won’t believe that you actually know what you’re doing if you’re still using this type of email account.
Some people treat their email address as an afterthought. That kind of think will get you into trouble when running a business. It’s important to account for every detail, and make all aspects of your brand as shiny and put-together as possible. Make sure your email says something good about your business.
