You’ve started your online business. Or you have a brick and mortar store and want to make it look as professional as possible. It’s time to opt for an email address with your domain name. Yes, that means an email with your website URL in it.
Even if you have a free website (one that isn’t self-hosted through a web host like SiteGround), you need to make sure you have a professional email address. It could be the best thing you do to get your business off the ground. Not sure it’s going to be worth your time or money? Here’s why an email address with your domain name is the best thing for you as a WAHM, regardless of your business.
Too many scammers about
At one time, a free blog was the sign of someone unprofessional. That’s moved on. At least, it has in my opinion. There are just so many professionals that currently run free blogs! And it’s cheap enough to get a self-hosted site.
That’s not the case with email addresses. Most scammers may have self-hosted sites but they’ll also have free email address. They use Gmail, Yahoo, and other free sites like that. Gmail is the most common.
Just think about how easy it is to create email addresses!
More: 5 tips to balance the work at home mom life
A professional email address costs money. You need to pay each month to keep access to your emails. It doesn’t cost a lot but it’s a step that scammers don’t want to go through. They know they need the website but they want to keep the email disconnected as much as possible.
Plus, your professional email address makes you look, well, professional! People feel better about doing business with you because of that initial impression.
I am more likely to do business with someone who has a professional email address. I’ve also found I gain more professional, high paying work by having an email address with my domain name in it.
If I see a PR rep with a Gmail address, I will always question their legitimacy. When I see they have a professional email address, I am more likely to respond.
People can quickly check your site
When someone receives an email from your business, they know where to look for more information. This is especially the case if your email address is connected to your domain name. All they have to do is put the information after the ‘@’ sign in their browser and they’ll find you.
Making it easy for people to find you is essential. You open the doors of communication, allowing them to find out more about you without actually having to ask you. They get to do research in their own time.
This is important for a service-based business owner or when you do cold email marketing. You want to make it easier for them to visit a website and figure out who you are. Many people have also been asking me what a virtual office is, so it’s just a mail forwarding service so that you can use a different postal address for your business. So you sign up for a local service like this virtual office service in Glasgow and then just use the postal address that they give you for the postal address of your business, your mail will then be forwarded to you so it’s great for more privacy if you run your business from home.
If you don’t have a self-hosted blog, you can always put the URL of your free blog in the email signature. However, a professional-looking email address will always increase the chance of your email being opened.
You boost your branding efforts
Your email address is a way to contact you. It’s like your phone number in the digital world. You need to make sure it matches your brand.
Everything connected to you needs to work with your brand. At one glance of the email, the prospective client will need to get your name and an idea of what you offer. When they see your name again, they’ll remember the email you sent.
Likewise, email addresses cement the brand. They may have already found your website online. The email address with your domain name will tell them they’re contacting the right place. There’s nothing worse than finding a great looking site and contacting someone on a Gmail address with a weird, teenager-like name.
Put it this way, I don’t want to talk to FunkyCookiePrincess about my business needs.
Most hosting companies, like SiteGround, will give you access to email addresses that you can set up connected to your domain name. This really is the simplest way and you kill two birds with one stone: a website and email address in the same brand. However, you can also buy email packages through Office 365, Gmail, and more to set up a professional email address.
More: 5 tips to do more but work less
Make sure you have an email address with your domain name as a work at home mom. It’s essential to create the right first impression and make it easy for people to trust you.
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