Are you looking for some easy ways to market your business without spending a ton of money? Well, one simple way to build brand recognition is to set up a branded email address. But what is a branded vs. unbranded email address? In this article, I’ll tackle that question and explain how you can set up your branded email address right away.
When I first started online, I didn’t have an email address. At the time, I didn’t have a website either. So, I set up a Yahoo email address and used Yahoo to send and receive emails. Once I started my business and built my website, I wanted to have an email address branded to my site.
Ok, so what is a ‘branded email address’?
The Difference Between a Branded and an Unbranded Email Address
In this video, I’ll give you a quick overview of the difference between a branded and an unbranded email address. If you’re growing an online business of any kind, the information I’m about to give you is very important.
Unbranded Email Address
An unbranded email comes from a company like Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, Outlook, etc. Anyone can go online and set up an email with one of these companies for free. Examples of unbranded email addresses are christinahills@yahoo.com or yourname@gmail.com.
It’s cheap and easy to set up. However, there are some big downsides to choosing an unbranded email address for your business…
- You’re missing an opportunity to brand your business
- It’s viewed as less professional.
- Signals to your prospect that you’re not an established, credible business.
- Less secure than a branded email address
- More likely to go to someone’s spam folder!
Branded Email Address
A branded email address has your business name in it. Examples of branded email addresses are customersupport@websitecreationworkshop.com or christina@websitecreationworkshop.com.
A branded email address will say to your website visitor, “This is a professional business that you can trust”. In addition, you’re building your brand recognition every time someone sees your email address.
Have you ever done this? You get a branded email from someone and want to learn more about their business. So you copy the web address and paste it into a browser. For example, christina@websitecreationworkshop.com → websitecreationworkshop.com.
Do you see how a branded email address can drive traffic to your website? It shows people you are serious about your website and business!
More Reasons to Get a Branded Email Address…
In addition to branding and driving traffic to your website, there are other reasons that a branded email is better for your business…
- Better customer support since it’s set up through your paid domain or hosting registrar.
- It’s more secure
- Helps you to build trust and a relationship with your clients and prospects
- Your emails are less likely to go to someone’s spam or junk folder
- You can create as many emails as you want and manage them in one place
Examples of Branded vs. Unbranded Email Addresses
Where Do You Get a Branded Email Address?
You can get your branded email address from your hosting or domain registrar. Read this article if you’re not sure of the difference between a domain name and hosting.
If your domain name is registered through GoDaddy, you can get your email address through them. Or, you can set up your email address with your hosting company instead. Here are 4 web hosting companies we like:
Get a branded email address at SiteGround
https://christinasresources.com/siteground
Get a branded email address at GreenGeeks
https://christinasresources.com/greengeeks
Get a branded email address at Bluehost
https://christinasresources.com/bluehost
Get a branded email address at GoDaddy
https://christinasresources.com/godaddy
My email address is with my hosting company Bluehost. If I had the chance to do it over, I’d set up my email with my domain registrar (GoDaddy). It’s easier to switch hosting companies in the future if your email is not set up there.
A Word of Warning
You don’t want to use these email addresses as they are often blocked by email providers as spam:
info@
orders@
hello@
admin@
hey@
contact@
sales@
webmaster@
support@ (note: we use support@, but that was before we knew better)
Now Take Action…
If you’re growing an online business, set up a branded email address that goes with your website. It will help legitimize your business in the eyes of your potential clients. In addition, it can help build brand recognition.
With a branded email address, your subscribers can easily tell who the email is from. If you provide valuable content and support through your branded emails, they’ll grow to trust your business.
If you don’t have a website yet, then go here to find out when our next Website Creation Workshop™ will be:
