Would you trust an invoice from a free webmail address as much as one from a company domain? Most people wouldn't. A custom domain email, like hello at your own domain, is one of the easiest ways to look professional and build trust.
Why a custom domain email matters
It looks professional
An address on your own domain shows that you're an established business. A free address can make even a great company look like a side project.
It builds trust and reduces fraud concerns
Customers are more likely to open, reply to and trust emails from a business domain. It also makes it harder for scammers to impersonate you with look-alike free addresses.
It promotes your brand
Every email you send repeats your domain name to the recipient. Over time, that builds recognition.
You own it
If you change email providers, you keep the same address. With a free address, your business identity is tied to someone else's platform.
It scales with your team
You can create addresses for each team member and role-based addresses like sales, support and billing.
How to set it up
- Choose an email provider. Popular options include business email suites from major providers, and many registrars and hosting companies offer email plans too.
- Verify your domain with the provider, usually by adding a DNS record.
- Add MX records that tell the internet where to deliver your email.
- Add SPF, DKIM and DMARC records. These authentication records help your emails reach inboxes and protect your domain from spoofing.
- Create your addresses and connect them to your phone and computer.
Your email provider will give you the exact records to add in your domain's DNS settings.
Choosing good addresses
- Keep them short and easy to spell, like hello, info, sales or your first name
- Avoid numbers and hard-to-say combinations
- Use the same format for everyone on the team
This is another reason short, clear domains are so valuable: they make short, clear email addresses. Read why short domain names win.
Common mistakes
- Forgetting to renew the domain, which breaks your email too. Turn on auto-renew
- Skipping SPF, DKIM and DMARC, which sends emails to spam
- Using a free address for the registrar account linked to your domain without two-factor authentication
Get a domain for your business email
Our launch checklist walks you through email and everything else in your first week. If you still need the perfect name, browse all our domains.
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