Your Professional Email Is Your Brand

Web mail services are among the most popularly accessed services for email.  Back in July of 2009, techcrunch.com reported 343 million monthly users were accessing Hotmail, 285 million Yahoo and 146 million for Gmail.  The numbers definitely attest to the vast popularity of these services.

Given the comfort level of users with these web mail services an unfortunate thing has happened. They have spilled over into professional use and this is not a good thing.

Whether you are representing a company, you’re an independent consultant, or you’re attempting to build your reputation in a particular industry, your email address is an extension of your brand identity and should accurately represent that brand.

Unlike a telephone number or address, which is likely to change over the years, your email address offers the possibility to stay with you forever.  For that reason, you want to be cautious about how exactly you are branding.

Using your company’s email demonstrates your affiliation with an established entity and serves to tie your name to that brand.  If you are using yourname@aol.com, for example, as your professional email, you are telling people that you represent aol.  You are, in fact, allowing that company to be a part of YOUR brand.

Even if you don’t have a website (although you should have one if you are in business) it is a fairly inexpensive proposition to buy a domain name for your business or yourself if you are a consultant or interested in promoting your professional profile.

Although we don’t often consider such things, even the way your email reads says something about you or the company you represent. For example, using joe@yourcompany.com versus say jdemicco@yourcompany.com denotes a small entity that appears to never expect to hire another guy named Joe.  Additionally, in the long run professionally, avoid using cute names like cuddlemuffin@yahoo.com.

If you’re really serious about promoting the professionalism of your brand, use your own name and your company’s carefully selected domain.  An email that reads yourname@company.com looks legitimate, is easily identifiable and, above all else, memorable.  It is not in your, or your company’s best interests to use yourcompanyinfo@aol.com.  How do you expect your targeted audience to remember your brand if you use @aol.com, another sales guy in your firm uses @comcast.com, and still a third person uses @yahoo.com?

If it is convenient for you to check one mail service only, say your @aol.com account, then the better solution is to have your professional email address “forwarded” (alias) to your personal account.

This would allow you to remain in your comfort zone while the world begins to acknowledge your brand identity and forget you actually go by “cuddlemuffin” to your friends.