When you just started out you might have started as a freelancer, maybe dabbling in a thing or two. But now things are a lot different. These projects are no longer just a “side hustle”. You’ve built up your clientele. You might even have an office. Your social media is active and you’ve been building a brand that people connect with and trust.

So why is your email still @gmail.com or even worse, @yahoo.com?

Here’s why you should be using a branded email

Branding

Every time you send out an email, you’re promoting your brand. Maybe they’ve never been to your website before and so your branded email will remind them that it does exist or where to find it. It also gives your brand a more cohesive feel and shows your potential clients that you’re paying attention to the details.

Credibility and Trust

Using a branded email helps to build trust.

Consumers are 9x more likely to do business with a company that uses a branded email address, than companies that do not.

Anyone can set up a free email, even spammers.

Scalability as your team grows

Having a branded email helps to keep everything in place. As your team expands, it will be much easier to grant access to your emails and also, keep departments organized. Setting up email groups for sales@ or marketing@ to better direct customer inquiries.

Often times when you use a free email for your business, it gets used for personal conversations as well that you might not want your team accessing.

The longer you wait, the harder the transition. So establishing your branded email from early will save you a lot of time in the future.

Here’s a rough start up cost breakdown

The most efficient method for setting up and handling branded emails is via a service such as Google Apps for Work. Google makes it really easy to handle emails and their support is awesome.

Domain name registration: $10 – 12/year
Google Apps: $5/user/month

As a small business, I know keeping costs low is a priority, but I don’t think this is an area where you can afford to cut costs. Email is probably your primary method of communication with your clients, so show it the respect it deserves!