Free email accounts are great.  They’re easy to get, easy to use, and serve a useful function when you need it to be portable from ISP to ISP or don’t have (or want) to publish your “real” email address.  They have the draw of being relatively “anonymous” on the internet and can let you come up with a nickname for yourself.

When it comes to businesses using “freemail” accounts as a contact address I always advise clients against it. Over the next couple of segments we will explore the reasons why every business should have a true “business class” email address. We’ll find out about some perceptions people have about the topic and some very real concerns any business should have about mixing business email with personal accounts.

To begin the discussion, I asked the question:

What do you think when you see a business card or receive a business communication from one of the “freemail” providers (yahoo, hotmail, gmail, etc)? 

An informal poll of business and technology associates revealed some rather harsh opinions, but overall the sentiment was the same: it looks unprofessional. 

•    “I cringe.” Said one Technology Professional, “It says that they aren’t sure enough in their skills or the longevity of their business to invest in a domain name, or that they simply don’t value the technology easily available to them.”

•    “I question the legitimacy of their business when I see a free email account.  It instantly communicates business size and the value they place in how they want to be perceived.” Said another Technology Professional.

•    “They are missing a real opportunity to gain mindshare.  Every communication is a reminder to customers, vendors, and prospects that your organization is professional, and wants to be taken seriously as a business.” Said a Marketing Professional.

•    “I had an attorney with a free email address he used for his practice, and I was a little concerned about him sending emails as a representative for my company.” and “There are advertisements in his emails to me! I can’t believe he uses it for business!” Said a Financial Industry Executive.

•    “I don’t like it when members of the same organization all have different email providers; I expect a business to have a consistent, cohesive, professional public image. I don’t want to have to remember that you are LawGuy9782@*****.com” Said one Business Owner

Those sentiments were repeated in virtually all of the responses. Even consumers chimed in with concerns about doing business with users who have “freemail” addresses posted on sites like ebay.  “They’re just too easy to get and discard. When I see them I usually just keep looking.”

While some of the responses were more neutral, none of the people asked in this very unscientific poll thought it was a good idea to use a “freemail” account for business purposes. If you have been using one of these accounts for your business, or if someone you do business with has, do not despair – buying a domain name and setting up email can be easy with a little help.  We have a simple guide you can use to help you (or someone else) get setup and running in Part 3 of this series.  Of course we would like you to choose to host your website and email with us, but the steps are generally the same for most major hosting companies.

Be sure to check out other installments in this series and on this blog for more business and technology information.  Have a Question you would like to have answered on Ask A Tech?  Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it and we will publish answers\opinions to commonly asked business technology questions.