5 Reasons a Business Email Is More Professional Than Gmail

If your business regularly exceeds its planned marketing and PR budget, you are probably puzzled by the search for easier ways to make a good first impression. In fact, this can be done very simply, through a professionally-looking email.

In particular, email is still the most effective channel for most companies – its ROI is $10-50 for every dollar spent. So, instead of an address like [email protected] that can reduce the level of trust and professionalism in your potential partners’ and clients’ eyes, you can use a business email on your own domain, which will become an excellent example of your company’s stability and reliability.

Does Every Business Really Need Its Own Domain?

Despite the availability of business solutions, many companies still use free email services like Gmail. And yes, at first glance, it’s absolutely convenient: just a couple of minutes, and a new email is created; at the same time, you don’t need to spend time setting it up, and its interface is friendly to the average PC user.

However, in the long term, this approach to self-presentation creates a lot of problems: in particular, the use of third-party domains deprives the company of control over its digital identity and reduces trust from clients. Just imagine: your potential partner receives a proposition to cooperate from [email protected] – this looks more like a scam than a serious business offer. In addition, free services don’t provide a sufficient level of security and flexibility, which is especially critical for companies working with data that requires compliance with strict privacy standards.

That’s why corporate email with its own domain can become a powerful strategic tool that affects the image and brand recognition. Conversely, the desire to save on this aspect can result in a loss of reputation and missed opportunities, because the first contact often decides whether cooperation will take place or not.

This means that switching to corporate email is not an option – it’s a necessary step for companies that strive to build long-term relationships with clients. Below, we will cover the reasons for choosing a professional domain in more detail.

#1. Forming Your Company’s Positive Image

When used correctly, email can become part of a corporate brand. Indeed, when a potential client receives an email from @gmail.com, he or she may have some doubts about the business’s seriousness. Using a free email service for this purpose will most likely be perceived as an unprofessional-looking decision, especially if we’re talking about B2B companies or those selling expensive products.

On the contrary, a corporate address that looks like [email protected] will associate the sender's name (in this case, your manager’s name) with your brand and build trust by default. Moreover, such an address demonstrates that your company is committed to investing in infrastructure, cares about security, and, in general, is focused on building long-term relationships with clients and partners. Finally, it confirms your business’s reliability and indirectly proves that your manager represents a full-fledged organization ready to take responsibility for the quality of its services.

#2. Enabling Corporate Data Control and Security

The next corporate email’s advantage is gaining full control over the digital infrastructure. For example, in the case of Gmail, all company data is transferred to a third-party provider, so this company cannot influence the way it is stored or used. For medium and large businesses, this can become a colossal strategic risk.

At the same time, a corporate domain allows businesses to differentiate access for different groups of employees, provides centralized storage of business correspondence, ensures the ability to customize security filters, and often has functionality for archiving and enhanced protection against hacking.

It’s also worth noting that corporate email can be tied to systems that are already used by a specific business, including CRM, ERP, web portals, etc., thereby minimizing the risk of confidential information falling into the hands of third parties.

#3. Providing Scalability

As your business grows, it must acquire a standardized approach to communications. And, since Gmail or any other similar service doesn’t allow you to fully manage your corporate structure, it makes sense to consider purchasing a corporate email domain.

Thanks to this, your company will receive a single address format for the entire team and the ability to quickly add/remove accounts when hiring/firing employees, respectively. Centralized access and settings management and integration with the corporate calendar and chats will also become available, which will ultimately make external communication more convenient.

#4. Strengthening the brand in communications

Every email you send to your clients or partners is a touchpoint with your brand, and here, a regular Gmail address doesn’t help to promote it in any way. Moreover, sometimes using a standard email address is distracting, since the recipient sees the name of a third-party service instead of your brand.

On the contrary, corporate email constantly reminds recipients about your business, as your company name will be present in each of your emails. And, even if clients haven’t yet become real partners, they will subconsciously remember your brand. Moreover, corporate email will allow you to add your brand’s logo, contact information, as well as links to your website and social networks, to turn each of your emails into a powerful marketing tool that works on brand recognition and strengthening trust in it.

#5. Ensuring Compliance with Clients and Partners' Requirements

In today's business environment, corporate email is often a must-have. In particular, for many clients, especially in international B2B projects, using free services is unacceptable and is perceived as an indicator of poor process organization.

Moreover, in many industries, there are requirements for compliance with standards that require strict control over the data that third parties share with you. Therefore, since Gmail or another free service cannot guarantee the fulfillment of all these requirements, it’s better to pay attention to corporate solutions.

Conclusion

If your business is looking to gain a sustainable competitive position and is focused on building reliable relations with clients and partners, corporate email will be a must. So, if you’re still using free services like Gmail, it’s time to think about switching to something more professional.