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Paid email providers that sell professional email services
have typically invested in their ability to fi lter and block
out most unwanted messages. No, there is no such thing
as a perfect fi lter when it comes to email, but eliminating
a high percentage of these time wasting and security
threatening messages is usually the fi rst thing you will
notice when leaving behind a free service.

Free email services are often ad supported meaning that
there are advertisements visible when you open and read
your messages. Charging advertisers allows providers to
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continue offering free email accounts. To offer targeted
and more effective advertising, your email messages are
often scanned for key words or phrases that can be used
to display advertisements that may be more relevant to
you. This is one of the things you agree to when signing
up for a free email account that is often overlooked.
These labels like “unverifi ed” can turn a well-intended
Privacy and effi ciency: Frequently an organization
message into a message that is deleted, ignored or not
using a free email account is sharing this account
internally with multiple users. More than one person logs
into the account and checks if the messages in the inbox
Separation of personal and business: We fi nd that
are intended for them or another person in the offi ce. delivered at all.
many of the free emails being used by businesses are
When you have multiple users sharing an email address,
simply personal accounts that were convenient to start
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the obvious issue of privacy exists, but almost as
using at the time. It takes effort to set up a professional
important is the potential impact on effi ciency. Profes-
email, but it is worth it! It is always a good practice to
sional email will give the ability to establish individual
keep personal and business email separate. An inbox
accounts and quickly route messages to specifi c
that has a mix can become confusing, distracting and
departments, functions and people in the organization.
lead to all sorts of problems. While it may seem like
Email addresses like accounting@ or engineering@ can
keeping all email together should make things more
be used to distribute a message to a group of specifi c
effi cient, a well-organized inbox can certainly lead to
people at once, while individual email addresses route
a more organized approach to handling tasks and
directly to an individual.
Another feature of professional email is calendar and
A common concern is that changing an email address
task synchronization. Nearly all the top paid service answering emails each day.
that has been in place for several years can create a ma-
providers include the synchronization of appointments
jor headache. How will you ever get people to stop using
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and tasks. The functionality can vary between service
the old one? There are many ways to make this transition
providers, but our email has become the place to see our
and separation less of a hassle. Make no mistake, it will
schedule quickly or check off a list of things we need
take some time and there may be some issues encoun-
to accomplish. Having this ability on an individual basis
tered, but you will not be the fi rst company to take this
can certainly add to effi ciency within an organization,
leap nor the last. Any professional IT provider can walk
and professional email is the best way to achieve this
you through the steps to make this process easier.
functionality.
Professionalism: We may not be aware of it, but by
Branding: Every time a message is sent to or received
from your company, a business email address will serve
ed to the internet, we are all becoming conditioned as to
to promote your company name. Free email services only
what is acceptable in today’s business world. How many
promote themselves and do nothing to help strengthen spending so much of our lives online and being connect-
times have you visited a website for a company you were
your unique brand.
interested in only to decide not to pursue them because
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their site looked “dated?” We have become a society that
Deliverability: Email addresses that are unique to your
makes quick judgements based on an initial impression.
company or organization will increase the deliverability
As consumers, when we see what we perceive as
of your messages. With the increased issue of unwanted
“modern” or “current” designs and updated content on a
spam messages, various technologies have been
company’s website, we have a totally different feeling
developed to make sure that a message headed for your
about a company.
inbox is from a source that can be trusted and is some-
thing you want to receive. Development of SPF, DMARC
The email address we use can have the same impact. By
and DKIM are all ways to make sure a sent message can
be trusted. While the discussion of these technologies is
to set up a professional email, a new prospect may not
beyond the scope of this writing, none of them can be
even visit our website. Unfortunately, from a free email
implemented without using professional email. Many of not enduring the small cost and amount of time it takes
address there is no indication we even HAVE a website,
the top email providers such as Google and Microsoft
and I know you do have a website, DON’T YOU?
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are starting to apply labels to messages that cannot be
authenticated using the above-mentioned technologies.
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