business communications
all companies use multiple means of communication. communication can be b2b – communication with other companies or b2c – communication with customers/clients. some communications are one-to-many and some communications are one-to-one. Depending on the type of communication and the message to be conveyed, companies choose the means of communication. Although there are multiple modes of communication available, the most trusted and reliable source of communication is email.
In the world of business communication, emails are inevitable, reliable and legal. it is important that you send critical business communications only by email. not only does it provide a valid proof for communication, but it also ensures the required security and privacy of the crucial information being delivered.
It is also essential that such critical business messages are sent using an official email address, attached to your domain, rather than common or generic email addresses.
The official email address helps the customer to recognize your brand, adds credibility to the message and builds trust in the relationship. therefore, to create such a brand, each business must be associated with a domain that is connected to their brand.
what is a domain?
If you want to provide an internet or online presence for your business, the first step is to get your own domain. A domain name is usually formed by combining your business/organization name with a standard internet suffix called a tld (.com, .net, .info, etc.). domain names look like yourdomain.com or yourbusiness.info. a domain cannot do anything by itself. when you register a domain, the registrar provides a dns manager that contains the critical details, such as ip address of your website, mx records to send your email to, etc. .
In case you don’t have a domain, you can buy a new domain from zoho.
what is a website?
a website is a set of internet pages that provide information or details about your company. You will use your DNS manager to assign your web host’s IP address to your domain. this ensures that whenever someone types www.yourdomain.com in the browser, the correct web server pages are displayed and readers can access the relevant information on your website.
what is a business email address?
Business email addresses are those that use your company’s domain name, such as patricia@yourcompany.com. Since they resonate with your business, your customers will be able to easily identify you. therefore, having addresses like these help establish your identity and improve credibility with your customers.
will use your dns manager to map your domain to your email provider, using the mx records recommended by your email provider.
why do you need a business email address?
Although the main reason for having a business email address is to help your customers identify you, there are many others that can be added to the list. A business email address helps you:
- project your professionalism
having an email address that matches your brand shows that you are serious and professional about your business. This way, your customers will also take your business seriously, as they are more likely to choose and trust a business with a professional email address.
When you or your employees send email using the address that includes your company name, your customers can know for sure that the email is from an authentic source. they will identify you even before opening your content. this will help them build their trust with you and give them the confidence to respond to your emails or contact your support team.
With your business name in your email address, you’re promoting your brand with every email you send. this way you are sure to stay in your memory for a long time.
When you create individual and group email addresses with your domain, you ensure that every email that is sent is formatted in a standard way and therefore maintains consistency.
When customers recognize you for your brand, they are less likely to mark you as spam. If you use generic email accounts, your emails may not get the recognition they deserve and may end up as spam.
Watch this video to understand why your business needs a domain-based email address and how it can help you be more professional in your communications.
best practices when creating business email addresses
There are a few things to keep in mind when creating a business email address.
- Find a domain name that can be quickly associated with your business and easily identified by customers.
- It’s important to have a standard email address format throughout your organization. for example, you can choose a professional email address such as firstname.lastname@yourcompany.com as the standard format for all employees.
- Create group email addresses like support@yourcompany.com by departments so you can manage all department emails from one place.
- You should ensure that you protect your business email address from phishing and spam by authenticating your domain with spf and dkim settings.
how to choose the best email service provider
There are several factors to consider when selecting an email service provider. some of the most important factors include:
- easy setup
The first thing you should look for in an email provider is whether the steps provided to set up your domain with them are simple and uncomplicated. Even keeping the process simple, make sure your service provider doesn’t want you to skip the necessary authentication steps.
Make sure the service provider you select allows you to efficiently migrate all of your email, contacts, and other data from your previous provider. migration cannot be compromised at any cost because no one can afford data loss.
Choose a service that ensures the security and privacy of your data. There should be multiple layers of authentication for your account and end-to-end encryption for your messages. the personal information you have shared with the service must also be kept private; Privacy compliance should be your top priority.
Your email domain should be relevant to your business, so make sure the email service you select allows you to provide a domain of your choice and allow you to use it if available.
Choose a service provider that has a powerful control panel that allows you to control all settings related to your domain, manage users and group addresses, configure spam policies and restrictions, and do more. the service should also ensure you a good percentage of uptime.
It will be better if the provider has means for internal team collaboration and built-in tools like calendar, notes, contact management, etc.
create a business email address with zoho mail
zoho mail is a secure, private and ad-free platform to host your custom domain email and gives you the best of all the above factors. Here’s how to create a free business email address.
the features of the free plan of zoho mail are as follows:
- 5 user accounts
- 5gb storage/user
- up to 25mb email attachments
- email hosting for a single domain
- two-factor authentication
Visit the zoho mail pricing page and select the pricing plan of your choice. If you don’t have an account with Zoho, you can sign up here. you can also refer to our implementation guides for an overview of the steps.
if you already have your own domain:
- After you’ve chosen your plan, you will be asked to set up your account. Select Sign up with a domain I already own.
- Enter your domain and click Add.
Once you’ve added your domain, you’ll need to verify it. then you can add users and create email accounts for them. set up mx records so that all your emails are sent to your zoho mail account. migrate your emails to zoho mail via pop or imap protocols. finally complete the spf and dkim configurations. read in detail about these settings.
If you already have an account with zoho, go to zoho mail and click enable email hosting at the top of your page and follow the steps above to set up your domain.
if you want to buy a new domain:
If you don’t have your own domain, you can purchase one while registering. select buy a new domain for my business and enter an ideal domain name for your business and check its availability. if available, you can sign up with zoho and buy the domain. when you register a domain with zoho mail, your dns settings will be preconfigured. read in detail about buying a new domain.