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Can a personal (gmail, hotmail) email suffice as autoresponder email

by redstanford
13 replies
email?

I know the protocol says to buy a business email (ex: ____@domainname.com)

What would be the downfall of just using a simple very easy to set up Hotmail, yahoo or gmail account and use that as your autoresponder email (ex: domainname@gmail.com or domainname@aol.com)

I mean is there really a reason why not to do this? It's so much easier to go with the latter avenue
#autoresponder #email #gmail #hotmail #personal #suffice
  • Profile picture of the author Warrior Ben
    I use a Gmail e-mail address for my autoresponder and I haven't seen any issues. I have non Gmail e-mail accounts through my domain, but I really like the Gmail interface, so I just use it.

    The only concern I have in the back of my mind is that it might increase the likelihood to end up in somebody's SPAM folder, but I'm not sure that concern is founded.

    -Ben
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  • Profile picture of the author Alexa Smith
    Banned
    Originally Posted by redstanford View Post

    What would be the downfall of just using a simple very easy to set up Hotmail, yahoo or gmail account and use that as your autoresponder email
    Just potential loss of credibility in the eyes of the recipients of your emails. Being firstname.surname (at) yourdomain.com looks a lot more plausible and respectable, for someone businesslike.

    I'm not really aware of any other reason why you shouldn't do this.
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  • Profile picture of the author napoleonfirst
    There is a drawback of using free email accounts in the business world. Since business is all about the money, you will cast away some investors if you use a free email address. However, it is easy to use these gmail email addresses as autoresponders.
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    • Profile picture of the author JohnMcCabe
      There is the potential drawback of prospects associating free emails with less than serious businesses. I do think that enough professionals use the gmail service for accessibility that it wouldn't be a huge negative, though.

      Hotmail, yahoo and a few others have been associated with throwaway or burner addresses long enough that I wouldn't dream of using them for a serious business.
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    • Profile picture of the author brentb
      Reasons why you should switch to your domain:
      - Looks stupid to your recipients if you dont

      Reasons why you wouldn't switch to your domain:
      - too lazy to set it up
      - none

      So it seems the benefits far out weight the negatives... unless you have another reason why you aren't doing it?
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      • Profile picture of the author JohnMcCabe
        Originally Posted by brentb View Post

        Reasons why you should switch to your domain:
        - Looks stupid to your recipients if you dont

        Reasons why you wouldn't switch to your domain:
        - too lazy to set it up
        - none

        So it seems the benefits far out weight the negatives... unless you have another reason why you aren't doing it?
        I'm seeing more and more people rely on mobile/smart phones to keep in touch on the go. It's much easier to use a service like gmail to connect than to set up an alternate method for reading/responding on a personal/company domain.

        Seeing "mycompany @ gmail" these days wouldn't be a turnoff for me.
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        • Profile picture of the author brentb
          Originally Posted by JohnMcCabe View Post

          I'm seeing more and more people rely on mobile/smart phones to keep in touch on the go. It's much easier to use a service like gmail to connect than to set up an alternate method for reading/responding on a personal/company domain.

          Seeing "mycompany @ gmail" these days wouldn't be a turnoff for me.
          You can use gmail to read email manage your xyz@yourdomain.com

          My email for my business is brent@offerboost.com, I log into gmail to read it. I get the automatic emails notifications on my android phone. It is a gmail email. Just at my domain.
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  • Profile picture of the author Lisha5684
    If you have your own domain, it doesn't usually cost anything to get an email associated to your domain, so it's not like having yourname@yourdomain.com costs you any more than yourname@gmail.com, so smart people really shouldn't have a problem with you preferring gmail if you just like the user-friendliness of it over your hosting email provider. One or the other doesn't ACTUALLY make you a more professional person to work with.
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  • Profile picture of the author redstanford
    I have a domain through name cheap and I really don't know how to set up a business email for this domain.

    I had in the past, used a business email purchased through godaddy and it was a complete nightmare to set up. Took I don't know how many emails and calls to both namecheap and godaddy to get it completely set up.

    I would really prefer to avoid using a @domainname email if I can help it because it just wasn't worth the hassle IMO.

    Now if someone can show me a work around to that nightmare - I will gladly reconsider
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    • Profile picture of the author Lisha5684
      Originally Posted by redstanford View Post

      I have a domain through name cheap and I really don't know how to set up a business email for this domain.

      I had in the past, used a business email purchased through godaddy and it was a complete nightmare to set up. Took I don't know how many emails and calls to both namecheap and godaddy to get it completely set up.

      I would really prefer to avoid using a @domainname email if I can help it because it just wasn't worth the hassle IMO.

      Now if someone can show me a work around to that nightmare - I will gladly reconsider
      Where is your domain hosted? I create and use my domain's emails through my hosting's cpanel...
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  • Profile picture of the author miklanderson2
    To avoid the stigma of using yahoo or gmail, you can use one of the lesser known e-mail service providers. I use gmx.com, which is an e-mail provider most average Internet users have never heard.
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  • Profile picture of the author dmorrow
    I searched Youtube and found this possible solution. You can use business gmail with your domain. There is a small fee, I think.

    http://https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tT5bg1trt5w
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