How your email address could be costing you sales

From Dannielle Walz, Training Ahead Australia
Let me ask you a question, which electrician would you prefer to contact, if you were given the details by a friend: sparkysam86@gmail.com or sam@melbournelectricians.com.au? I’m going to take a hunch and assume you’d pick the second one. A survey by Verisign showed that 92% of small businesses said they felt that having a branded email address makes their business look more credible.
When you first set up your business, especially if you’re only a sole trader, something this trivial might feel insignificant but it can cost your business sales and credibility.

1. Gives the wrong first impression
A branded email gives the impression that your company is professional and established. A generic personal email address may give the impression of being a one-man band, project inexperience or, in some cases; raise doubts in the customer’s mind if you are even a real company. They may feel they only need to pay you at a “handyman" rate.

2. Doesn’t create that bigger picture image
A generic email address may convey that your business is small, new or part time. If you have a branded email address, it creates that ‘professional feel’ or ‘corporate image’. Also, it gives your customers more clarity about who they are emailing, for example you can setup different email addresses for different areas of the business, instead of all emails going through the one address, ie accounts@melbournelectricians.com.au and support@melbournelectricians.com.au.

3. You lose credibility and trust
Scam artists do exist and, more often than not, they use generic emails such as premiumaccounting@gmail.com. Because of this, customers may be less likely to want to send personal and financial information to a generic email address. By having a branded email, it gives a them a sense of security.

4. Your emails may be ignored or overlooked
People receive dozens of emails every day and many people will overlook generic email addresses if they can’t clearly see who it is from.

In today’s increasingly competitive market, building credibility with your potential customers is crucial. By setting up a branded email address, it portrays professionalism and confidence with your business – plus it’s simple and cheap to do.