| Pages in topic: [1 2] > | Changing email address to an ISP-independent address Thread poster: Rebecca Hendry
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Rebecca Hendry 
United Kingdom
Local time: 00:48
Member (2005)
Spanish to English
+ ...
Hello all,
Following a series of technical issues, appalling customer service and inaccurate invoices, I am shopping around for a new ISP. This means that I will also have to change my email address.
As I have been burnt in the past, I do not want my new email address to be linked to my new ISP. I already have a hotmail account which I use as a secondary/back-up account when things go wrong, but I'd be looking for something more "professional" (i.e. not a free web-base... See more Hello all,
Following a series of technical issues, appalling customer service and inaccurate invoices, I am shopping around for a new ISP. This means that I will also have to change my email address.
As I have been burnt in the past, I do not want my new email address to be linked to my new ISP. I already have a hotmail account which I use as a secondary/back-up account when things go wrong, but I'd be looking for something more "professional" (i.e. not a free web-based service). I would also like to be able to use that address in MS Outlook.
I am posting this to ask for advice not only for the best email solution, but also to see if others have changed their address and if they have any tips for making the process a pain-free one. I will obviously have to inform all my regular clients, update all my user profiles so that mailings are sent to my new address, get new business cards printed, etc... but am I forgetting something?
As you can see, this is not a change that can be taken lightly, as the last thing I want is to lose business because of a change in email address.
I am particularly interested in hearing from those of you who use the Proz.com hosting service. My website uses this service, and I wondered if it would be a good idea to link the two.
Any hints, tips and warnings much appreciated!
Thanks,
Becky. ▲ Collapse
| | | | | A little confused. | Oct 13, 2008 |
Hi Becky,
When you say ISP, I suppose you mean Internet Serivce Provider? You question is a little confusing as usually your email service provider has nothing to do with your ISP. Do you mean you are using an email with an ending of your ISP?
Well, some people argue that emails ending with your personal domain name look more "professional." For exmaple, if your website is qualifiedtranslator.com, you may have an email a... See more Hi Becky,
When you say ISP, I suppose you mean Internet Serivce Provider? You question is a little confusing as usually your email service provider has nothing to do with your ISP. Do you mean you are using an email with an ending of your ISP?
Well, some people argue that emails ending with your personal domain name look more "professional." For exmaple, if your website is qualifiedtranslator.com, you may have an email address like [email protected]. So if you want a professional look email address, you need to own a domain name first.
If you have your own domain name and use the proz.com hosting service, you can then configure an email [email protected] by logging on to the setup page of your hosting service at proz.com. Then you can receive and send mails using Microsoft Outlook or other email client software.
It might take a little time to explain all the steps. anyway, webhosting service providers usually also provide cooperate email hosting, not the ISPs.
If you do not need an email with your personal domain, I will recommend gmail.com. It's free but it gets everything you want. It supports webmail, IMAP, POP3, and SMTP. I know you don't like webmails but I strong suggest you try gmail webmail. It's simply fantastic.
Dallas ▲ Collapse
| | | | EHI (X)
Local time: 01:48
Hello Rebecca
I would not recommend using the email address your ISP gives you. Sooner or later you will change your provider again and then you're facing the same problem again.
I would suggest using Google Mail. It's simple, reliable and you can link the account with Outlook (both pop and imap).
[Edited at 2008-10-13 08:08]
| | | | Rebecca Hendry
United Kingdom
Local time: 00:48
Member (2005)
Spanish to English
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
Dallas Cao wrote:
Hi Becky,
When you say ISP, I suppose you mean Internet Serivce Provider? You question is a little confusing as usually your email service provider has nothing to do with your ISP. Do you mean you are using an email with an ending of your ISP?
Hi Dallas,
Yes, that's exactly what I mean. I've been using the same ISP for years, and have always used the email address provided to me by that ISP. Now it is time to change, and I want to make sure I use the right service.
Thanks for the comments. At the moment I think linking my website domain and my email address is the most attractive option. I do have a gmail account, but I barely use it and I think I would rather have an address with my own domain name.
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Hi Becky,
If you perosnal domain name is linked to your hosting here at proz.com, you can issue a ticket to ask proz.com for help as to set up the email server. As long as you do not use your ISP's email service, your email will be totally ISP-independent.
I do not use proz.com's email server service so I can't comment on it. I guess if you are satisfied with the hosting service here, you will be happy with their email server service.
And one more thing, e... See more Hi Becky,
If you perosnal domain name is linked to your hosting here at proz.com, you can issue a ticket to ask proz.com for help as to set up the email server. As long as you do not use your ISP's email service, your email will be totally ISP-independent.
I do not use proz.com's email server service so I can't comment on it. I guess if you are satisfied with the hosting service here, you will be happy with their email server service.
And one more thing, even if you are not happy with proz.com's service in the future, you never need to change your email address as your email address goes with your own domain name. You will then move your email server to another provider and your clients will never notice that.
Dallas
[Edited at 2008-10-13 08:17] ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Your own email using Gmail | Oct 13, 2008 |
Hi Rebecca,
ProZ Web Mail is actually pretty good. I have a paying account which gives me 2GB of storage space and IMAP, among other advantages. But the free account is pretty good too--although it has no IMAP support.
However, since you already have your own web site, you can always buy a domain and use it as your email: e.g. [email protected]. It's not really expensive, between $10-$20 a year, and you can ... See more Hi Rebecca,
ProZ Web Mail is actually pretty good. I have a paying account which gives me 2GB of storage space and IMAP, among other advantages. But the free account is pretty good too--although it has no IMAP support.
However, since you already have your own web site, you can always buy a domain and use it as your email: e.g. [email protected]. It's not really expensive, between $10-$20 a year, and you can still host it at ProZ. You'd only need to migrate your website from the myproz folder to the new folder, in the Control Panel.
I recently found out that Google allows you to host your email accound at Gmail. So you can still use [email protected] but, since it's Gmail, you get 7 GB of storage, IMAP, POP, up to 100 user accounts, and all the Gmail features--and it's completely free. The whole migrating process seems a bit complicated but it really isn't that bad. You can get more information at Google Apps.
Good luck,
Claudia
PS. I used the myproz.com email account for a while but I didn't like it, I thought the storage was very limited and difficult to customize. That's why I keep using my language.proz.com email besides the email I have through my own domain.
[Edited at 2008-10-13 08:32] ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Get your own domain name | Oct 13, 2008 |
Rebecca, to me the way to go is to purchase your own domain name via a new ISP. You can easily set up your email for that domain name. If you prefer to use your email via Web, make sure your new ISP supports web mail for your own domain name.
If you ever get tired of your new ISP, you can easily go to a new ISP and ask them to request to move your domain name to their servers.
Having your own domain name is your guarantee of freedom in the situation you describe.
| | | | Rebecca Hendry
United Kingdom
Local time: 00:48
Member (2005)
Spanish to English
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER | Domain name + email | Oct 13, 2008 |
Thank you all for your comments so far.
I am inclined to believe that my best option at the moment is to upgrade my hosting package at Proz.com, register a new domain name (something like rebeccahendry.com) and use the email address provided through that, which I can pick up through Outlook. Thanks Claudia for your comments as a user of the Proz.com mail service.
Tomás, I don't want to tie myself into any commitment (other than the contract term) with my new ISP by hos... See more Thank you all for your comments so far.
I am inclined to believe that my best option at the moment is to upgrade my hosting package at Proz.com, register a new domain name (something like rebeccahendry.com) and use the email address provided through that, which I can pick up through Outlook. Thanks Claudia for your comments as a user of the Proz.com mail service.
Tomás, I don't want to tie myself into any commitment (other than the contract term) with my new ISP by hosting my website through it. I want a solution that means if my new ISP is as disappointing as the old one has been, I can escape with minimum hassle (i.e. not having to change any email addresses or Web addresses).
As for gmail, as I said before, I am reluctant to use a free webmail address because of the negative vibes that this seems to give out. Gmail seems like a great option, but not for me I'm afraid. ▲ Collapse
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EHI (X)
Local time: 01:48
| domain not necessary | Oct 13, 2008 |
Rebecca, what exactly do you mean by "negative vibes"?
Do you think an email address such as [email protected] looks more professional?
For a company, fair enough, but as a freelancer I don't really think anybody is going to care what email address you have.
I can only see disadvantages of using your own domain address:
- you need to pay for your domain
- you have much less storage space
- you... See more Rebecca, what exactly do you mean by "negative vibes"?
Do you think an email address such as [email protected] looks more professional?
For a company, fair enough, but as a freelancer I don't really think anybody is going to care what email address you have.
I can only see disadvantages of using your own domain address:
- you need to pay for your domain
- you have much less storage space
- your spam filter is likely to cost you extra
- you email is more likely to be caught in spam filters
This is how I see it:
As a freelance translator you do not need your own domain. In fact, unless you spend a lot of time and/or money on SEO, your website is basically non-existent, at least for the search engines. Your only visitors will be useless spiders and people who have been given a direct link to your website.
So what is the point of having your own domain? So that you can have a "private" email address?
As I see it, a free email address offered by Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo etc. is all you need as a freelance translator.
To present yourself, you will be more successful if you work on your ProZ profile.
ProZ is the number one address for translation services and has an excellent page ranking. All the hard SEO work has already been done for you.
[Edited at 2008-10-13 10:25]
[Edited at 2008-10-13 10:26] ▲ Collapse
| | | | Rebecca Hendry
United Kingdom
Local time: 00:48
Member (2005)
Spanish to English
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER | About free email addresses | Oct 13, 2008 |
Lutz Molderings wrote: Rebecca, what exactly do you mean by "negative vibes"? Do you think an email address such as [email protected] looks more professional? For a company, fair enough, but as a freelancer I don't really think anybody is going to care what email address you have.
This is not necessarily my view, Lutz, but take a look at this thread http://www.proz.com/forum/office_applications/87782-how_professional_is_the_use_of_gmail_yahoo_and_hotmail-.html
This is just one example of dicussions I have seen about this topic. The use of a free web-based email address can give a bad first impression - whether that is justified or not is another matter.
I already use my Proz.com profile as an advertising tool, as well as my website - I don't think changing my domain name would affect the effectiveness of that.
| | | | Paula James
Spain
Local time: 01:48
French to English
+ ...
| can have gmail account with domain name | Oct 13, 2008 |
I'm not going to comment on free email addresses, I think that's been done enough, but just to say that I have a gmail address with my domain name. I don't actually have the website yet (!), as I've been too busy to get that far, but I have an email address that works through gmail but looks like [email protected].
I had to pay a small amount, $10 a year or something I think, and there are possibly (low) charges for professional a... See more I'm not going to comment on free email addresses, I think that's been done enough, but just to say that I have a gmail address with my domain name. I don't actually have the website yet (!), as I've been too busy to get that far, but I have an email address that works through gmail but looks like [email protected].
I had to pay a small amount, $10 a year or something I think, and there are possibly (low) charges for professional accounts with different service levels - I can't remember. So far I've had no problems with downtime etc. ▲ Collapse
| | | | EHI (X)
Local time: 01:48
had a look at your profile - quite impressive!
Also had a brief look at the thread, but still disagree.
Comparing going to an interview with dirty jeans and using a free email address doesn't make much sense to me. Actually, I think I would take my diamond-encrusted Rolex off before I go to an interview. I'd stick with my little black Swatch: modest, familiar and does exactly the same as my Rolex.
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| How much are you gonna pay? | Oct 13, 2008 |
Rebecca Hendry wrote:
...register a new domain name (something like rebeccahendry.com) and...
Hm... I have that registered already. How much are you willing to pay to get it? I'm flexible! Just joking of course!
You would be right next to www.rebeccahendrix.com. If you ever need marriage counseling, it's just an y-x away! 
| | | | | Never use any services from your ISP. | Oct 14, 2008 |
Do not use any services from you ISP except internet access. They are simply unprofessional.
I agree with Lutz about gmail. I feel that [email protected] may add a little to your professionalism (some people think so including Becky:), but it also looks a little unreliable. I mean if I send a mail to such an address, I always wonder if my mail will be lost. But I always trust gmail.
I know I am bia... See more Do not use any services from you ISP except internet access. They are simply unprofessional.
I agree with Lutz about gmail. I feel that [email protected] may add a little to your professionalism (some people think so including Becky:), but it also looks a little unreliable. I mean if I send a mail to such an address, I always wonder if my mail will be lost. But I always trust gmail.
I know I am biased. I sometimes think @hotmail.coms or @yahoo.coms are less impressive and are often used by swindlers. ▲ Collapse
| | | | | A salesman moving on the bus... | Oct 14, 2008 |
Lutz Molderings wrote: Rebecca, what exactly do you mean by "negative vibes"? Do you think an email address such as [email protected] looks more professional? For a company, fair enough, but as a freelancer I don't really think anybody is going to care what email address you have.
Well, actually I am one of those who care. When some colleague emails us here to offer his/her services (we don't outsource, so we are always forced to report that), one of the things I look at is whether he/she has a website. I don't like Google or Yahoo addresses. To me, using them looks "cheap" in a professional environment.
Yes, I know, I know... A completely subjective perception. But it is my perception.
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