When the time comes to make that big step to becoming a real, professional entrepreneur, one of the things you’ll want to do is upgrade your personal email address to a professional one, aka, one with a custom domain (ideally your business name).
Some well-known professional email address examples are [email protected] (Tim Cook of Apple) or [email protected] (Sam Altman of OpenAI). Other examples are a full name format, like [email protected], or including your job title, like [email protected].
Your professional email ID is part of your brand identity and affects how everyone, from customers to investors, will see your business. So, whether you choose a first-name-only approach or a shared inbox username, always keep in mind that your professional email address carries with it your professional reputation as a small business owner.
A professional email address consists of a username, domain name, and domain extension.
- Username: The part before the @ symbol. It can be a name or any information that makes the email address distinct.
- Domain name: This is the part after the @ symbol that is custom to your business.
- Top-level domain name (also called a domain extension): This is the part of the domain name after the dot (.), for instance, .com or .net.
1. First name only
Best for: Sales representatives or other client-facing team members
Examples: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]
A first-name-only email address is friendly and personable, ideal for sales reps or other client-facing teams.
One of the most common professional email address examples is the first-name-only format. It’s most ideal for sales representatives and solopreneurs because it comes across as more personal than other email formats, and it’s easy to remember. For the same reasons, it’s also a good pick for sales agents or anyone who directly communicates with clients, as it gives a more friendly and personable feel while promoting your business.
However, a first-name-only format may not be ideal if your business is growing. As your business matures, you’ll likely have employees with the same first name.
2. Last name only
Best for: Law firms or other formal businesses, or for internal-only communication
Examples: [email protected], [email protected]
A last-name email address gives off a more formal image.
The last-name-only email address format is a good choice for small businesses looking to promote a more formal professional image. For example, this could be ideal for a small law firm. However, like the first-name-only format, it’s not a great choice for growing businesses because you may wind up with staff with similar or identical last names.
The other downside with this format is that it feels a little cold and too professional. Most people don’t go around calling each other by their last names, so this format tends to be a little unfriendly — not ideal if you communicate with clients or investors. Last names are also generally more difficult to remember than first names.
3. First and last name
Best for: Bloggers, creators, influencers, solopreneurs, or anyone with a personal brand
Examples: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]
First and last name business email addresses are some of the most common and easy to remember.
First and last name combinations are some of the most common company email address examples. It’s also a good choice if you’re a blogger, creator, influencer building your brand on your name, or a solopreneur. With this format, you decide whether and how to separate the first and last names. A period (“.”) between the first and last names is fairly common. Other options include a hyphen (“-”) or an underscore (“_”) between the names.
However, this format can also easily get long. For example, if your name is Elizabeth Frederickson, your email address can easily become a mouthful, especially if your domain name is also lengthy.
The longer your email address, the more likely it is to be misspelled or mistyped. When this happens, emails bounce, and messages get missed. Another drawback with this format is the potential security risk of having your full name easily accessible to the public.
4. First initial plus last name
Best for: Any team, especially fast-growing teams
Examples: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]
A first initial and last name business email is a shorter workaround for the full-name email address.
First initial plus last name is one of the best workarounds for the problems of the earlier options. They’re shorter and easier to remember, while maintaining the uniqueness of every individual’s name. You can include a period or dash between the initial and the last name, as doing so may reduce errors.
The tricky part of the first-initial-last-name combination is that it can seem initially unfamiliar if you know your coworkers mainly by their first name. For example, my full name is Audrey Rico, but people know me as Audrey, not as “arico,” which sounds strange and unfamiliar, even to me.
5. Abbreviated name
Best for: Protecting your personal information
Examples: [email protected], [email protected]
An example of an email address with an abbreviated name
If you’re hesitant about having your full name as your email address, an abbreviated name is a good compromise. It’s also a good way of shortening your email address’s character limit. However, the major drawback is that it doesn’t immediately tell people who you are, so it’s not the best for branding or great for external communications.
6. Name and title or department
Best for: Sales or customer service representatives, real estate agents, journalists, freelancers providing services
Examples: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]
Name and department email addresses are ideal for customer service reps, real estate agents, or journalists working in a publication.
Combining your name with your title or department in your email username is also a good option if you work in a large team or communicate with external clients, customers, or investors frequently. That’s why it’s one of the most common professional email address examples for customer service reps or sales agents.
It’s also a good option for real estate agents, journalists writing for a publication, or agency members. For example, if I were a writer at an agency, a professional email address I would use is [email protected].
7. Name and degree or certification
Best for: Medical doctors, PhD researchers
Examples: [email protected], [email protected]
If you have a certification, such as an MD or PhD, adding it to your email address will boost your credibility.
This format is similar to the name and title, or department format above, except it’s exclusively for people whose degrees or certifications are part of their profession — for example, you’re a doctor with an MD in your title or a researcher with a PhD.
Including these certifications in your professional email ID instantly boosts your credibility. The potential drawback is that your username can get a little lengthy if you include your full name.
8. Name and location (and title)
Best for: Location-specific services like real estate agents, local lawyers, or home repair services
Examples: [email protected], [email protected]
Add your location to your email to interest local audiences.
Adding your location to your email address is only the best option if you have location-specific services or are part of a business with multiple locations. Location-specific services can mean real estate agents, lawyers, or home repair services that operate in a certain city or zip code.
Meanwhile, if you work in a multi-location business or a franchise, including your location in your username can also eliminate confusion with your local customers.
The main drawback is that your email address can easily become lengthy if you live in a place like Albuquerque or Pennsylvania. Using an abbreviated name is a workaround, but it is also less recognizable, for example, [email protected].
9. Keywords-based username
Best for: Service industries with an action keyword
Examples: [email protected] for a wedding planner, [email protected] for a pest control company
Keyword-based email addresses can show off your niche.
If you don’t want any personal information on your email addresses (e.g., names), a small business can get away with using industry-related keywords. For example, a wedding organizer can use the email “[email protected],” or an organic cafe might use “[email protected].” This makes your email address unique and gives it a call to action.
Action verbs also make memorable keywords, for example, “FlyAsiana.com.” It’s a catchy and fun approach, but the obvious drawback is that it doesn’t make space for you or your team members’ names. As such, it’ll only work well as an email address for a shared inbox (more on this below).
10. Shared inbox
Best for: Customer support teams, sales teams, PR teams, or any department under your business that the public can contact
Examples: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]
A shared email address will work well for public-facing departments, like customer support or PR.
For practical reasons, a shared inbox might be the best choice for your business in certain circumstances. For example, if you have a customer support team handling multiple tickets, a shared inbox will make tracking all those requests easier than individual inboxes for each team member.
When placed on your website or social media pages, it will also be easier for audiences to remember, and it won’t require changing when team members move on from your company.
Shared inbox email addresses should be short and easy to remember. Use the team’s department as the username, followed by your domain. For example, “[email protected]” or “[email protected].”
Things to keep in mind when choosing a professional email ID
The professional email ID examples above should give you a good idea of how to create one for your own company. The best professional email addresses are short, easy to remember, and even catchy. Most importantly, they accurately represent the business and the specific email address of the owner.
For example, [email protected] instantly lets you know you’re emailing Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. Some other things to remember when choosing an email address are your business growth, domain length, and the primary purpose of your email address.
- The scalability of your email address. You may just have a five-person team now and be perfectly fine with a first-name-only email address, but if your team grows and expands into different departments, it’ll soon become a problem, as many people may have the same first names.
- The length of your domain. Shorter email addresses are easier to remember. If you already have a long domain (for example, “@fitsmallbusiness.com”), a long username will make it even longer. I wouldn’t advise, for example, having “[email protected]” as an email address. Even the most dedicated email marketer will have trouble remembering that.
- The purpose of your professional email address. What’s the main reason you’re upgrading to a professional email address? Is it to make your marketing and sales teams look more professional in prospects’ inboxes?If so, a first-name-only username will work pretty well as it’s friendly and easy to remember. Meanwhile, if you’re giving your entire team a professional email address, you may need a more unique username to avoid duplicates.
For example, Jane is a real estate agent working in Chicago, but the email username jane.realtor has already been taken. A good alternative email address example might be [email protected]. It’s more unique than the first one, specific to her location, and easier to say.Another alternative is to change your email domain. For example, say your travel agency’s name is Wanderlust Explorers. Instead of just “@wanderlustexplorers,” try “@travelwithwanderlust.com.”It’s a little different but doesn’t lose the essence of your business, and even throws in a little call to action. There are countless ways to get creative with your choice of domain name.
How to migrate to a professional email address seamlessly
Now that you’re all set to make the leap into a professional email address, choose the best business email platform. There are a few ways to get a free business email address, but my best recommendation is to invest in a platform that can suit your business for the long term.
A business email platform costs less than $10 a month. It’ll be easier to scale as your business grows, and it will come with secure storage and productivity tools.
1. Choose a business email platform. Some of the best business email platforms I’ve tested and personally used are Google Workspace, Proton Mail, and IONOS. These platforms have small business-friendly tools like shared documents and website builders, and are easy to set up and navigate.
2. Choose your plan. Most business email platforms have multiple plan tiers with different features, limits, and a custom domain. For example, Google Workspace’s higher tiers have up to 5TB storage and 500 video meeting participants. Choose the best plan for your needs and then follow the prompts to set up your email.
3. Get a domain and set up your brand-new email address. After selecting a plan, you’ll need to search for your preferred domain (the word after the “@”), and if it’s available, continue setting up the rest of your email address.
4. Pay for your plan. Before you can use your email address, you’ll need to officially purchase your plan, which also comes with the domain you chose. Input your payment details and choose your billing cycle (monthly or annual).
5. Migrate your old emails and start using your new email account. Once you pay for your plan, your new professional email address is ready for use. However, you may want to migrate your old emails from your old account.
The process for this differs for each platform (for instance, Google Workspace’s setup already includes a data migration service). However, it mostly involves going into your platform settings, choosing “data migration,” and then setting your migration source (aka the account you’re migrating from).
After migrating your data, your new email account will be up to speed and ready to use.
Ready to start creating your new professional email address? My all-time favorite email platform for small businesses is Google Workspace. It’s still the easiest to navigate, comes with the Google Workspace productivity suite, and offers real-time collaboration that is hard to beat. It’s a great fit for busy business owners.
Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
A good professional email address instantly tells people who the email address owner is and what business they work for. Ideally, it should include your name with your business name as your domain.
For instance, [email protected] is a good example of a professional email address, as it looks credible and professional. If you have a larger team, a first initial plus last name combination also works, like [email protected]. Other more creative examples are location-based usernames like [email protected] or a keyword-based name like “[email protected]” for a pest control company.
A good email username will depend on what you do as a business. If you’re a sales rep at a company, using your first name like [email protected] will work well because it’s easy to remember. If you’re in the leadership team of a small enterprise, adding your title will also be a helpful signifier; for instance, [email protected].
If you offer location-specific services, for instance, if you’re a realtor in a certain city, adding your city name will also distinguish you from other email addresses, like [email protected].
Gmail can get you a professional email address if you upgrade to a Google Workspace account, which comes with a custom domain for your email, aka what comes after the “@” symbol in your email address.
A custom email domain is necessary to create a professional email address as it signals to your business’s credibility instead of using a generic one like “@gmail.com” or “@yahoomail.com.” A professional Google Workspace account also comes with productivity and collaboration tools for your team, cloud storage, and enhanced security.
Bottom line
Your email address says a lot more about you and your business than you think. The professional email address examples above are proof of that. It all comes down to choosing the right username and domain that best presents you and your business to recipients, whether you’re communicating with clients, investors, or just internal team members. It should also allow room for growth when your business expands, and be easy to remember and type.
