So you have a website or a business and you want a proper email like hello@yourname.co.uk you though it was complex but in reality it is simpler than it may sound. All you need is a domain name, an email hosting service and an inbox. You do not need a website, you can still use an email without a website which is a common mis-conception that you need both.
That’s good news if your business is still in the infancy stage, your portfolio is still a work in progress, or your personal project currently consists of a notebook and a very enthusiastic idea but making yourself look more professional when sending out emails as your own brand is a great way to inspire confidence in your brand.
In this post we break it down from how to choose your address, get it working and avoid a few easy mistakes that many can make along the way.
What is a professional email address?
It is an email address that uses your own website domain after the @ symbol.
Example, you might use:
- alex@yourdomain.co.uk for your own correspondence.
- hello@yourdomain.co.uk for general enquiries.
- bookings@yourdomain.co.uk for appointments.
The domain is the part after the @. You choose the part before it when you create the mailbox.
Gmail and Hotmail do still work fine, however an address using your own name gives you something consistent to put on your website, business cards, invoices or CV with an increased look of professionalism.
Email Domains are not just for businesses, Personal domains can still work perfectly for a family, a blog, a freelance portfolio or a project you want to keep separate from your day to day emails.
1. Choose a domain you’ll be happy saying out loud
Start off with your business name or a personal name or even a project name. Keep it simple to read if possible you want to make it easy to remember.
Simple test: could you say the address over the phone without having to explain it twice?
“Alex at…” is straightforward. “Alex, hyphen, photography, number seven…” starts to become a small explanation on how to type your email, which you do not want.
For a typical UK audience, .co.uk or .uk may be a natural choice. You might prefer .com for a broader and international audience. The important thing is choosing a complete name that fits and not overly complex for people to remember!
If your first choice is taken see what else is available:
- Add your surname or middle initial.
- Include what you do, such as photography or design.
- Add your town if your work is genuinely local.
- Check another suitable extension.
oXnames has it’s own domain search tool that can check names and suggest alternatives around a personal idea, project or business.
Do you Already have a domain? You may be able to use it as it is. You don’t normally need to transfer its registration to your email provider, but you will need access to its DNS settings and an email hosting account, all you will need to do is modify and update your MX records.
2. Choose email hosting that fits what you need
Registering a domain gives you the name you want to use. Email hosting provides the inbox that sends, receives and stores your messages.
Some Company packages bundle them together to make life simple; others charge separately. If you already pay for website hosting, check whether email is included before buying another service, in many cases it is included by your hosting provider.
To compare email plans, look at:
- Mailbox allowance: how many separate inboxes you can create.
- Storage: whether it’s shared across the plan or allocated per mailbox.
- Device support: whether it works with the apps you want to use.
- Webmail: whether you can access messages through a browser.
- Support: who you can ask when something needs sorting out.
- Renewal costs: what you’ll pay after any introductory offer.
At oXnames, you can manage your mailboxes through our Knox portal. Generally email hosting plans include webmail and support for compatible email apps, with the current allowances and prices shown on the page.
One distinction worth knowing: using Outlook to access a mailbox doesn’t mean Microsoft 365 software is included with the hosting. The email service and the app you use to read it are separate things.
3. Decide which addresses you actually need
For one person, a single mailbox may be enough.
You might prefer your first name for a personal touch, or hello@ for an address that can stay the same as your project grows.
You don’t need to create sales, accounts, bookings and support inboxes on day one but having the option to later is perfect. Especially if all four departments are currently managed by you.
It also helps to understand the difference between a mailbox and an alias:
A mailbox has its own login and stored messages.
An alias is another address that delivers into an existing mailbox. Whether you can send from that alias depends on the provider and setup.
If two people need private messages and separate passwords, choose separate mailboxes rather than sharing one login.
4. Connect your domain to your email service
This is the part with the technical jargon. We’ll keep it simple.
Your domain’s DNS settings tell other systems where to send its email and help identify authorised senders, this helps with monitoring spam:
- MX records direct incoming email to your mail provider.
- SPF identifies services authorised to send for your domain.
- DKIM adds a signature that receiving systems can check.
- DMARC tells receiving systems how to handle messages that fail the relevant authentication checks.
These settings help protect your domain against impersonation. They don’t guarantee every message will reach an inbox but help improve deliverability.
Use the exact records supplied by your email provider. With oXnames, use the details assigned to your service in Knox.
Don’t replace nameservers or delete existing records without checking what they do. Your website may depend on them, and another service may already send email on your behalf.
If you’re unsure, ask your provider before changing anything, they may even do it all for you. A quick check is much nicer than an afternoon wondering where your messages went.
5. Add your mailbox to your phone or computer
Once your inbox is ready, you can use webmail or connect a compatible email app.
For oXnames, the Knox provides the connection settings for your service based on which server you are using. You’ll normally need your full email address, mailbox password, incoming server and outgoing server.
IMAP keeps your email and folders synchronised with the server, making it useful when you check messages on several devices.
Follow the relevant instructions in our help centre, and keep the recommended encryption settings enabled.
Before putting the address on everything, test it:
- Send a message from your new address to another account.
- Reply to it and check the reply arrives.
- Check that your display name and reply address look right.
- Try the same mailbox on your phone.
That checks both directions. Being able to receive messages doesn’t necessarily mean sending is configured correctly.
Want to move from Gmail, Hotmail or another provider?
You can keep your old address while you introduce the new one.
Changing your email setup won’t automatically move old messages, contacts or calendar entries. What can be imported depends on the services involved, so check the migration options first.
A sensible transition is to:
- Keep access to your old account.
- Move or back up anything important.
- Update your contact details and email signature.
- Tell regular contacts about the new address.
- Set up forwarding where supported and appropriate.
If you already use your own domain with another email provider, you can usually keep the same address when moving. Plan the mailbox migration and DNS change together, and keep the old service active until you’ve checked the move.
How much does a professional email address cost?
Allow for domain registration and email hosting.
Domains are commonly renewed annually and can be secured for less than £10 per year. Email may be billed monthly or annually, depending on the plan but a typical cost can be £2-£20 per month depending how advanced the package and storage is.
Check the total, including VAT where applicable, renewal prices and any mailbox or storage limits. The cheapest introductory price doesn’t always tell you what the service will cost to keep.
You can compare our current prices on the oXnames email hosting page. There’s no need to buy a website package just to have an email address on your own domain.
Start with one good address
You don’t need a finished website, a big team or a complicated setup to get an email Domain address.
Choose a name you like, create the mailbox you need and check that everything works. You can add more addresses or a website later.
If you’d like a hand choosing a plan or connecting your domain, speak to our team. Bring your questions—even if the first one is “what on earth is an MX record?”
That’s a perfectly reasonable place to start.
