Many of us spend a great deal of time using email yet remain ignorant about how to make it more effective and less time consuming.  The good news is that this article explains the two ways to view email and why one approach is vastly superior to the other.  The bad news may be that you are using the inferior method and may have to take the plunge and update yourself!

Domain Email

For the purposes of this article, use of the word "domain email" refers to the email address you get with your domain name.  For example, if your website is www.xyz.com then your email address will likely be something like This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .  This is different to common email addresses like This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it and This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Business Email

While gmail, yahoo, hotmail, live and other email services are great for personal email, they have a negative impact on your business image. So if xyz is your business name, then you will create a more professional impression with clients and business prospects if you use This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it rather than something like This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .   Which email address do you prefer on your business card?

If, like many of us, you find yourself with a personal email address and a business (with its own domain name), but you're not yet using your domain email address, then perhaps it's time to consider upgrading.

The decision of what's right for you gets back to having an understanding of the difference between the two approaches to email, the options available and the benefits of each.

The Two Email Approaches

The first approach to email, which is used primarily for personal email, is referred to as webmail.  Hotmail, live, yahoo, gmail and others are webmail services and they are very popular because they are free and easy to use.

The second approach to email is to use an "email client" or an email software program that sits on your computer.  The most popular email clients are Outlook on the PC and Entourage on apple computers. These days, all computers are sold with an email client pre-installed.

Using Webmail

To view email the webmail way, you go to the gmail, yahoo, hotmail or live website and login. While this is OK if you only have one email address and its a personal one, it can become a problem if you also have a domain email address. The problem is that with two email addresses you will have to use two separate websites to check your email, one for your personal email and another for your domain. This can become a real pain if you're checking email regularly.

So what's the solution?

Using Email Clients

By using the second appraoch to email, you can eliminate this problem altogether because in Outlook or Entourage you can have as many mailboxes as you like.  This means you can have your personal mailbox and your domain business mailbox arrive in one place.  There are several ways to then separate your mail once it arrives.  The trick here is that you will have to use a small piece of free software to forward your webmail (gmail, hotmail, etc.) to your Outlook or Entourage. Fortunately, these free utilities are easy to install and configure.

Other Advantages of Email Clients

Once you've made this change and setup your Outlook or Entourage, you will quickly realise the additional benefits of using an email client:

• Its much faster to read and send email using an email client
• You can still use webmail if you are on the road or at an internet cafe
• It is much faster to access your email using an email client because there is no website or login
• Advanced layout and formatting options, i.e. it uses MS Word as the editor
• Advanced email sorting options
• Multiple mailboxes in one place
• There are no storage quotas
• There is no irritating advertising on the screen