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What are the most common email domains?

Close up of a person's hand holding a mobile phone as they check their emails

Email is the most important form of communication for businesses. It is versatile and quick, allowing anything from a quick chat to finalise a plan to a long-form explanation of a service with multiple attachments. But are the most common email domains, and what are the pros and cons to each one? 

Gmail.com (18%)

With over a billion users across the globe, Gmail has taken over the free email space since its launch in 2004. It has a streamlined interface without too much clutter, and lets you organise your emails into different folders which helps you to focus on your priorities. It works with a Google account, which has a fleet of features such as Google Drive, Google Docs and Google Calendar, making file sharing and time-management simple. 

Yahoo.com (17%)

Although it isn’t as much as a household name as Gmail, Yahoo offers a professional email service with some useful features unavailable with its competitor. Yahoo allows you to organise your emails into custom folders, and the free version has a terabyte of storage.

Hotmail.com (16%)

It may be one of the top three most popular email domains, but you can’t get one anymore! In fact, Hotmail used to be a part of Microsoft, which has had a couple of rebrands and is now Outlook. This means that if you created your account before 2012, then you will still have the @hotmail.com address, but if you want to create a new one, then you will get an address ending in @outlook.com. Just like Gmail, Outlook offers extra features such as a calendar and access to online Microsoft Office products. 

These are the top three email providers, as after this the percentage of users drops off sharply to under four per cent. Bear in mind that using an @gmail.com or @outlook.com email address is fine for personal use, but doesn’t look very professional if you want to use that for a business account.

If you’re looking for business emails, then it’s much better to have an email address that matches the name of your website domain, as this adds extra credibility to your company. Go Sitebuilder gives you a personalised website domain name as well as five unique business emails for you to use. Sign up for our 14-day free trial and see just how easy it is to get your business online. 

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Can I host my own website?

Young female sitting on a mattress in a trendy bedroom on her laptop and listening to music through headphones

Hosting your own website is possible. It can be quite an entertaining and rewarding experience, but it’s definitely not for everyone.  All you need is a Windows or Linux machine, and you can upload some HTML files to a folder and host them on the internet all by yourself! 

Now, if all of that already sounds a bit too complicated – you have absolutely nothing to worry about. There are some alternatives and professionals who have taken care of all of this for you already! At Go Sitebuilder, you can easily design, host and launch a professional website without any of the hassle.

Getting everything right

To host your own website, you’ll need a server. A server is a machine that stores data and sends it out to the internet, allowing your site to be accessed from anywhere in the world. That is what web hosting is, in a nutshell. 

It can take a very long time to get everything set up correctly but have no fear – here at Go Sitebuilder we’ve already taken care of all of that for you. 

For a small business owner, or someone trying to get their website running and performing at exceptional quality, it’s always a good idea to go with a professional and experienced hosting service. You won’t ever have to worry about accidentally flipping off the wrong switch or randomly having the whole shut website down! And, the best part is, it’s super simple to do and can be up and running in no time.

Energy and Efficiency

To host a website, you’ll need your server working 24/7. All-day and all night this little guy will be sending and storing data – forever. For anyone to see this data (your website), you’ll need to have some energy running to it. This can be a great way to run up a huge energy bill! 

Unless you can invest in a powerful server and the necessary connections to back it up, the only reason to host your own website is for fun.

The smart choice

A great and trusted option is to build your website and get it live in no time at all with Go Sitebuilder. We make it easy to design and launch a professional-looking website with all the functionality you need to make it work for you. The hosting is handled at our end and included in your subscription fee, and you have access to powerful tools to help market your website and make it into a powerhouse for your business. Get started today, and you’ll be ready to launch in no time.

If you haven’t got your own website up and running yet, what are you waiting for? With Go Sitebuilder, you can have an ecommerce site online in just a few hours, with no experience needed. Try them out now with a 14-day free trial.

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How to effectively sell your product or service

How to effectively sell your product or service

You may know that you have an excellent product or service, but your potential customers don’t. So how can you show them – and persuade them – that you are a step above your competitors?

Tell me a story

Your potential customers aren’t interested in your product. They’re interested in the experience it gives them, or the solution it provides to a problem they have – your marketing should reflect that. Describe how it feels to use your product, or the difference it could make if it solves a long-standing problem. 

Look at car adverts, for example. The specifications are important, but they’re not what are going to make you remember a certain brand or model. Marketing for cars focuses on the driving experience, or how comfortable it is for a long road trip, not how large the engine capacity is or whether it takes diesel or petrol. 

That’s not to say specifications aren’t important, but they’re secondary; a customer will start looking at them only if they’re already interested in the product or service. Start with a story, and back it up with the credentials afterwards.

Audience is everything

Before even thinking about an effective strategy to sell your products or services, you need to consider your audience. What do they do, what do they need and why? How, when and where do they buy? Look at key trends within your target market, and adapt your marketing plan to match it. 

Once you get into the heads of your target audience, you can adapt your selling points accordingly. Remember that car advert? If you wanted to target young families, you could highlight the vehicle’s safety features, but if you’re wanting to attract young professionals, you’re more likely to focus on how stylish it is. 

Why you?

So, you’ve told a story that is perfectly aimed at your audience and you’ve backed it up with high-end specifications. Chances are, though, you won’t be the first person providing the same services and products as you do. Don’t ignore your competitors, because your potential customers won’t! You need to focus on your Unique Selling Proposition (USP), or what makes you stand out from the crowd. What do you offer that your competitors don’t? Make sure this is clear; it could be the one thing that turns a browser into a customer.

And of course, make sure your products and services are presented beautifully on a professional-looking website. Go Sitebuilder offers a 14-day free trial and has specially designed ecommerce features – try them out today!