Q&A: Is it ok to use Gmail for my business email?
Enjoy today's featured easy-to-follow tech tip.
Rick's Daily Tech Tips Update for Thursday, February 13, 2025
[Standard Edition]
I welcome your questions and comments. Simply Reply to this email or contact me and let me know what’s on your mind.
Like my tips?
If you find my tips useful, you can help me keep them coming by opting for a Premium (Paid) subscription. Here are the details:
1 - Premium subscriptions help offset my blogs’ web hosting and other related fees, which are substantial. In other words, they help ensure that I’ll be able to keep sending you my tips well into the future.
2 - Premium issues do not contain sponsorship ads.
3 - Premium subscribers have double the chance to win my Monthly Tech Giveaway.
4 - Premium subscribers have full 24/7 access to all previous issues in the Newsletter Archives.
If you’d like to enjoy these benefits while helping me out, just click this button now:
Today's issue is sponsored by...
I’m Annie Gallie and I help high achievers gain clarity. Let’s work together.
————
Want to sponsor this newsletter and speak directly to over 16,700 engaged subscribers? Click here for info.
Today’s featured gadget pick...
Every day I feature a tech item that I’ve hand-picked to be among the best of the best.
Click here to see what I’m loving today.
Monthly Tech Giveaway....
We have a winner for January...
Congratulations to Michael M. from Garland, Texas for winning the AOSU 3K/5MP Solar Security Cameras Outdoor Wireless, Ultra HD Video Home Security System 4-Cam Kit in January's Tech Tips Giveaway.
February's winner will receive a fantastic CyberPower CP1500PFCLCD PFC 1500VA/1000W Sinewave UPS System (click for details).
The prizes featured in my Monthly Tech Giveaways include a combination of the best items I have received for testing and review and brand new items provided directly by partner companies.
This month’s winner will be selected at random on February 28.
Note: Want to double your chance to win? All Standard subscribers have an equal chance to win. All Premium (Paid) subscribers have double the chance to win (their email addresses are added to the pot twice).
In other words, you can double your chance to win by upgrading to any Premium subscription.
Today’s featured tech tip…
Q&A: Is it ok to use Gmail for my business email?
Question from Gabe: I recently retired after a long career in public service and I'm planning to start a second career as a professional photographer.
I've already lined up a few shoots through word-of-mouth but I'm planning to put up a business page on Facebook and have some business cards printed to promote my photography services.
The question I have is do I need a private email address (something like gabe@example.com where example.com is my own domain name) or will a Gmail address suffice?
I have always heard that having your own domain name presents a more professional image but I'd really rather not have to pay for a domain when I don't plan to have a website.
What is your opinion on this? Would a Gmail address work or should I spring for a domain name?
Rick's answer: Congrats on your retirement, Gabe! I hope your second career turns out to be just as fulfilling as your first!
To answer your question, I used to be firmly in the "you really need to have your own domain name for your business email" camp, but my opinion on that has changed in recent years.
Third-party "free" email services used to have a bad reputation, and for the most part it was well deserved. But Google's extremely popular Gmail service has changed that.
It's now quite common to see business cards, social media accounts and even full-blown business websites proudly displaying a Gmail address.
What's more, many self-employed individuals now do business using Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Therefore they don't need a website and its associated domain name, and in most cases Gmail seems to work quite well for them.
The bottom line is this: I don't believe you need to "spring" for a domain name (although they are dirt cheap these days) in order to present yourself and your photography business in a favorable light. Gmail should work just fine for you in my opinion.
If you find this tip (and this newsletter) useful, please consider sharing it with your friends.
Picture of the Day...
“Equine on the Run”
Today’s POTD features a shiny black horse captured at full gallop, showcasing the power of a fast shutter speed. It was taken at an eastern Kentucky equine ranch. I hope you like it.
Bonus tips from some the web’s best Tech sites...
Every day I hand-pick five of the best tips I found on my favorite tech sites and share them with you, my wonderful subscribers. Here is today’s selection:
• How to get a copy of your Apple account data
• Are these 7 bad habits destroying your PC?
• How to recover a deleted file: The ultimate guide
• Cultivating your target audience: Finding success in your niche
• Microsoft Visio cheat sheet: How to get started
Today's post from 'Living (and loving) Life'...
How to quickly locate a buried cable using a lawnmower and an AM radio
Today’s tech news headlines...
• Man who lost $750 million Bitcoin in landfill now wants to buy the site
• Handful of users claim new Nvidia GPUs are melting power cables again
• Apple launches wide-ranging health study to help develop future features
• The Weather Channel app can show how likely you are to get specific snowfall amounts
Have a question, comment or suggestion? Hit the Reply button and reply to this email. I love hearing what you have to say...
Thanks so much, and have an amazing day.
Your tech buddy,
Rick Rouse
Want to help support my work and keep this newsletter coming for all to enjoy? Your upgrade to a paid subscription will help a lot (and be greatly appreciated).