Domain names are very important, particularly for freelance translators who are running their own businesses and are dependent on email. Basically, there are three options when it comes to email, and these are –

• You can use your own domain name, like yourname@yourdomain.com;
• You can use a domain name provided by your ISP (Internet Service Provider, like yourname@EarthLink.net; at comcast.net, and so on; or
• You can use a domain name provided by a fee-based or free email service, like yourname@yahoo.com; at Gmail.com, and so on.

There are certain disadvantages to having your professional email attached to a domain that you don’t own –

• To start with, the domain owner can do whatever they please and you have no say in the matter. And if the domain owner decides to merge with another company or change its name, it could well affect your translation business.
• It makes you look professional when you have your own domain name. Somehow, receiving business emails from a Hotmail address invokes the same reaction as when someone hands you a business card with the printers advertising on the back. Remember that being successful in business has a lot to do with creating a professional image, and having cheap business cards and a Hotmail email address just doesn’t look professional.
• You don’t want to risk having to change your email address whilst you’re running your freelance translation business. When you work in a business like we do, probably 90% of our contact with clients is done by email, so it’s really important that we avoid having to change our email address - even more so if the old address were to become inactive. This could be devastating to our business.

Regardless of how professional we may be with our translation knowledge and skills, there are still many of us out there who are not very tech-savvy. Today we still see freelance translators who don’t understand just how easy it is to purchase and run their own domain, so below we’ll give you a very brief lesson. Perhaps after this, you’ll be able to get rid of your Hotmail account!

• Do Your Homework First!

The first thing you need to know is that you must do your homework prior to determining whether the domain name you really want is available. Don’t assume that a domain name is available just because there’s no website at a given URL (web address). There are several very good articles on precautions you should take before buying a domain name, so we strongly suggest you read up on this topic before you do anything.