Advice wanted on setting up personal domain and email

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Permalink Reply by Natalie on October 27, 2016 at 15:32

I used 1and1.co.uk to buy a domain and I've been happy with them so far (a year in).  The prices vary according to the domain you choose, and I don't know what you would think reasonable, so perhaps have a look at their website.

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Permalink Reply by Jacqui O'Beirne on October 27, 2016 at 15:39

For domains try '1and1 . co .uk' cheap ( from 99p a month) and and email address is included at a small extra cost you then link to the below if you wish. DO NOT use GoDadday as the customer service is a nightmare!

Google Apps for work is relatively cheap as a recognisable email provider around £3.30 a month per user and uses Googles email system and other functionality

you'll need to search 'G suite by google cloud' as I can't post long URLs.

J

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Permalink Reply by Hugh on October 27, 2016 at 15:49

I have a handful of domains registered through GoDaddy. They're Arizona-based but have a very good 24 hour phone support line with  a London number. They used to give free email accounts with any domain you buy through them. You'd have to check if that's still the case. I've always been very happy with them and the service they provide. 

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Permalink Reply by Chris Setz on October 28, 2016 at 12:09

Hi Philip,

I've sent out lots of emails for a range of orgs over the years (some big ones, I'm a consultant). Mailchimp is head and shoulders above the rest (with a market share that reflects that) and I'd stick with them - the way they handle responsive emails (on a range of device sizes and types) is way better than everyone else short of coding it yourself.

The techie stuff is far less important than the content of course. I'd ask yourself if you really need a domain name for every campaign - maybe use foxyemailsrus.email or somesuch for everything?  Segment the database in Mailchimp.

Nowadays people either swipe, click or google key words - typing a domain name in by hand is so yesterday :)

Domain names

I use setz.gq for my own personal email domain and a whole bunch of others, all completely free from Freenom.com They own the rights to a range of domains, the most well-known being '.tk', which they bought recently. They're a Dutch company (with a phone number you can call - I've had email with their directors). 

You can have any number of the domains they own the TLD for (.cf .gq etc) for free for any legit purpose (they check the 'Apex' website automatically) but can only have them for up to 12 months at a time and must renew them then (also free, and simple).  Their business model is to hope you'll get bored renewing and buy from them for longer periods (I don't) - their prices are competitive.

They just (mistakenly) took down one of mine for no good reason (HornseyTownHall.gq). They reinstated after a few days when I complained.  Everyone should use a (free) domain monitoring service. The email service still works if they take a site down.  Happened to me twice in the last few years. Their algorithm to detect abuse needs work :)

DNS:

Your domain's 'rep' matters. DNSsec  is getting there. You need an excellent DNS provider. 

I use Cloudfare for DNS (free) - you should have things like DKIM configured otherwise some of your email will score high for spam.

If you are using a shared hosting service you should check your domain isn't on a server that also hosts spammers - not easy to know but you can reverse google the IP of the server to see who else is using it. You can also see if it ever gets blacklisted by automating checks.

I use mailgun.org. sendgrid.com is also popular - if you're a bit techie. Services such as twilio are long-establish and comprehensive too.  Watchwords for choice of provider (as usual): largest market share.

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