While cruising the MLS this afternoon I ran across a property that looked like a good match for a potential client I've been helping. When I clicked the listing to get details on the agent, I noticed that his email address was the most unforgettable thing I've ever seen - something like 8zdsjr@att.com. But the guy's initials weren't Z.D.S and he wasn't a Junior. Huh? When I switched over to launch my email client I had to go back into the MLS to get the address again because I'd forgotten it.
Email addresses should be simple, rememberable, and a reflection of you. If I saw abc123@hotmail.com scribbled on a piece of paper I wouldn't be able to connect the address with a lender I met at a seminar a few weeks ago. And I wouldn't be able to remember the guy's name. But MoneyMan@hotmail.com would tweak my memory a bit. JohnSmith@hotmail.com would be even better. However if I can only remember the JohnSmith part, I'm infamous for forgetting which domain the email address is with. Was it Yahoo? Gmail? No MSN. Uh oh...
The same goes for websites. I personally have a hard time remembering company initials. If I see something
like MMInc.com (not sure if that's a real site) I'm instantly thinking about stopping at the store to get a bag of M&Ms. Or I'm trying to think of companies with the initials MMI in North Carolina to figure out why I wrote down that address. MoneyManInc.com would instantly remind me of who I was looking for. Plus I'd be able to easily recall the web address later.
Combining the right email address with the right website domain is like a happy marriage. JohnSmith@MoneyManInc.com reminds me of the gentleman's name and that he does something with money. I don't have to put much effort into remembering the email domain. Plus if I ever need to go to his website I likely have it right in front of me in the email address.
I have two email addresses. My primary is tracy@tracywpender.com and secondary is tracypender@realtyexecutives.com. The secondary identifies me and what I do. The primary establishes my identity outside of my firm (if I'm no longer with Realty Executives two years from now I want any past contacts to still have the ability to reach me) and identifies my personal website, www.tracywpender.com. I'm sure I could have done something simpler, but tracypender.com wasn't available and tracywilliamspender.com is way too much. The idea is to start somewhere. In the future I hope to buy variations of my name (traceywpender.com for example) and point them to my page. But so far there haven't been any issues.
The point is to keep it simple. If people can't get your email address or website right they'll start searching
the web or reach out to someone else. You wouldn't want to miss out on anything because you got too creative, would you?
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