Replying to customers from mike@yourbusiness.com looks a lot more professional than mikeplumbing247@gmail.com. The good news: you don't need a new email app. You can send from your custom address right inside Gmail.
What you need before you start
Just two things, and I'll send you both:
- Your custom email address (e.g., you@yourbusiness.com)
- The password for it
I set up the mailbox on my end — you just handle the Gmail side below.
Set it up (about 5 minutes)
- Open Gmail on your computer — the phone app won't work for this; use a browser.
- Click the gear icon (top right) → See all settings.
- Go to the Accounts and Import tab.
- Under "Send mail as," click Add another email address.
- Enter the name you want clients to see (e.g., "Mike's Plumbing") and your email address (you@yourbusiness.com). Leave "Treat as an alias" checked → click Next Step.
- Fill in your mail server details:
- SMTP Server: yourbusiness.com
- Username: your full email address (you@yourbusiness.com)
- Password: the mailbox password I sent you
- Port: 465, with SSL selected
- Click Add Account.
- You should see a success message. Now you need to confirm the address: go to yourbusiness.com/webmail in your browser and log in with your full email address and the password I sent you. Find the confirmation email from Google and click the link inside. (It can take a few minutes to arrive — check the spam folder too.)
- Done! You're ready to send from your custom address.
Sending your first email
When you compose a message in Gmail, you'll now see a From dropdown at the top — pick your custom address, and your client never sees your personal Gmail.
Tip: to make it your default, go back to Settings → Accounts and Import → "Send mail as" → click make default next to your custom address.
If something goes wrong
- No confirmation email? It can take a few minutes to arrive. Check the spam folder in webmail too.
- "Authentication failed"? The password was probably mistyped — try entering it again carefully, or ask me to reset it.
- Emails landing in spam? Just let me know — it's a quick fix on my end.