Just the way we know web hosting is a way to get business, organization, etc.., online and out into the world. The same applies to email hosting, but in this case, it is used to manage and store the business’s and organizations’ communications that are online.
Email hosting is a service that provides businesses and organizations with the infrastructure and tools to manage their email accounts using their domain names (e.g., yourname@yourdomain.com) rather than relying on generic email services like Gmail or Yahoo.
With Email hosting, you can create and manage customized email accounts using your domain name. It involves the storage, transmission, and management of emails on servers owned or leased by the hosting provider.
Email hosting gives you a more professional and branded email presence while providing the features and security necessary for reliable email communication. It’s an essential component for businesses and organizations looking to maintain control over their email communications and brand identity.
in this article, you will learn everything there is to know about email hosting and how to get started in Nigeria. Let’s kick off..
How Does Email Hosting Work?
Before you can set up email hosting in Nigeria, you need to choose an email hosting provider. Popular options include Google Workspace, and Microsoft 365, but all these top-notch email hosting companies are expensive and require some level of advanced technical knowledge to operate.
With the help of local web hosting companies like WebManager.NG and others. Businesses and organizations can get the email hosting that suits their needs and budget.
These days, there is hardly anyone who doesn’t use email. Most individuals use free email hosting providers from Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft, but these won’t help if you intend to use them for your business or whatever reason you need an online presence.
While these popular options are great for personal use, it’s not that great for professional use. A free email hosting service comes with security limitations, and it’s not advisable even for small businesses.
Email hosting gives you some personalization elements, like a custom domain name, among others. This is done to give you a professional email address similar to your company’s name.
An email hosting service provider gives you server space to store your emails and grants you access to a domain name of your choice. What’s best is you can use your own domain name for the email hosting account.
Through the client area, issued by your email hosting provider, you will get access to your emails, alongside easy-to-follow documentation on how to set up your account to receive and send emails.
Once configured, your email hosting works like any other free email account from Microsoft, Google, and Yahoo. Suppose you don’t want to tamper with setting up your email client, you can access the webmail online application from your email hosting provider, using only your username and password.
With this straightforward process, you’ll have an active email account in a few minutes, and then you can start creating folders and rules for your emails
Advantages of Email Hosting
Email hosting offers several key advantages such as:
- Professionalism: Custom email addresses enhance your professional image.
- Branding: Reinforce your brand identity through custom domain email.
- Control: You have control over your email data and settings.
- Security: Email hosting Providers offer robust security features like spam filters and encryption.
- Scalability: Easily add or remove email accounts as your organization grows.
- Customization: Tailor email settings and features to your needs.
- Reliability: Email hosting services provide higher uptime and reliability compared to free email services.
How to set up Email Hosting
To get started with email hosting first;
- Register a domain name if you don’t already have one.
- Sign up for your chosen email hosting provider.
- Verify domain ownership to use your domain with the provider.
Subsequently, if you intend to go with WebManager.NG’s email hosting service, use this simple guide to get started.
Other important components of Email Hosting are:
Configuring DNS Records
DNS (Domain Name System) configuration is crucial for email hosting. You’ll need to set up DNS records like MX (Mail Exchange) and SPF (Sender Policy Framework) to direct email traffic to your hosting provider and enhance security.
Managing Email Clients
Configure email clients to connect to your hosting provider’s servers. You’ll need to input server settings (IMAP, SMTP), email addresses, and passwords.
Enhancing Security
Implement security features provided by your hosting provider, such as spam filtering, encryption, and antivirus scanning. These measures help protect your email communications.
Creating Email Accounts
After domain verification, create email accounts for your organization. This typically involves defining user accounts, assigning email addresses (e.g., info@yourdomain.com), and setting up email clients like Outlook or Thunderbird.
Backup and Recovery
Regularly back up email data to prevent data loss and enable recovery in case of issues. Email hosting providers are supposed to offer built-in backup solutions, but in case you are using or searching and found a hosting provider that doesn’t offer backup and recovery, don’t hesitate to visit WebManager.NG for the most efficient and reliable hosting services.
Scalability and Customization
As your organization grows or changes, you can easily scale your email hosting service. You can also customize settings and features to meet your specific needs.
Options that come with Email Hosting
Why email hosting is necessary for your business is that it offers several options to aid smooth business operations; several of them include:
Online Archiving
With email hosting, you have access to online email archives that give you a historical record of all your business communications. It depends on the kind of service offered by the hosting provider, but a minimum of five to ten years of backups is supposed to be given, which you can access directly via your client area.
Multiple Mailboxes
Even if it’s a small business I am sure you are considering the possibility of growing your business, since that’s the case, you should opt for a service that will offer your business the ability to create mailboxes easily.
Ensure your email hosting provider gives you all the mailboxes you need to support your operations. WebManager.NG provides large amounts of mailboxes even on its cheapest web hosting plans.
Most times businesses use separate mailboxes to categorize their emails based on business functions. You can have an admin mailbox for website and service queries, a billing mailbox for payments and accounts, an info mailbox for general communications, and a bulk mailer address for advertising and campaigns.
Bundle Deals
A service provider offering web, domain, and email hosting like WebManager.NG in one package, will give you better pricing than if you purchased each service separately.
Room to grow
You never know exactly how much email storage or how many mailboxes you’ll need for your business, but with email hosting, multiple email addresses can smooth-run your business operations and improve your business reputation. Don’t worry, the email accounts will automatically add up.
Why do you Need Email Hosting for Business?
Email hosting plans cover many angles that a free email service can’t.
A customized email name based on your business domain name showcases your business, with a customized business name on the email address, customers or visitors won’t undermine your credibility.
Another critical factor to consider is expansion. As your business grows, you should reserve the communication aspect (email) to a specific person or department, for example, sales@yourbusiness.com or info@yourbusiness.com.
Whether you want to get all your online services bundled from a single provider or have a favorite email hosting provider separate from your web host, there’s a business email solution just for you.
Now that you know everything about email hosting all you have to do is to get started!
