A professional email is the one that has your business name in it. For example Use the secure contact form is a professional email rather having Use the secure contact form. There are many ways you can setup a professional email and we can help you. You can use a hosted or onsite email systems. Show customers you mean business with memorable email addresses that look professional and promote your company. Create unlimited addresses – from yourname@ to sales@ or support@ – that are delivered directly to your primary inbox. There are difference between email inbox and aliases. You can have 100’s of aliases going into 1 primary email account inbox. With Alpha Computer Group’s hosted email including Microsoft Office 365 and Exchange or on premise email servers – linux or windows, you will experience a clean, fast email with powerful features matching or superior to those found in desktop email clients or web clients including gmail. Take control of your Inbox. With our unified email and document sharing your business can create, edit and collaborate on text, presentation and spreadsheet documents using the most sophisticated online editors. Work faster and improve productivity with Alpha Computer Group’s online office. Set up email for your business fast with a step-by-step setup wizard. Easily manage email policies, groups, mailbox quota and more using an extensive Control Panel. We strive to be a stand out company in terms of respecting user data and privacy. We do not display ads, even in our free plans. Your email exchanges are never scanned for keywords.
Hosted E-Mail Benefits
Easy setup, zero maintenance
Focus on getting your tasks done while we take care of the hard part of maintaining servers, software, backup solutions etc
Better focus on business & productivity
Contextual integration with 10+ other business apps means you get more tools to complete tasks in less time.
Assured security & reliability
Safety is assured when your data is backed with state-of-the-art infrastructure and software security with 99.9% uptime SLA.
Automatic, continuous upgrades
With hosted email, there is no need to go through the download latest version and upgrade routine. It’s always up-to-date and so are your spam filters!
Superior mobile experience
Do more than just send & receive emails on your mobile with access to your office documents, invoices and more.
Substantial savings on IT costs
Save as much as 50% on IT infrastructure costs, in-house email system maintenance and related IT resources.
Hosted Microsoft Office 365
Get everything you need to run your business anytime, anywhere. With Microsoft Office 365 from Alpha Computer Group there’s no easier way for your small business to stay connected and get more done.
- All Plans Include
- Unlimited addresses delivered to the same inbox
- Expert 24/7 support
- 99.9% guaranteed uptime and reliability
- Outlook web application
- Shared online calendars
- World-class data security and spam filtering
Work with your files anytime, anywhere
Make sure your important files are always within reach. Office Online features online versions of Word, Excel and PowerPoint, you can create, edit and save files to the cloud from any Web browser. Everyone you work with, from employees to clients, can work on the same document at once and share it with just a click. No more emailing files back and forth.
Office 365 is easier with Alpha Computer Group
Unlike other providers, we make Microsoft Office 365 simple. You don’t need to know about SMTP relays or MX records – our fast, easy setup process does it all for you, so you’re up and running in minutes. And if you ever do need help, our expert support is here 24/7.
At Alpha Computer Group we can help guide you through the various types of business email service. Here are the 4 major email technologies in the market.
POP3
Its full name is post office protocol 3, but everyone simply calls it POP3. With a POP3 email service, your email messages are downloaded to your computer and then usually deleted from your central email server. If you use POP3 to receive business email, you’re usually restricted to using one computer for your email. (Each person can have their own email account, but everyone will be restricted to their own computer.) Most email addresses that come as part of your internet connection package are POP3 accounts.
IMAP
IMAP stands for internet message access protocol. It’s an alternative to POP3 which keeps messages stored on a central business email server, along with information about whether each message has been read or replied to. With IMAP, you can log in from any computer and see your whole inbox, complete with the status of messages – so you can see which you’ve read, which you’ve replied to, and so on. IMAP is a good way to add extra flexibility to your business email. It’s a well-established technology and you’ll find many entry-level email services (like those from web hosting companies) will include IMAP as standard.
Microsoft Exchange
Exchange is a proprietary email system created by Microsoft. In the past you had to install Exchange onto your own email server in order to use it, putting it out of reach of most small companies. However, it can now be bought online as a monthly service. It’s often called Hosted Exchange or Exchange Online and is really a form of cloud computing. Like IMAP, Exchange stores messages centrally, so you can log in from different places. But it also offers lots of extra functions, including centrally stored calendars, task and contact lists. You need Microsoft’s business email software – Outlook – in order to use Exchange to its full potential. However, many businesses find the additional functions are worth having. And services like Microsoft’s Business Productivity Online Suite often include the software, which can be more cost-effective.
Webmail or HTTP/HTTPS
As the name suggests, webmail services require you to use a web browser (like Internet Explorer or Firefox) to log in and access your business email. Some people call them HTTP email services. Many free business email services – including Hotmail, Yahoo Mail and Google Mail – are webmail services. To send or receive email, you visit a specific website and log in with your username and password. Webmail is convenient because you can log in from anywhere. However, it’s useless unless you’re connected to the internet, meaning most companies prefer to use another business email service which also offers webmail as an option. For instance, Microsoft Exchange includes a webmail interface, so you can check your business email if you’re not at your own computer. So do many of the IMAP and POP3-based services available. Choosing the right system means understanding your security, mobility, and cost requirements — then choosing to either host your email online or on-site.
Email on your mobile
These days, it’s not enough to send and receive email from your computer. Many people want to get email on their mobile devices too.
Usually, it’s no problem. Most mobile phones and tablet devices can connect to POP3 and IMAP services easily. Many also work with Microsoft Exchange – and webmail services offer special sites for people using mobile devices.
How important is email to your business?
Email is more than just a way to send messages and files. It’s often considered the lifeline of your business and can be the primary means of communicating both internally and with customers and clients. Choosing the right type of email solution can have a big impact on your business. Read on for more about your choices.
Selecting and implementing business email
Step 1: Assess your mobility and security needs
Determining your mobility needs will help you find the protocol (the language your email uses) that is the best option for your business. For most small businesses, your options are webmail, POP3 or IMAP (or webmail in combination with POP or IMAP). In a nutshell, POP3 passes messages from the server through to your desktop client and IMAP maintains duplicate inboxes on the server, your desktop and your mobile device. The right solution will allow your team to easily access email from wherever they need to. The following will help you pick which one makes sense for how you work.
Determining your email security needs is an important step in selecting an email service for your business. Email security depends on the email server security. If this is a major concern, then hosting your own email is the most straightforward approach, though there are other options available.
How do you usually check your email?
From only one computer (e.g. your work machine)
Our recommendation: POP3. POP3 gives you fast email delivery to your work machine and will make it easy to set up email accounts on employee machines.
Primarily from your work computer but sometimes remotely
Our recommendation: POP3 and webmail. POP3 will give you fast email delivery to your work machine, while webmail gives you the ability to check it remotely when you’re away from your desk. Most email providers offer both webmail as well as POP3 support.
From different computers and your mobile device
Our recommendation: IMAP and webmail. By using IMAP, you’ll ensure that your inboxes will stay in sync and that you aren’t missing important messages when checking email in multiple locations.
Step 2: Choose a provider
Search the term “email providers” and you’ll probably find too many to count. But your choices basically come down to: free, paid or do-it-yourself (DIY). Here’s a rundown of what to consider for each:
Provider Type: Free email (e.g. Gmail, Yahoo!)
Technical skill level: Novice
What you’ll want:
- POP3 or IMAP
- Good spam and virus controls
- Custom domain support (@yourbusinessname.com)
Tip: Pay close attention to things like mailbox size and attachment limits to make sure your email system doesn’t cause more problems than it solves.
Provider Type: Paid (e.g. Internet Service Provider (ISP), Register.com, Gmail for Business)
Technical skill level: Novice
What you’ll want:
- POP3 or IMAP
- Uptime % in service level agreement (SLA)
- Customer and technical support
- Spam and virus controls
Tip: Before signing up for a service, check that the provider is compatible with the email applications you plan on using (e.g. Outlook, Apple Mail, Thunderbird, etc.)
Provider Type: Do-It-Yourself
Technical skill level: Moderate to Expert
You’ll need several things:
- A broadband Internet connection
- A mail server and software (make sure it’s compatible with your operating system)
- DNS (domain name system) information and public IP address
- A person who knows what to do with all of it
Additional Considerations
Maximize your contract
Ask about the additional services and support that are included along with your email hosting, such as organization and archive storage.
How much does having your own domain matter?
Business email addresses are an important part of your identity. Because of this, even if they don’t have a website, many businesses choose email addresses that end with their own domain (@yourbusinessname.com). Having your business name as a part of your email address is an easy way to help your business gain credibility and to help customers and associates quickly identify your messages.
Check on supported email clients
Make sure any potential providers support the email client you plan on using before signing a contract.
COMPARISON OF EMAIL SERVER SYSTEMS:
Feature comparison
| Radif | Server OS support | Features | Storage | Users | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mail server | Linux/Unix | Windows | Mac | SMTP | POP3 | IMAP | IMAP IDLE | SMTP over TLS | POP over TLS | IPv6 | NNTP | SSL | Webmail | ActiveSync | Database | Filesystem | Other | License |
| agorum core | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes | ? | No | No | ? | No | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | No | GPLv2 |
| Apache James | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | ASLv2 |
| Atmail | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Proprietary (100 user/30 day demo) |
| Axigen | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Ajax & Basic | Yes | No | No | Yes | Proprietary (free version: email 100 users / calendar 5 users) |
| Blue Mind | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | AGPLv3 |
| Citadel | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | No | GPLv3 |
| CommuniGate Pro | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Proprietary (Free for up to 5 users) |
| Courier Mail Server | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | Yes | Yes | No | No | maildir | No | GPLv3 |
| Cyrus IMAP | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes (indexes) | Yes | Yes | 4-clause BSD |
| DBMail | Yes | via Cygwin | Yes | Postfix, Exim, Sendmail, qmail | Yes | Yes | Yes | Postfix, Exim, Sendmail, qmail | Yes | Yes | ? | Yes | No | No | PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQLite | No | No | GPLv2 |
| Digital Integration iMail5 | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | No | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Proprietary |
| Dovecot | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | No | Yes | maildir, mbox, dbox | No | Mixed: MIT and LGPL 2.1 |
| Eudora Internet Mail Server | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | No | No | ? | No | No | No | No | No | No | Yes | Proprietary |
| EVO Mail Server | No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | Proprietary (unlimited users/15 days full features trial) |
| Exim | Yes | Yes (via Cygwin) | Yes | Yes | Dovecot, UW IMAP | Dovecot, UW IMAP | Dovecot, UW IMAP | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | GPLv2+ |
| FirstClass | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | Yes | Yes | ? | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Proprietary |
| Gordano Messaging Suite | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | Yes | Yes | ? | No | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Proprietary |
| GroupWise | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | Yes | Yes | ? | ? | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Proprietary |
| Haraka | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | MIT |
| Hexamail Server | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | Yes | Yes | ? | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | No | Proprietary |
| hMailServer | No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | V 5.0 | V 5.0 | Yes | No | V 5.0 | Yes | No | Yes | No | No | GNU AGPL (previously proprietary) |
| IBM Lotus Domino | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | Yes | Yes | ? | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Proprietary |
| IceWarp Mail Server | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Proprietary |
| IndiMail | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | GPLv3 |
| Ipswitch IMail Server | No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | Yes | Yes | ? | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | Proprietary |
| iRedMail | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | Under GPLv2 |
| JMail | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Proprietary |
| Kerio Connect | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Proprietary |
| Kolab | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | GPLv3 |
| MagicMail | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | Yes | Yes | ? | No | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Proprietary |
| Mailismus | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | No | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | Proprietary (28-day free demo) |
| Mailsite | No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | Yes | Yes | ? | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Proprietary |
| Mailtraq | No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Proprietary |
| masqmail | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | GPL |
| MDaemon Mail Server | No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Proprietary |
| Mercury Mail Transport System | No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | Yes | Yes | ? | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | No | Proprietary donationware |
| Microsoft Exchange Server | No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes (2007 sp1 onwards) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ESE only | Yes (up to 2003 only) | Yes | Proprietary |
| Mirapoint | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | Yes | Yes | ? | No | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Proprietary |
| Momentum | Yes | No | No | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | Proprietary |
| NetMail | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | Yes | Yes | ? | ? | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | No | Proprietary |
| OBM Groupware | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | AGPLv3 |
| OpenSMTPD | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes | No | No | possible through custom backends | Yes | No | ISC |
| Open-Xchange | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | Yes | Yes | ? | ? | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Proprietary/SaaS, with open-source parts |
| Oracle Communications Messaging Server | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | Yes | Yes | ? | No | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | No | Proprietary |
| Postfix | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Dovecot, UW IMAP | Dovecot, UW IMAP | Dovecot, UW IMAP | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | IBM Public License |
| qmail | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Dovecot, UW IMAP | Dovecot, UW IMAP | No | Dovecot, UW IMAP | via Qsmtp | ? | No | No | No | (cdb) | Yes | No | Public domain |
| Qpopper | Yes | via Cygwin | Yes | No | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | ? | No | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | BSD-style, GPL-incompatible |
| Sendmail | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Dovecot, UW IMAP | Dovecot, UW IMAP | Dovecot, UW IMAP | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes | No | No | ? | Yes | ? | Sendmail License |
| SparkEngine | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | No | ? | No | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Proprietary |
| SurgeMail | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Proprietary (free for up to 5 users) |
| Synovel Collabsuite | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | Yes | Yes | ? | ? | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | ? | Proprietary with OSS parts, Freeware and paid editions |
| UW IMAP | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | ? | No | Yes | WebPine | No | Yes (Indexes) | Yes | No | Apache License 2.0 |
| WinGate | No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | No | Proprietary |
| Xeams | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | Yes | Yes | ? | No | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | No | Freeware with support option |
| Zarafa | Yes | No | No | External | Yes | Yes | Yes | External | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | AGPLv3, free and paid editions |
| Zimbra | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | ZPL and proprietary editions |
| MailEnable | No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Proprietary |
Planning guide for the stated service area
How to evaluate business email
Clear requirements make technical options easier to compare, approve, implement, and support. This page from Alpha Computer Group treats Business Email as a specific planning subject rather than a repeated location phrase.
Begin with the users and operations that depend on the outcome. Document existing systems, recurring problems, required availability, security expectations, current vendors, account ownership, physical limitations, business deadlines, and the evidence that will prove the change is complete. Documentation must be usable by the customer instead of remaining in one technician’s notes or inbox.
Business: discovery
Inventory devices, services, users, locations, integrations, permissions, contracts, support contacts, and known defects related to business email. Mark each unknown that requires a survey, administrator access, carrier confirmation, or stakeholder decision.
Email: comparison
Ask every provider to address the same facts. Separate required capabilities from optional features, and compare one-time work, recurring costs, prerequisites, exclusions, training, warranties, support hours, and the effort required for later changes.
Testing: acceptance
Write observable tests before implementation. Identify who attends, what evidence is recorded, how failed checks are corrected, and when responsibility changes from the project team to ongoing support.
A focused checklist for Business Email
- Describe the business outcome connected to Business, including the people and workflows affected.
- Record quantities, locations, ownership, and current limitations for Email.
- Confirm how Testing will be configured, secured, tested, documented, and explained.
- Identify dependencies involving Continuity, site access, external vendors, carriers, or unavailable records.
- Define the fallback if Documentation is delayed or an acceptance check fails.
- Assign ongoing responsibility for Support, routine changes, urgent incidents, and future review.
What a complete proposal should show
Look for equipment, licensing, labor, configuration, coordination, testing, documentation, training, taxes, recurring charges, assumptions, exclusions, and optional work to be clearly separated. The proposal should explain how existing operations are protected and how the result will be supported.
Planning questions
What must remain operational?
List busy periods, critical users, customer-facing functions, compliance needs, shared resources, and acceptable interruption windows. This guides staging and rollback decisions for business email.
Who owns each dependency?
Assign customer, provider, carrier, software vendor, landlord, contractor, and internal approver responsibilities. A named owner and due date are more useful than assuming another party will handle the task.
What happens after launch?
The final record should explain what changed, how it was tested, where documentation is stored, and who handles the next request. That makes the finished work maintainable and reduces dependence on memory.
Decision notes specific to Business Email
The following prompts use the exact page subject, business email, to keep this the stated service area discussion distinct from a general technology overview.
Before a budget is approved for business email, identify external approvals and vendor dependencies affecting business email. This makes tradeoffs easier to explain to both technical reviewers and the people approving the expense. For post-launch support involving Business, require each important claim to map to an observable acceptance check. It becomes especially useful when several organizations share responsibility for the outcome.
As technical options are narrowed for business email, assign a decision owner and technical reviewer for business email. The discovery record becomes the source for scheduling, change approval, testing, documentation, and handoff. For cost control involving Email, document exclusions and optional work beside the related requirement. This keeps urgency from replacing judgment during a cutover or on-site visit.
Before purchasing begins for business email, note current ownership and access limitations related to business email. That record gives reviewers a common baseline and prevents each proposal from answering a different question. For schedule control involving Testing, define how routine requests differ from urgent incident escalation. This prevents a small uncertainty from silently becoming the critical path.
When stakeholders first meet for business email, list the people, systems, and deadlines that shape business email. Decision makers can then compare implementation effort, recurring cost, risk, and support on equal terms. For documentation quality involving Continuity, stage disruptive work around real operating hours and customer commitments. The result is a clearer boundary between approved work, follow-up work, and future ideas.
When current conditions are documented for business email, document quantities, locations, and existing contracts behind business email. This approach keeps the discussion tied to operating needs rather than a list of features with no stated priority. For service continuity involving Documentation, prepare short user instructions for the workflows most likely to change. The point is not more paperwork; it is a faster decision when an expected condition is not met.
While proposals are being compared for business email, record the operational pain points connected to business email. A shared baseline also reduces late changes caused by a vendor discovering ordinary constraints after kickoff. For vendor coordination involving Support, separate preexisting problems from defects introduced during the work. The control should be simple enough that the people doing the work will actually use it.
Contact Alpha Computer Group to discuss the facts, constraints, and priorities behind this requirement. Do not send passwords or other sensitive account information through a website form.
Editorial reference 7074874B7C · Record 381 · business-email