E is for Email

This one is very important, so pay attention. Email is the single most important tool that you will use in your new virtual office. You will use it for communication, record keeping and scheduling. The biggest and best free e-mail providers are yahoo, hotmail, and google’s gmail.
Even if you already have an e-mail address, you really should set up a separate e-mail account for your work at home. You are less likely to miss important messages from clients when they are not mixed in the same inbox as your friends' forwards and your J Crew e-catalog subscription right? At first, you probably won't have your own domain. However, when you do, I recommend utilizing an e-mail address at your domain. E.G. My work and my assistants' addresses are all @virtualitassistants.com.

Suggestions for choosing your email provider and address:

1. Look for a service that gives you lots of space.


2. Utilize the calendar and keep track of appointments and schedule updates for clients.


3. If you don't have an e-mail address through your web host, then choose one of the free e-mail providers above, but choose a professional username. It'd be difficult to take seriously someone with an e-mail address like: "cutie25@mail.com" or "love-to-shop@hotmail.com". Use something like "firstname.lastname@gmail.com"

See what I mean? :)