Tech

LET’S TALK ABOUT EMAIL ADDRESSES...

FREE ONE OR PAID FOR? James Flynn, Milborne Port Computers

Your email is just as important as any of your other IT services, so you will want to make sure you’re getting the best value for money, as well as the best possible service. There are lots of free email options out on the market (Gmail, Hotmail etc.), and those offered free by your ISP (BT, TalkTalk, Sky etc), but does it make sense to use them if you’re running a business or want to change your Internet Service Provider? Paying for an email service means that you can easily send & receive emails through your own domain name, so you can have a professional email address like yourname@yourdomain.com. It makes your company look professional, and it will make your service seem more credible.

If you’ve already got a website, then you should be able to get an email address to match. Don’t join those I’ve seen who advertise a website and then a free email address; it looks so tacky. If you pay to host your email through private server hosting, or through a service like Google Apps or Office 365 then you will also get a more reliable service compared to free email hosting. You will also have dedicated customer service and support; plus, the server you choose to host with most likely has higher security in place. Additionally, services like Office 365 offer extras such as cloud storage, and email access on the go, which can be particularly useful if you need to access your email remotely.

The big pro with a free service is that the service is free, and if you’re a small business which doesn’t rely heavily on emails to get in touch with clients or customers, then you can most likely get by for a while using a free email client. You don’t necessarily have to live with a @gmail.com or @hotmail.com domain either. Gmail easily lets you use their system to send emails from your own domain, however you need to have your domain set up to handle this. You can usually use the free email services that your DNS offers (usually limited to one free email address) to set up the initial server and then filter it through Gmail, Yahoo or whatever free service you want to use. However, these free services aren’t as secure, and you’ll have to live with adverts in and around your emails. What’s more, if you’re on a free service, then your email may not be routed with priority.

A word of warning if you have an email address provided through your Internet Service Provider (such as BT, Talk Talk or Sky), if you change your provider for a better deal, which we would encourage you to do, then you run the risk of losing that email address when you swap, or having to start paying monthly to keep it going. If you’re a small business, the attraction of a free email service might be the fact that you don’t have to deal with the cost of running an email server. However, it can cost very little to host email. Some private servers can cost just a few pounds a month, and full packages such as Google Apps or Office 365 cost between £5 and £10 per month, so cost should never be a factor when it comes to ensuring the best email service for you! The choice as always, is yours, but if you think you need advice, you know where to come.

STUCK IN THE WEB

Laura Staples, Partner Head of Private Client, Humphries Kirk

Online accounts can lead to unexpected difficulties after a death. Social media can provide reminders of memories which may be comforting but can also cause distress. These include invites to events or suggestions to you to ‘help them celebrate’ a birthday. These reminders come regularly and have caused some to turn away from social media.

If you have chosen to prepare, you can deactivate your account during your lifetime. Some will not have time or the opportunity to do this. It is important to know what can be done after someone dies.

Facebook have provision for a ‘legacy contact’, someone you nominate during your lifetime to look after a memorialised account. They can accept or respond to friend requests, post a tribute or change a profile picture. The security and settings determine what can happen. Once Facebook are notified of a death the word ‘remembering’ appears on your profile and you will not appear on ‘people you may know’ or ‘birthday’ reminders. You can choose for your Facebook account to be permanently deleted. These options require a decision about your digital profile before you have died.

Twitter allows someone authorised to act on behalf of the estate or a family member to deactivate an account.

Instagram will memorialise an account upon receiving a valid request, and evidence of death. Family members or a legal representative of the estate can request an account be deleted, on evidence of the legal or personal relationship.

A digital Executor can be nominated, ideally the same as the Executors in a Will. A digital Executor should be given details of any online accounts. The details should not be contained in a Will as it eventually becomes a public document.

Making a Will and deciding how assets should be dealt with, is accepted. The rapid rise of online working and being ever more dependent on the internet, needs to be considered too. We can advise and assist you in planning how your digital and physical estates are managed after your death.

REFRESHINGLY HONEST AND TRUSTWORTHY

At Humphries Kirk, we like to keep it simple and we like to keep it personal. It’s an approach that has served us and our clients well, for almost 300 years.