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Email for a small business: your own domain, explained

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A paper envelope with a postage stamp and a round tag showing an @ symbol.

An address like hello@yourbusiness.com.au looks more professional than a free webmail address, and it stays yours if you change email provider. Here's how it fits together, in plain words.

1. Three separate pieces

  • The domain name: the yourbusiness.com.au part. You register it through a registrar and renew it regularly.
  • Email hosting: the service that actually stores and sends your mail. It might come with your web hosting, or be a separate service.
  • DNS records: settings attached to your domain that tell the internet where your email and website live.

They can all be with one company or with different ones. Keeping the domain in your own name means you can move your email or website later without losing your address.

2. Registering a .au domain

In Australia, .au domains are managed by auDA. To register any .au name you need an "Australian presence", for example being an Australian citizen or permanent resident, or holding an Australian Business Number. Check auDA's rules before you register, and use an auDA-accredited registrar.

3. Choosing an email service

Generic things worth checking: - Storage per mailbox, and how many mailboxes or aliases (like accounts@) you get. - Whether it works with the apps and devices you already use. - Two-factor authentication for every mailbox (see our guide). - Spam and scam filtering. - How to export your mail if you leave. - Renewal terms and how to cancel. The ACCC has warned consumers about subscription traps.

4. Stopping people faking your address

The Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC) explains that email spoofing is when someone sends an email that pretends to come from your address, without hacking your account. Three DNS records help receiving mail systems spot fakes: - SPF lists the services allowed to send mail for your domain. - DKIM adds a digital signature to your outgoing mail. - DMARC ties the two together and tells other mail systems what to do with messages that fail the checks.

You don't need to understand the technical detail. The ACSC suggests talking to your service provider about adding SPF, DKIM and DMARC to your domain, and to your DNS provider too if that's a separate company. Include every service that sends mail as you, such as a newsletter tool or invoicing system.

5. Sending marketing emails? Know the Spam Act

If you send marketing emails or texts, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) says you must: - have the person's consent first, - identify you or your business as the sender, with your contact details, and - make it easy to unsubscribe. Unsubscribe requests must be honoured within 5 working days.

ACMA also says it's up to you to prove you have consent, so keep a record of who agreed, when and how. Read ACMA's guidance before your first newsletter.

The short version

  • Your domain, email hosting and DNS are three separate pieces.
  • Register the domain in your own name. .au names need an Australian presence.
  • Check mailboxes, two-factor, exports and renewal terms.
  • Ask your provider to set up SPF, DKIM and DMARC.
  • Follow ACMA's Spam Act rules: consent, identify yourself, easy unsubscribe.

We don't list prices here, because they change depending on where you are. Check the provider's own site for current prices and plans.

Sources

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