Changing your email address doesn't HAVE to be a nightmare!

How to Transition to a New Business Email Address Without Losing Clients or Communication

Switching your business email address (especially when it involves changing your domain) can feel risky. You worry about missing important messages, confusing clients, or creating a ripple effect of broken contact forms and outdated signatures.

But the truth is, with a bit of planning and the right strategy, transitioning from an address like you@oldcompany.com to something fresh like you@newcompany.com can be smooth, professional, and even an opportunity to reinforce your brand.

Here’s how to do it the right way.

Why You Might Want to Make the Switch

There are plenty of good reasons to update your business email:

• You’ve rebranded or renamed your company.
• You’re consolidating under a stronger, more secure domain.
• You’re moving away from shared email services and gaining full control.
• You want a more professional or localized domain name (like .ca for Canadian businesses).

Whatever your reason, the key is ensuring your clients follow you and nothing falls through the cracks.

Step-by-Step: Making a Seamless Transition

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0. Make sure you know what you need before you proceed

You will need access to BOTH email inboxes for 60 to 90 days, because during the transition, people WILL still be sending email to the old address. 3 months should be enough time to notify (at least) your most frequent clients that the email address is changing.  However, if you only communicate with some clients, once a year, you may need a longer transitioning period.  The amount of crossover time is completely dependent on the type of communication you have with your existing business clients.

1. Set Up the New Email and Forwarding

Start by setting up your new email address.  If your domain is changing, this will require acquiring a new domain name, and setting it up on the new (or existing) mail server, and waiting for domain propagation to fully complete (24 hours is usually enough).

Make sure the server and new email address is functioning by sending an email to it. Check that the email lands safely. Then, set up automatic forwarding from your old email to your new one.

This ensures you continue receiving any messages sent to the old address—even after the transition begins.

2. Set Up your email client to pick up email from the NEW server address

Once the auto-forwarding has been established, set up your email client (Phone, Outlook, etc) to receive mail from the new address.  At this point you are probably safe to remove the old email address from your mail client.

2. Phase the Transition Over 60 to 90 Days

Changing your email overnight can be jarring for clients. Instead, roll it out gradually:

• Month 1: Begin sending emails from your new address and inform clients of the change.
• Month 2: Keep both addresses alive, and keep forwarding active. and remind clients in your signature.
• Month 3: Set an auto-reply on your old address and fully switch to the new one.

3. Let Clients Know Clearly and Professionally

Here’s a sample announcement email you can tweak:

Subject: We’ve Updated Our Email Address

Hi [Client Name],

We’ve updated our email address to better reflect our brand.

Our new address is: you@newcompany.com

You can still reach us at our old address for now, but we encourage you to update your contacts going forward.

Thanks for staying connected,
— [Your Name]
[Your Company Name]

In addition to the email blast, update your email signature, set an auto-responder on the old account, and mention the change during phone calls and in-person meetings.

4. IMPORTANT! Update Your Contact Info Everywhere

Once your new email is active, update it across all your platforms:

• Website contact forms and footers
• Google My Business
• Social media bios
• CRM and invoicing systems
• Digital brochures, contracts, and templates
• Business cards and print materials

A missed update here can lead to confusion or lost messages.

5. Monitor and Follow Up

Check your old inbox regularly to ensure you’re catching any stray emails. Keep forwarding active for at least 6–12 months. And take note of which clients are still replying to the old address... you may need to follow up with them directly.

At the end of the day...

A business email transition is more than just an address change... it’s a moment to reinforce your brand, improve your professionalism, and tidy up digital loose ends. When done right, your clients will barely notice the switch… except that your business will look sharper and more intentional than ever.

Need help transitioning to a new email address, setting up forwarding or managing DNS records like SPF and DKIM? Talk to us!  We can help you make a smooth transition.

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