Why Choosing the Right E-Mail Protocol Can Make a Difference in Your Business
In technology, it's customary for progress and tradition to clash. Often the stakes are high. E-mail is no exception.
On the side of tradition there is the
POP3 Protocol, an old but reliable way of delivering E-mail.
It is still the most common protocol. But it has inherent flaws, and those flaws are compelling many
organizations to look for better ways to handle and organize their E-mail — ways that simplify, save
money and reduce the time it takes to organize the many messages coming across the typical desk at
the typical company. One alternative that's gaining an increasing amount of attention is IMAP, or
Internet Message Access Protocol.
IMAP is a Client E-mail Protocol with a sophisticated but easy-to-use capacity to share, organize,
and enable flexible access to multiple users. To an increasing number of organizations IMAP is the
next step in E-mail.
Basic differences Between POP3 Email Hosting and IMAP Email Hosting
To understand the advantages of IMAP Email Hosting, it's necessary to know the way E-mail is sent and stored.
When Jane the sales manager sends an E-mail to Sam the salesman, it goes from Jane's mail client on her
computer to a sending SMTP Server, a computer connected to the Internet that's dedicated to storing and
forwarding E-mail. SMTP Servers work in conjunction with POP3 or IMAP. Once the mail is sent, it's the
job of the Sending SMTP Server to deliver the message to Sam's Receiving SMTP Server or queue that
message in case the receiving server is unavailable. Once the SMTP Server accepts the message it is then
forwarded to the appropriate mailbox. There are two ways to handle the final delivery. This is where IMAP Email Hosting and POP3 Email Hosting differ significantly.
Even after Sam reads the E-mail, IMAP makes sure it stays on the server. POP3, however, downloads all
waiting messages to Sam's desktop computer, deleting everything from the server.
So in practical terms, what is the difference? Why are companies switching to
IMAP Email Hosting? It's a matter of
simplification, organization and flexibility. As E-mail becomes more of a contact-management and
organization tool it becomes essential to make sure it is stored and organized in ways that make sense.
Seamless Cooperation
Let's go back to Jane and Sam. As we noted, if Sam is using IMAP Email Hosting, his E-mail stays on the server. Now he can go back and view all his messages from Jane and anybody else from any computer at any location — from the airport, from his desk at work, or from his house while he's watching the game. But if he's using POP3, his downloaded E-mail is stuck in his computer at work. It's unavailable, unless he's sitting at his desk.
To be fair, it is possible to leave mail on the server when using a POP3 Client. But there is no concurrent ability to share or create folders on the server — which means you still need to deal with CCing messages and all the mess that entails. And IMAP's ability to allow the creation of folders provides more power and flexibility in business processes as well.
IMAP also allows businesses to better utilize their bandwidth by providing a client mail program with an outline of complex MIME messages without requiring's client for viewing.
Concrete Differences
To give a concrete example of how IMAP Email Hosting can make life easier, let's again consider Jane and Sam. One particular day they receive in their E-mail Inbox a bid from a prospect to buy their new widgets for $15 per 1,000. Jane writes back and says they are interested, but only at $17.50 each. Jane then goes into a meeting. Sam, on a trip, logs in from a computer across the country, sees the offer, sees that it has been read and replied to, and so he then opens the body of the reply to see what Jane proposed and where the deal stands. Sam now knows everything. The communication is seamless. If this exchange had taken place on a POP3 Email Hosting Account, Sam would have seen the original offering from the client but would not have seen that it had been read, or replied to, and would not have seen the content of the reply. Or he would still, to this day, be wading through a convoluted list of "CC" messages.
The lesson: The ability to see a record of E-mail activity from any computer is often as important as the availability of the messages themselves, both in sharing mailboxes and in individual use. IMAP Email Hosting offers this.
POP3 Email Hosting does not.
Additional IMAP Email Hosting Advantages
With POP3 Email Hosting, the client is responsible for backup. With IMAP Email Hosting the E-mail Host Provider handles backup, though you can also do it if you wish. Businesses that use POP3 Email Hosting must constantly ask themselves: Do we have the resources to back up our E-mail daily? There is also the matter of security. If an employee leaves he or she can, because of the way POP3 works, delete all the E-mails in their computer — which can be a problem. Not so with IMAP, since messages are backed up by your E-Mail Host Provider.
The logic of IMAP's displayed record of email activity, called "flagging," extends to the ability to tailor accounts by creating folders to organize and store E-mail of various types and importance. Through the capacity to create folders, one can organize incoming and outgoing messages very specifically. E-mails from, or sent to, particular addresses or sets of addresses can be automatically funneled into custom folders. In this way one can keep E-mail from different projects, interests, organizations or relationships separate, without creating separate E-mail Accounts. This eliminates another layer of complexity. Single E-mail Addresses may be used for multiple purposes.
IMAP Email Hosting—The Bottom line
When client mail users switch from POP3 to IMAP they do not switch back. They love the flexibility, convenience and efficiency of IMAP Email Hosting. Conclusion: IMAP Email Hosting raises the bar for E-mail and makes a bottom-line difference in business.
Getting started with IMAP Email Hosting
IMAP Email Hosting requires no additional hardware or software. You do not need a server at your location. Simply look for a professional E-Mail Hosting Provider that supports the IMAP4 Protocol. Not all do, but the forward-looking ones certainly do. Also look for additional services such as Spam Filtering, Virus Protection, Backup Services, and E-mail Archiving. Ask for references. Look for a company with a wealth of experience — a company that focuses on IMAP E-mail rather than Web Hosting.
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