Can using AOL email address on resume send a wrong message?

[rdb4133]

The old pre iCloud MobileMe domain was great for this... You could have flingpoo@me.com, for example.

LOL... :biggrin:

 

[OutHouse]

lol, what's your's? mb@momsbasement.putz :biggrin:

hahahah

 

[airdata]

Using a @aol.com on a resume is horrid...

I see people my company does business with using aol as their main email and it kind of makes me giggle because yes it sends a horrible message. Only somebody very old and not with the times would use a @aol email address.

I've even seen people say that you shouldn't use yahoo or gmail on resume's

 

[BurnItDwn]

people will assume you are of extremely low intellect if you use an aol.com email address.

 

[MotionMan]

Find a service like this for e-mail instead of urls.

aol.com e-mail addresses are for old people. I have been trying for years to get my parents off aol to use anything else; gmail, their ISP or the domain I own (I already have forward set up for them, so some people already know that address).

MotionMan

 

[SaDiZTiKStyLeZ]

@aol means not tech savvy.
@hotmail.com could mean old school or hasn't kept up with the times
@gmail.com seems to give a better impression
@yahoo.com - eh...either way
@domain.com - best impression

This.

Any time I see anything other than @gmail or @domain, I have trouble taking person seriously.

I keep an @gmail just for business -professional purposes only.

I'd go custom domain, but when looking for a job, I need to make money, not spend it.
Maybe one day, but not currently a top priority.

 

[Atomic Playboy]

Using an AOL address sends the correct message: I fail at life, please don't hire me, it's sheer dumb luck that I didn't park my car in your lobby on my way here.

 

[BrokenVisage]

If you're applying for a job with AOL.... then yeah, even then they'll toss your resume.

 

[Childs]

Why exactly is gmail considered cool? My mom created her own gmail account and still thinks she needs to be at her computer to check her email. As long as local or domain parts are not retarded, it shouldn't be a problem.

 

[Juked07]

Can't construct a rational story for why gmail gives a better impression than other domains, but it does.

 

[DesiPower]

How about live? that's another that I can use...

 

[Doppel]

I would frankly look down on an applicant because of that email address and I am dead serious. For a tech job it would be damn near a killer. It's kind of like sending in a paper resume printed on a dot matrix.

 

[Dr. Zaus]

I would frankly look down on an applicant because of that email address and I am dead serious. For a tech job it would be damn near a killer. It's kind of like sending in a paper resume printed on a dot matrix.

...actually, That could be kinda cool...

unlike @aol

@live is ok.

 

[RossMAN]

How about live? that's another that I can use...

Why are you so against using your own @domain.com?

Nothing projects a more professional and independent image.

 

[OVerLoRDI]

It depends on your age. If older, the younger generation may give you a pass on it. If you are in your 20s, I see it as a complete lack of any technology competence.

 

[Broheim]

http://theoatmeal.com/comics/email_address

 

[VirtualLarry]

What about netzero e-mails?

What about ISP e-mails, like Verizon or Comcast?

 

[Red Squirrel]

Register your own domain for $10.69/yr and look more professional/uber nerd?

Whateveryouwant@yourdomain.com = win?

This. It's not hard.

I find using any free email in a professional situation makes you look unprofessional. gmail and stuff is fine for friends and family but use something more professional for work.

The fun thing with having your own domain is you can have any email address you want. firstname@ first.last@, penis@ etc.

If you do use your own domain also make sure that if there's a website at it, that it's something you want the employer to see. They may check it out of curiosity.

 

[airdata]

Can't construct a rational story for why gmail gives a better impression than other domains, but it does.

Alot of corporations use google mail services. That they offer such enterprise services could aid it's perception. Yahoo is just free mail.

 

[MotionMan]

Find a service like this for e-mail instead of urls

To respond to my own challenge:

http://www.roadragecards.com/freeemail.htm

MotionMan

 

[MotionMan]

It is really very simple:

It was NEVER cool to have an aol.com e-mail address. When AOL members were unleashed on the Internet at large, it was a huge cluster-f of ALL CAPS, chain e-mails and "How do I get off this mailing list"?

When Gmail was introduced, it was cool - You needed an invite to get past the velvet rope. Most of the early Gmailers were in IT, so people had the impression (correct at the time) that someone with a gmail.com address had a higher level of tech understanding. Though no longer true, that impression still gives gmail.com some Gravitas.

Yahoo.com was/is somewhere in between aol.com and gmail.com, but closer to aol.com.

Hotmail.com was/is also somewhere in between aol.com and gmail.com, but it is hard to pigeon-hole - Some hotmail users are old IT guys and some of just old; there is not a lot in the middle (like with gmail.com).

Again, it is mostly about impressions based on history, not necessarily current facts.


My main account is on my own domain and I have never had anyone look down their nose at me when I give it out. I also have the following available, but rarely give them out:

@gmail.com (A number of them that forward to my main account)
@alumni.<undergrad>.edu (Forward only)
@alumni.<law school>.edu (Forward only)
@yahoo.com
@hotmail.com
@excite.com
@me.com
@sudhian.com (I was a hardware reviewer)
@facebook.com (FB Message only)
@cia.com (Forward only)

I am sure there are others out there that I have forgotten (any suggestions?). (I think I had a netscape.com address at one time, but I cannot seem to retrieve it.)

MotionMan

 

[JohnnyChuttz]

I didn't even know AOL gave out email address anymore.

Just signed up just for junk/troll people.

 

[yinan]

I wouldn't hire anyone using one.

 

[MotionMan]

I wouldn't hire anyone using one.

I would not go that far, but it should would make an interesting topic in the interview.

MotionMan

 

[Texashiker]

When Gmail was introduced, it was cool - You needed an invite to get past the velvet rope. Most of the early Gmailers were in IT, so people had the impression (correct at the time) that someone with a gmail.com address had a higher level of tech understanding. Though no longer true, that impression still gives gmail.com some Gravitas.

And, the early adopters where verified by google.

When you signed up for a gmail account, google sent a code to your cell phone. You had to use that code to verify your account.

So not only were you invited, but google also verified your account with a phone number.