Email address discrimination?

A few of my favorite marketing and social media pals were twittering about a good lifehacker.com article re: how your email address affects your personal brand.

• The username you select is vastly more important than the provider you use. Firstname.lastname@aol.com is preferred to and more respectable than sexkitten2010@aol.com—cutesy, offensive, or unprofessional nicknames are big mistakes.
• Domains are important, especially in technology-related fields. An AOL address might be just as serviceable as any other address when it comes to sending and receiving mail but to most people in tech fields it says "Hi. I'm from 1996. What is this internet you speak of?"
• More concerning than people using inappropriate emails handles on their resumes? Businesses that don't have their own domain and personalized email. SomeCompany@sbcglobal.net or SomeDude2049@yahoo.com were huge turn offs to readers and many expressed that they would question the professionalism of a company with such an unpolished image and do business elsewhere.

Click here to read the full article.

This is something we covered in The Savvy Gal's Guide to Online Networking (or What Would Jane Austen Do?) and I would add one factor the article didn't discuss with regard to using an AOL address: it could lead to subtle age discrimination, especially for job-seekers.  Using an AOL address sets off flags that not only does the person have minimal technology skills, they are likely a BabyBoomer requiring extra training in technology, especially if the HR person receiving your information is under 40.  

Yes, it is a hassle to switch over to something new and I'm personally not a huge fan of gmail (but I use it).  However, I recommend that job hunters do the same to put yourself on equal footing. We all know it's a tough job market out there, so don't put yourself out of the running with your "from" line.