If you've been around the internet for any length of time then you will have had some experience with an auto-responder. You may not have used one. However if you have ever entered your email for a newsletter, e-book give away or any sort of information then your name would most likely have been added to an auto responder.

If you have spent hours each day trying to deal with the amount of email coming through your business or if you are just getting started online then you will want to seriously consider using an auto responder for your online endeavors.

Emails are essential to your business for many diverse reasons. They provide feedback and sales as well as a way of building your reputation and impact.

The appalling truth is that people expect immediate replies to their email inquiries!

Can you believe that??

More than ever if is in regards to a product or service they have purchased from you. Customer service is paramount, especially if you are the customer.

You don't want them not returning to your site and complaining about you elsewhere online (or off) because you have not answered them in a timely manner.

However, unless you are a workaholic who can stand continual twenty-four hour stints at the keyboard, or can afford to hire workers to do it in shifts for you (which will eat into your profits) then your business will run into these issues very quickly.

Indeed, even if you do enjoy spending that many hours working at it, squandering that much time answering your emails won't allow you the time to effectively run the other areas of your business. This will cost you money also.

There is an answer!

An auto-responder is an economical - or even free means of quickly responding to emails. As its name suggests an auto-responder does just that - automatically responds to your incoming emails and inquiries as soon as they are received. You set them and forget them!

There is no end to the ways you can utilize an auto-responder besides for answering your email. For example, auto-responders can be used to send information about your products or services. You can send price lists, product images, catalogues, advice and tips. A series of articles, weekly lessons or coaching clinics can be sent via an auto-responder.

The amount of potential and type of things that can be handled by these email responders is virtually unlimited except by your imagination.

You should as a matter of course be capturing the names and email addresses of all visitors to your site in some form or another. These can also automatically be added to your auto-responder, again without you needing to enter them individually.

A good responder will give you the option of sending a confirmed opt-in anyone who signs up to your mailing list. This can avoid major issues with people claiming you are spamming them. It will also provide an option at the bottom of any email for people to take their names off your register. This is purely good customer service.

Once they are on your mailing list you should then always advertise your business and build good stable relationships with your customers and site visitors through regular contact in email.

One of the other major challenges in today's overloaded inbox's is email deliverability. In the last 12 -- 18 months this has become a huge issue online costing many businesses major dollars.

This subject alone makes an auto responder an essential part of your business development.

It has got to the point now if you want your emails to get to the customer then you will need to use an auto responder. Choosing which you use is up to you, dependant on what your business requires. It becomes a must -- not an option -- to have one.

You can find various free ones by doing a search on Google.

However if you want something that is keeping up with the changes in the email industry, has the ability to perform the services you require and is easy to use then you will want to look at paying for an auto responder service.

Make sure the one you choose one that has good customer back up, tutorials to help you learn how to use it and a good reputation in the industry.

The benchmark auto responder currently appears to be AWeber. AWeber has all of the requirements listed above and more. For a monthly fee you can get a head start on handling your email in an efficient way right from the start.

Simply put -- if you are investing in the effort to build a great site, wonderful reputation and repeat business relationship with your client, and given how essential email is to doing all of these for your business - then you need an auto responder.