Sending Domains & Deliverability

Why Domain Setup Matters

When you send an email “from” newsletter@yourcompany.com, the recipient's email provider (Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo, etc.) checks whether your server is actually allowed to send on behalf of yourcompany.com. If you haven't set up the right records, your emails are more likely to land in spam — or get rejected entirely.

Think of it like sending a letter: the postal service doesn't care much about the return address. But email providers absolutely do. They want proof that you're who you say you are.

Setting up your domain properly takes about 15 minutes, and it makes a massive difference in whether your emails reach people.

The Three Records You Need

There are three DNS records that email providers look for. You'll add these through your domain registrar (the place where you bought your domain — GoDaddy, Cloudflare, Namecheap, etc.).

SPF (Sender Policy Framework)

What it does: Tells email providers which mail servers are allowed to send email on behalf of your domain.

In plain language: It's a public list that says “these servers have my permission to send as @yourcompany.com.”

How to set it up:

1. Log into your domain registrar or DNS provider.
2. Add a TXT record for your domain.
3. The value will look something like: v=spf1 include:yoursmtpprovider.com ~all
4. Your SMTP provider (the service you configured in Punchmail's SMTP settings) will give you the exact value to use.

Tips: - You can only have one SPF record per domain. If you already have one, add the new include: to the existing record rather than creating a second one. - The ~all at the end means “soft fail anything not listed” — this is the recommended setting while you're getting started.

DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail)

What it does: Adds a digital signature to every email you send. The recipient's email provider checks this signature against a public key published in your DNS.

In plain language: It's like a tamper-proof seal on your envelope. If someone changes the email in transit, the seal breaks and the provider knows something is off.

How to set it up:

1. Your SMTP provider will generate a DKIM key pair for you and give you a DNS record to add.
2. Add the TXT or CNAME record they provide (it usually goes on a subdomain like selector._domainkey.yourcompany.com).
3. Once the record is live, your SMTP provider will start signing outgoing emails automatically.

Tips: - DKIM setup is almost always done through your SMTP provider's dashboard — they'll walk you through it. - The record can look intimidatingly long. That's normal. Just copy-paste it exactly.

DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting & Conformance)

What it does: Tells email providers what to do when an email fails SPF or DKIM checks, and where to send reports about it.

In plain language: It's your policy statement. You're saying “if someone sends email pretending to be me and it doesn't pass my authentication checks, here's what you should do about it.”

How to set it up:

1. Add a TXT record for _dmarc.yourcompany.com.
2. Start with a monitoring-only policy: v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:dmarc@yourcompany.com
3. This tells providers to send you reports but not reject anything yet — so you can see what's happening before you tighten things up.

Tips: - Start with p=none (monitor only). Once you're confident everything is set up correctly, you can move to p=quarantine (send failures to spam) and eventually p=reject (block failures entirely). - The rua email address will receive aggregate reports. These are XML files — you can use a free DMARC reporting tool to make them readable.

Verifying Your Setup

After adding your DNS records, it can take anywhere from a few minutes to 48 hours for changes to propagate (though most take less than an hour).

To check whether your records are working:

1. Send a test email from Punchmail to an address you control. Check the email headers — look for spf=pass, dkim=pass, and dmarc=pass.
2. Use a free tool like MXToolbox or Mail Tester to scan your domain and confirm everything is in order.
3. Check the Deliverability page in Punchmail — if you've connected Engagor (more on that below), the Email Authentication panel will show you pass/fail status for SPF, DKIM, and DMARC at a glance.

IP Warmup — Taking It Slow

If you're sending from a new IP address (which is likely if you've just set up Punchmail on a fresh server), email providers don't know you yet. Sending a huge blast on day one is a red flag.

IP warmup is the process of gradually increasing your sending volume so that providers learn to trust your IP address.

Here's a rough warmup schedule to follow:

Tips for warmup: - Send to your most engaged subscribers first. People who open and click your emails send positive signals to email providers. - Avoid sending to old or unverified lists during warmup. Bounces and spam complaints during this period are especially damaging. - Watch your bounce rate and complaint rate closely. If either spikes, slow down.

The Deliverability Dashboard

Punchmail includes a Deliverability page in the sidebar. This page integrates with Engagor, an AI-powered deliverability monitoring service.

Before Connecting Engagor

The Deliverability page shows you what Engagor can do and how to get started. It's a preview of the capabilities available once you connect.

After Connecting Engagor

Once you've linked your Engagor account (via Settings > Engagor), the Deliverability page becomes a live dashboard showing:

• Reputation Score — Your domain reputation on a 0-100 scale. Aim for 80+.
• Bounce Rate — The percentage of emails that couldn't be delivered. Keep this under 2%.
• Complaint Rate — The percentage of recipients who marked your email as spam. Keep this under 0.1%.
• Active Cases — AI-managed investigations into deliverability issues.
• Email Authentication — Real-time pass/fail status for SPF, DKIM, and DMARC.
• Blacklist Status — Whether your IP or domain appears on any of the major email blacklists (Spamhaus, Barracuda, SpamCop, etc.).
• Recent Alerts — Warnings about reputation changes, blacklist listings, or unusual patterns.

To connect Engagor, go to Settings > Engagor, enter your API key, and you're done. Setup takes under two minutes.

Deliverability Tips

Here are practical things you can do to keep your emails landing in the inbox:

1. Clean your lists regularly. Remove subscribers who haven't opened an email in 6+ months. Dead weight hurts your reputation.
2. Use double opt-in when possible. It confirms that the subscriber actually wants your emails.
3. Make unsubscribing easy. A one-click unsubscribe link is required by law in most countries, and it's far better for your reputation than someone hitting the spam button.
4. Use suppression lists. Add known bad addresses, role accounts (info@, admin@, etc.), and complainers to your suppression lists so you never email them again. See Suppression Lists.
5. Monitor your tracking metrics. Low open rates and high bounce rates are warning signs. The Dashboard and campaign reports are your friends here.
6. Don't buy email lists. Just don't. Purchased lists are full of spam traps, dead addresses, and people who never asked to hear from you. Your reputation will tank.
7. Warm up new IPs gradually. See the warmup section above.
8. Set up a custom tracking domain. In Settings > Tracking, you can point your tracking links through your own domain instead of a generic URL. This looks more trustworthy to both subscribers and email providers.

What to Read Next

• Suppression Lists — Prevent emails from reaching addresses that should never be contacted.
• Tracking & Analytics — Understanding opens, clicks, and how tracking works.
• Settings — Platform configuration, SMTP defaults, and user management.