Confusing at first, these abbreviations are going to play a very important role in ensuring your well-crafted email lands in your leads' inbox! So let's take a quick dive into what these actually are and why you need to bother about them. If you get all the below 4 done right, you drastically improve your chance of landing in your leads' main inbox.
DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail)
DKIM is an authentication method that lets Email Service Providers know if the email is actually associated with the domain it claims to be from. It adds a digital signature to the email, which can be verified by the receiving server. This helps prevent unauthorized senders from using your domain in their emails, protecting your brand reputation.
SPF (Sender Policy Framework)
SPF is like a "Made in" tag for emails. It allows domain owners to specify which IP addresses are authorized to send emails on behalf of their domain. When an email is received, the receiving email provider checks the SPF record to see if the email was actually sent from an authorized IP address. This helps prevent email spoofing and protects against phishing attacks.
DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting, and Conformance)
DMARC is a policy that uses both DKIM and SPF to decide what to do with emails that fail authentication. It tells email service providers how to handle emails that claim to be from your domain but fail DKIM and SPF checks. DMARC can instruct the receiving server to either deliver the email, send it to the spam folder, or reject it outright. It also provides reporting on failed authentication attempts, helping you monitor and protect your domain's reputation.
MX (Mail Exchange) Records
MX records are DNS (Domain Name System) records that specify which server is responsible for accepting emails when they are sent to your domain. They are crucial for email delivery, as without MX records, you won't be able to receive or send emails. MX records determine the routing of incoming emails to the appropriate mail server.
Here's how you can set up each of them:
MX Records Setup
Without MX records, you won't be able to receive or send emails. This part is fundamental. Follow the links below for instructions on how to set up MX records for popular email providers:
Gmail MX Record Setup
Zoho MX Record Setup
Outlook MX Record Setup
DKIM Setup
DKIM adds a digital signature to your outgoing emails, allowing the receiving server to verify their authenticity. Follow the links below for instructions on how to set up DKIM for popular email providers:
Gmail DKIM Setup
Zoho DKIM Setup