Do you have a Flodesk account? If so, this blog post is for you! Flodesk is my go-to email marketing platform – they make it so simple to send gorgeous emails, set up automations, and figure out how to use their system. But even if you’ve already set up Flodesk for your business, there’s one major best practice you might have overlooked – and it can be the secret to getting your emails in front of potential clients! Who wants to spend hours crafting the perfect email campaign just to have it end up in the spam folder? The best way to make sure your emails actually show up in subscribers’ inboxes is to authenticate your domain on Flodesk. It’s one of those techy details that’s all too easy to overlook, but it can be an absolute game-changer. And – bonus – it’s pretty easy to do and only takes a few minutes! So, in today’s post, I’m sharing all about how to verify a domain in FloDesk.
Why you should verify your domain email in Flodesk
The short explanation is that it is going to improve email deliverability and keep your emails out of people’s spam folders! The more techy details behind why that happens have to do with email best practices that have developed over the years. There are so many different mailing lists out there competing for inbox space…and the people sending them aren’t always trustworthy. So, to even that out, email providers have developed all kinds of ways to sift through the hundreds of emails their users receive each day and send only the good stuff to their inboxes. Enter domain verification in email marketing platforms like Flodesk.
If you want your emails to look legit to recipients and to automated email sorting systems, you should always send marketing emails from an email that exists at your domain. In other words, when setting up your Flodesk account, using your Gmail address is a big no-no. Bulk emails from freemail addresses look super spammy, and there’s a good chance it will get your emails sent straight to junk mail jail! Using a verified email that’s you[at]yourdomain.com ups your credibility with automated email filters and email readers.
What happens if you don’t authenticate your domain on Flodesk?
Procrastinating domain verification through Flodesk could actually hurt your sender reputation and deliverability! Sending mass emails without using a verified domain address is all too common with phishing scams and spammers. When you do it, you’re at risk of looking like a scammer or spammer, too. Fun fact: even if you’re using an email address that comes from your domain, email providers can tell if it’s coming from an authenticated domain. If it’s not, it’s wayyy more likely that your emails will be routed away from users’ inboxes. So, if you don’t verify your Flodesk domain, your emails could bounce or never even be seen at all. If enough services log your emails as spam, your Flodesk account could even get paused (yikes!) So, verifying your domain before sending emails is a pretty big deal. The good news is it only takes about five minutes to do!
Don’t already have a domain email?
I’ve got you. Before you can set up a customized domain email, you need to have your own domain (hint: if you have a WordPress website, then you already have a custom URL – that’s your domain name!) Once you own your domain, you can easily set up a custom email address that lives at that domain.
The easiest way to do this is to sign up for a Google Workspace account, which starts at $12 a month. Sidenote, Google Workspace comes with a ton of other benefits, like 2TB of storage on a Google Drive for your business. Setup is super-easy – all you have to do is click “Get Started” on the Google Workspace site, and Google will walk you through every step. I suggest setting up your email as hello[at]yoursite.com – eventually, you may bring on other team members who manage that general inbox, so it’s more convenient in the long run than making it the same as your name.
How domain authentication works
Whenever you send emails from Flodesk – or any other email marketing software – your subscribers’ email providers, like Gmail, Yahoo, or Outlook, scan every email that comes into users’ inboxes and assess them for potential threats. If anything looks suspicious, an email will be sent to the Spam folder. One of the main things you can do to keep your marketing emails out of peoples’ junk mail is authenticating your domain with your email marketing platform. Domain authentication links your Flodesk account directly to your domain host, which verifies your identity with Flodesk. Going through that verification process is your best bet for avoiding being flagged as a potential inbox threat!
How to verify the domain in Flodesk
Even though it sounds super techy, it’s not that scary! I’ll walk you through it.
- First things first, you’ll need access to your DNS settings. This looks a little different for each domain provider, but you should be able to find it in domain management in your domain provider’s zone editor or cPanel. You’re looking for a page called DNS Records, which will allow you to modify or add new records.
- Next, open a new tab and log into your Flodesk account. Navigate to Account → Domain Setup.
- Now you’ll find yourself on a Domain Verification page. Click on the button to begin verification of your domain.
- Select your domain provider from the drop-down menu, then click on Continue. (If you’re unsure who your domain provider is, search your email for “domain registration” and see which provider pops up!)
- The next screen will show two or three sets of CNAME records. These values are unique to your Flodesk account and your custom domain, and they’re the little bits of tech that will make authentication possible!
- Now, go back to your DNS records management page. You’re going to add each of the CNAME records from Flodesk to your DNS records. Again, this might look a little different, depending on your domain provider, but the general directions are basically the same no matter which provider you have.
- Select CNAME as the record type. Copy the Name/Host/Alias field from Flodesk, then paste it into the Name field on your DNS records page. Copy the Value/Record/Data info from Flodesk and paste it into the Value field on your DNS records page. Then click Add Record.
- Repeat this for each of the CNAME records available in Flodesk.
- You did it! 🥂 Now, you should see a yellow “pending” status label at the top of your domain setup card in Flodesk.
- Check back in 48-72 hours to see if your domain has been successfully verified. Once it is, you’ll see a green “verified” label at the top of your domain setup card.
That’s how you verify your domain email in Flodesk!
It seriously takes five minutes, and it makes such a huge difference in getting your marketing emails out of potential clients’ spam folders and into their inboxes where they belong! Now that you’re verified, it’s the perfect time to start collecting email subscribers for your mailing list. Keep an eye out for a future post, where I’ll walk you through how to embed a Flodesk lead capture form in your site to put growing your email list on autopilot. 😉
Need more help figuring out Flodesk?
I can help you with that! You can book a one-hour coaching call with me to pick my brains about any of the tech or business details of WordPress website setup or design…including how to verify domains in Flodesk. Book your one-on-one chat now!
