Setting up a custom sending domain

Setting up a custom domain

By setting up a custom sending domain for your emails, you will achieve higher deliverability of your emails. This is possible when you have configured your sending provider to be Goodbits from the email setup of your newsletter.

Instead of sending emails with a reply-to address, we support your ability to use a custom sending domain. In this example, we will further explain setting up "ongoodbits.com".

As an overview, we need to change the email setup in Goodbits to use ongoodbits.com, you will need to verify the domain and then add certain DNS records on the service you used to register your domain.

These steps ensure we can deliver the emails with the best validation possible, reducing the chances of your email being placed in spam.

1. Enter your custom domain

Under "Email setup" in your account settings, switch the toggle under "Use Custom Sending Domain" to on. Enter the full email address you would like to send from. For us it would be "goodbits@mydomain.com", then save the settings page.

We will send an email to that address as the first step to verify your domain, please follow that link. If you don't receive it, please make sure your domain is set up to receive the email. If it wasn't and you try again, please let us know, as we might've blocked sending emails to that address.

2. DKIM

Now we need to verify the domain with our email sending provider and allow our sending provider to sign the emails on your behalf. To do this you need to enter the DKIM entry displayed when you open the modal "View DKIM Instructions"

Add this TXT record for your domain (remember to change   mydomain.com   with our domain name):

The first thing you'll need to know is where you need to be logged in so that you can edit the records in your domain's DNS zone. The best way to discover this is to know what are the name servers associated with your domain. 

The fastest way to do this is by using a tool called Whois @ this link: https://whois.com/whois/

Follow that link and enter your domain name and click Search.

• Bluehost
• CloudFlare
• DNS Made Easy
• DNSimple
• Dreamhost
• DigitalOcean
• GoDaddy
• Hostgator
• Hover
• Media Temple
• Melbourne IT
• Namecheap
• Network Solutions
• Register.com

Below is a generic example of how to create a DKIM step-by-step:

1. Head over to your host or DNS provider and access the area where you can add new DNS records. 

2. In your DNS manager, add a new TXT record with the Host and Value show to you in your Goodbits account. 

3. TTL can be set anything, but 1 Hour is just fine. You can't get this wrong.

4. Click Save and you're done. Head over to Goodbits now and proceed with step 3. Verify Validity

3. Verify Validity

Back in Goodbits, click on the "Verify Record" from the "View DKIM instructions" modal. That will trigger a check of your domain to ensure the records have been setup properly. Remember that some DNS providers take a couple of hours before the settings are updated on the internet.

4. Setup SPF (optional)

Add this TXT record for your domain the same as DKIM. Sparkpost documentation.

This is also a good resource for SPF, what is it, how to add and use it.

Still Stuck?

Not working as you expected? Too technical? Contact us at support@goodbits.io

Using MailChimp?

When a campaign is created in MailChimp, we enable their 'Authenticate Campaign' which ensures that MailChimp looks up any SPF and DKIM. For more information, read the  MailChimp Authentication guide. So just make sure your from details on the list you are using is configured to use the domain you have authenticated with them.

If you have any concerns, please ask us. We'd be happy to chat about this!