Best Practices for Warming New Domains
Warming up new email domains is essential to ensure your emails land in inboxes instead of spam folders. Without a proven reputation, new domains are often flagged by email providers. The solution? Gradually build trust by simulating natural email activity over 4–8 weeks. Here’s a quick breakdown:
- Start Small: Send 3–10 emails per day per mailbox, then increase volume weekly.
- Authentication is Key: Set up SPF, DKIM, and DMARC to verify your emails.
- Use Secondary Domains: Never use your main domain for cold outreach - protect it with separate domains.
- Monitor Metrics: Track bounce rates (<1%), open rates (>20%), and mailbox health (score >97%).
- Avoid Mistakes: Double-check DNS records, avoid sudden volume spikes, and separate cold campaigns from warming domains.
Skipping these steps can lead to spam folder placement, throttling, or even blacklisting - issues that can take months to fix. Tools like Infraforge simplify the process with pre-warmed mailboxes, automated DNS setup, and dedicated IPs starting at $651/month for 200 mailboxes. Follow these steps to build a solid sender reputation and improve email performance.
4-8 Week Email Domain Warming Schedule with Daily Volume Targets
1. Configure Domain Authentication
Before sending any emails, it's crucial to establish your credibility with email service providers (ESPs). This is done through authentication protocols, which serve as your digital ID, confirming that your emails are genuinely from your domain. Without proper authentication, about 21% of B2B emails fail to reach inboxes, often due to technical errors or missing credentials.
Here’s a breakdown of the essential protocols and additional measures to strengthen your sender reputation.
Set Up SPF, DKIM, and DMARC
SPF, DKIM, and DMARC are the backbone of email authentication. Each plays a unique role in ensuring your emails are verified and secure:
- SPF (Sender Policy Framework): Defines which IP addresses are authorized to send emails on behalf of your domain.
- DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail): Adds a digital signature to your emails, ensuring the content remains unchanged during transit.
- DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting & Conformance): Ties SPF and DKIM together, enforcing policies and guiding receiving servers on how to handle emails that fail authentication.
In late 2023, a SaaS client partnered with SalesHive to improve their email deliverability. By switching their DMARC policy from
p=none(monitoring mode) top=reject(enforcement mode), they reduced spam complaints by 41% within 90 days, using insights from DMARC reports.
While these protocols are essential, manually adding TXT records to your DNS can be tricky and error-prone. Infraforge's automated DNS setup simplifies the process by correctly configuring SPF, DKIM, and DMARC from the start. For teams managing up to 200 mailboxes, this automation not only saves hours of work but also minimizes the risk of deliverability issues caused by misconfigurations.
Add SSL and Domain Masking
SSL encryption secures the connection between your domain and email servers, signaling trustworthiness to ESPs. Meanwhile, domain masking allows you to send cold emails from alternate domains, protecting the reputation of your primary brand.
Infraforge offers SSL and domain masking as optional add-ons, priced at $2 per domain per month (billed quarterly) or $6 per domain per year (billed annually). These features are especially valuable when scaling outreach, as they enhance both security and inbox placement.
2. Select and Set Up New Domains
When it comes to cold outreach, using the right domains is critical - not just for scaling campaigns but also for protecting your primary business domain. You should never use your main domain, which handles transactional and customer emails, for cold outreach. Why? Because 77% of email deliverability issues stem from poor domain health. A single mistake could get your primary domain blacklisted, jeopardizing essential business communications. Here's how to choose and set up secondary domains the right way.
Use Separate Domains from Your Main Brand
Secondary domains act as a safety net, shielding your core brand from risks like bounces, spam complaints, or unsubscribes. With Gmail and Yahoo rejecting emails if complaint rates exceed 0.1%, keeping your outreach separate is non-negotiable.
Pick domains that align with your brand but are distinct enough to stand apart. For example, you could use something like "get[brand].com" or "connect-[brand].com." Stick to trustworthy TLDs like .com, .net, .org, or .co. Avoid misspellings or obscure extensions that could make your emails look unprofessional. To build credibility, let your new domains "age" for about three months before using them for high-volume campaigns.
Set Up Multiple Domains for Scaling
Once you've secured your secondary domains, you can scale your outreach by spreading emails across multiple domains and mailboxes. For example, if you're sending 1,000 emails, distribute them across 20–30 mailboxes on 5–10 domains, keeping each mailbox to 30–50 emails per day. This approach mimics natural email activity, reducing the chances of triggering spam filters.
For even more protection, consider using Infraforge's multi-IP provisioning. This system spreads email activity across multiple dedicated IP addresses, lowering the risk of blacklisting. Unlike shared IP setups from services like Google Workspace or Microsoft 365, Infraforge provides dedicated IPs with automated DNS and pre-warmed domains. The cost? For 200 mailboxes, Infraforge runs $651 per month, significantly less than the $1,680 or $1,200 you'd pay with those alternatives.
3. Increase Sending Volume Gradually
When it comes to email outreach, slowly increasing your sending volume is one of the smartest moves you can make. Internet Service Providers (ISPs) are quick to flag sudden spikes in email activity as potential spam. By scaling up your volume at a steady pace, you allow ISPs to recognize your domain as a legitimate sender. This methodical approach can lead to impressive results - open rates can improve by up to 50%, and click-through rates may rise by 30%.
Follow a Weekly Scaling Schedule
To build your sender reputation, stick to a gradual scaling plan over a 4–8 week period. Start small in Week 1, sending only 10–15 emails per day per mailbox, and focus on your most engaged contacts. This helps generate positive engagement, which ISPs value. If your hard bounce rate stays below 1% and your open rates reach 30–40%, you’re in a good position to increase volume by 10–20% each week. By Week 4, you should be able to send 30–50 emails daily, provided your metrics remain strong.
Here’s an example of a weekly scaling plan:
| Week | Daily Volume (per mailbox) | Key Action |
|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | 10–15 emails | Focus on warm contacts for positive engagement |
| Week 2 | 15–20 emails | Scale up by 10–20% if bounce rate is below 1% |
| Week 3 | 20–30 emails | Watch for ISP throttling or inbox placement dips |
| Week 4 | 30–50 emails | Reach target volume and enable read emulation |
| Week 5+ | 50+ emails | Expand by adding more warmed mailboxes |
Avoid the temptation to jump from 20 to 200 emails in a single day - this is a red flag for ISPs. Instead, scale horizontally by adding more warmed mailboxes. For example, if you need to send 1,000 emails daily, distribute them across 20–30 mailboxes to maintain a balanced and credible sending pattern.
If you’re in a hurry, consider using pre-warmed mailboxes to speed up the process without risking your sender reputation.
Start with Pre-Warmed Mailboxes
Manually warming up mailboxes can take 4–8 weeks, but pre-warmed mailboxes can save you a lot of time. Infraforge offers pre-warmed mailboxes that come with an established sender reputation, so you can hit the ground running. These mailboxes are paired with dedicated IPs and automated DNS setup, which eliminates the risks tied to shared reputations often seen with platforms like Google Workspace and Microsoft 365.
Even after you start sending cold emails, maintain a 1:1 ratio of cold emails to warm-up emails. For instance, if you send 30 cold emails per day, send 30 warm-up emails as well to keep engagement consistent. Tools like Warmforge, included with Salesforge subscriptions, can automate this process. These tools simulate natural interactions to maintain a high "Heat Score". If your mailbox health score dips below 97%, pause your campaigns immediately and switch to fresh infrastructure.
"Engagement is your lifeline to reputation as a sender. It is extremely important."
– Nick Schafer, Sr. Manager of Deliverability & Compliance, Sinch
To further strengthen your sender reputation, vary your sending patterns. Randomize the times you send emails and include small delays between messages. ISPs are skilled at detecting automated behavior, so mimicking natural activity can go a long way in maintaining credibility.
4. Track Performance Metrics
Once your domain is set up and scaling gradually, keeping a close eye on performance metrics is crucial for maintaining email deliverability. Regular monitoring helps you catch potential issues early - especially since 77% of deliverability problems are tied to poor domain health. The goal? Ensure your emails consistently land in inboxes, not spam folders, with a deliverability rate between 96% and 99%.
Monitor Open Rates, Bounces, and Complaints
Bounce rates are a key indicator of list health. Keep them below 1%. If they creep into the 2%–5% range, it’s time to clean your email list and verify DNS settings. A bounce rate over 5%? Stop sending immediately and address the issue.
Open rates, on the other hand, reveal whether your emails are engaging and landing in the right place. A healthy outreach campaign typically achieves open rates around 55%. If spam complaints exceed 0.19%, it’s a sign your content might be too aggressive or your recipients didn’t properly opt in.
Tools like Warmforge can simplify tracking by assigning a "Heat Score" on a scale of 0 to 100. Aim to keep this score above 97. If it drops to the 90–96 range, reduce your sending volume by 25–30% to allow recovery. Scores below 90 indicate it’s time to rotate to new infrastructure.
| Metric | Healthy Range | Warning Sign | Critical Action |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bounce Rate | < 1% | 2%–5% | > 5% – Stop sending |
| Open Rate | > 20% | 10%–20% | < 10% – Domain crisis |
| Unsubscribe Rate | < 0.19% | 0.3%–1% | > 1% – Immediate review |
| Mailbox Health Score | > 97 | 90–96 | < 90 – Rotate infrastructure |
Keeping these metrics in check ensures your campaigns stay effective and your domain remains healthy.
Use Real-Time Monitoring Tools
Real-time monitoring tools are invaluable for spotting and addressing issues before they escalate. Warmforge, included with every Salesforge subscription, provides live Heat Score tracking and placement tests. These tools show exactly where your emails land - whether in Gmail’s primary inbox, promotions tab, or spam folder.
To stay ahead of problems, set up automated alerts using webhooks. These can notify you of bounce rate spikes or delivery failures in real time. Integrate alerts with platforms like Slack, Microsoft Teams, or Datadog for instant updates. Additionally, segment high-performing domains from newer ones. This allows you to experiment with sending patterns without jeopardizing your entire operation.
5. Avoid Common Domain Warming Mistakes
Even with the best intentions, small missteps during domain warming can throw your entire outreach strategy off course. Two of the most frequent issues are mistakes in authentication setup and blending cold campaigns with domains still in the warming phase. These errors can seriously harm your email deliverability before your campaigns even get off the ground.
Double-Check Authentication and Steer Clear of Spam Triggers
As mentioned earlier, setting up authentication correctly is critical, but avoiding common mistakes is just as important. One frequent issue is having multiple SPF TXT records. Your domain should have only one SPF record - if there are duplicates, it can cause a "permerror", leading to authentication failure. Another common problem is exceeding 10 DNS lookups in your SPF record, which invalidates it entirely. To avoid this, use IP addresses (ip4/ip6) instead of "include" mechanisms to stay within the limit.
DKIM errors can also cause trouble. Keys shorter than 1024 bits are considered insecure, while the current standard is 2048 bits. Additionally, selector mismatches can occur if the selector name in your DNS doesn’t match the one configured in your sending platform, which prevents signature verification.
For DMARC, jumping straight to a p=reject or p=quarantine policy without confirming all legitimate sending sources can backfire, potentially blocking your own emails. Instead, start with p=none and include a reporting address (rua) to gather data on authentication failures and potential domain abuse. If you're making DNS changes, temporarily lower your Time to Live (TTL) to 300 seconds for quicker updates. Once everything is verified, you can raise it back to 1–24 hours.
| Protocol | Common Mistake | Consequence |
|---|---|---|
| SPF | Multiple TXT records | Permerror; authentication fails |
| SPF | >10 DNS lookups | ISPs invalidate the record |
| DKIM | Key < 1024 bits | Security vulnerabilities and flags |
| DKIM | Selector mismatch | Signature verification fails |
| DMARC | Missing v=DMARC1 tag |
Record ignored by servers |
| DMARC | No rua tag |
No insight into domain spoofing |
Once your authentication is solid, it’s time to focus on keeping your campaigns organized.
Separate Cold Campaigns from Warmed Domains
Beyond authentication, keeping your cold campaigns separate from domains still in the warming process is essential for maintaining your domain's reputation. Cold campaigns target unengaged contacts and come with higher risks of spam complaints and bounces. Running these campaigns on domains that haven’t been fully warmed is like driving a car before the engine is ready - it’s almost guaranteed to fail. If a warming domain gets flagged, weeks of effort can go down the drain.
To avoid this, maintain a pool of additional domains and mailboxes dedicated to warming. This allows you to rotate to a backup domain if your primary one encounters issues. This separation not only protects your warming process but also shields your active campaigns from unnecessary risks. In 2023, one in six legitimate marketing emails failed to reach the inbox, highlighting the importance of a well-structured email infrastructure.
Conclusion
Warming up new domains requires a careful, step-by-step approach. Key actions include setting up SPF, DKIM, and DMARC, using separate domains with multiple mailboxes, and starting small by sending 3–5 emails per day. Gradually increase your volume by 15–20%, keeping an eye on your domain’s health score (aim for above 97%) and bounce rates (keep them below 1%). Steer clear of common mistakes like skipping authentication protocols or mixing cold campaigns with domain warming efforts.
As Rob Pellow, Digital Experience Director at Armadillo, wisely explains: "An IP reputation is hard to build, easy to lose, and hard to regain. Therefore, ensuring you are sending the best emails before they are sent will limit the damage caused". Sending high-quality emails from the start helps safeguard your reputation.
For those looking to simplify this often time-consuming process, Infraforge offers a streamlined solution. Instead of spending weeks manually warming up domains, Infraforge provides pre-warmed domains and mailboxes, automated DNS configurations, dedicated IPs, and real-time monitoring - all tailored for cold email outreach. This means you can skip the hassle and start with infrastructure that's already optimized for performance.
Infraforge’s pricing is another standout feature. At $651 per month for 200 mailboxes, it’s significantly more affordable than alternatives like Google Workspace ($1,680/month) or MS365 ($1,200/month). Plus, it’s designed specifically for cold email campaigns. As Anton L., Founder, highlights: "The ease of use and simplicity make managing email infrastructure a breeze, and the pricing is spot on - far more reasonable than some of the other options".
FAQs
What happens if you don’t properly warm up a new domain?
Failing to ease a new domain into email activity can cause major headaches. Your emails might land in spam folders, face high bounce rates, or - worst of all - get your domain blacklisted. This can seriously damage your sender reputation, shrink your open rates, and derail the success of your email campaigns.
By gradually warming up your domain, you improve inbox placement, establish trust with email providers, and create a strong base for future outreach efforts. Skipping this step can severely limit your ability to connect with your audience effectively.
What are SPF, DKIM, and DMARC, and how do they improve email deliverability?
SPF, DKIM, and DMARC are key tools for email authentication, designed to make sure your messages land where they’re supposed to - your recipient's inbox. Here's a quick breakdown:
- SPF (Sender Policy Framework): This protocol defines which servers are allowed to send emails on behalf of your domain. It’s like giving email providers a list of "approved senders" to trust.
- DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail): Think of this as a digital signature for your emails. It ensures the message hasn’t been tampered with and confirms it’s genuinely from your domain.
- DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting, and Conformance): This builds on SPF and DKIM by telling email providers how to handle unauthorized messages. It also gives you detailed reports to keep an eye on any suspicious activity.
When used together, these protocols help prevent email spoofing, protect your domain’s credibility, and improve your email deliverability. Getting them set up properly is a must for running effective cold email campaigns.
Why should I use a secondary domain for cold email outreach?
Using a secondary domain for cold email outreach is a smart way to protect the reputation of your primary domain. Cold emails often come with risks like higher bounce rates, unsubscribes, and even spam complaints. These issues can hurt your main domain's deliverability and, in worst cases, lead to blacklisting.
By keeping cold email activity on a separate domain, you shield your primary domain from these potential problems. This ensures it stays reliable and trusted for important communications, like client interactions or internal emails. It's a straightforward approach to maintaining your email reputation while expanding your outreach efforts.