Sending domain setup — the full walkthrough

Cold email that lands in spam isn't email you sent. Getting deliverability right the first time is a 30-minute task that pays back every pitch you ever send. This guide walks the full flow.

0. Don't send from your real domain (at first)

If you send cold email from you@chuhching.com, every spam complaint chips away at your primary domain's reputation — including the transactional mail you send to existing customers. Register a sending-only lookalike:

pitchiq.co or tryptchiq.com — cheap ($10–12/yr).
Redirect its web root to your primary domain (301 redirect) so the sender address still clicks through to a real website.
If a complaint burns it, your primary domain is untouched and you can register a fresh lookalike in 10 minutes.

1. Pick an SMTP provider

Use case	Recommended	Why
1 sender, <100 pitches/day	Google Workspace ($6/mo)	Best deliverability, trusted IP pool. Overkill at volume but perfect at low volume.
Multi-sender, medium volume	Zapmail / Maildoso ($3–4/mo per mailbox)	Google Workspace underneath, multi-tenant stuffing keeps each mailbox "small-business" shaped.
Transactional (not cold)	Resend or Postmark	Built for API-driven sends. Not recommended for cold outreach — dedicated cold-email infra is better.

2. Add SPF

Single TXT record at the domain root. See the full SPF guide for per-provider includes.

Host:  @
Type:  TXT
Value: v=spf1 include:_spf.google.com ~all

3. Add DKIM

Provider-specific — your SMTP vendor generates the key and tells you the exact selector. See the DKIM per-provider guide. For Google: Admin Console → Apps → Gmail → Authenticate email.

4. Add DMARC

Start with p=none so receivers report failures without enforcing. See the DMARC ramp guide. Minimum viable record:

Host:  _dmarc
Type:  TXT
Value: v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:dmarc@yourdomain.com; fo=1

5. Verify with Chuhching

Head to Settings → Domain health and click Check. We look up SPF and DMARC for you and flag anything malformed. DKIM is provider-specific so we can't auto-verify — check your provider's own dashboard ("DKIM: Authenticated" or similar).

6. Warm up the mailbox

Brand-new mailboxes that blast 50 cold emails on day 1 get flagged instantly. Warm up means simulating normal human send volume for 2–4 weeks before you pitch:

Week 1: 3–5 emails/day to real people (friends, existing contacts). Reply to every reply.
Week 2: 10–15/day. Mix transactional + conversational.
Week 3: 25–30/day, start low-volume cold outreach (5 pitches/day).
Week 4+: Scale to 40–50 pitches/day max per mailbox.

Automated warmup tools (Mailreach, Warmup Inbox, Instantly's built-in) simulate deliverability by sending mail between a network of real mailboxes and auto-replying. Useful but not required if you're already sending organic mail.

7. Monitor

Gmail Postmaster Tools (free, for Google Workspace domains).
Microsoft SNDS (for Outlook/Hotmail recipients).
Your DMARC rua reports — parse them with Postmark DMARC Digests (free).

Key metrics to watch: bounce rate (<2%), spam complaint rate (<0.1%), reply rate (healthy = 3–10% for cold, higher = warmer list). If bounce > 5% or complaints > 0.3%, pause sending and investigate.

When something's wrong

Send yourself a test email to mail-tester.com— they give you a free 10-point deliverability score and flag exactly what's misconfigured. Anything below 8/10 means sending is actively hurting you.