How to Set Up Email Authentication
To ensure your emails are successfully delivered and comply with new sender authentication standards from providers like Gmail and Yahoo, you’ll need to complete domain authentication by adding DNS records to your domain’s DNS settings.
This article walks you through the steps and offers solutions if you’re unable to authenticate your current sending domain.
Note: Tabrasa allows you to maintain two email addresses in your profile:
One for sending emails (used to authenticate and deliver your campaigns)
One for receiving replies (displayed as the reply-to address and shown on your marketing materials)
This setup gives you flexibility while ensuring compliance and deliverability.
What Is Domain Authentication?
Domain authentication verifies that emails sent on your behalf are legitimate and authorized. It improves deliverability and helps prevent your messages from being flagged as spam.
What Do SPF, DKIM, and DMARC Records Do?
SPF: Prevents unauthorized email senders.
DKIM: Validates your email legitimacy through cryptographic signatures.
DMARC: Enhances monitoring and security by defining actions for failed authentication.
Benefits of Authenticating Your Email Domain
Improved Deliverability: Authentication improves the chances of your emails being successfully delivered.
Trustworthiness: Verifies to recipients and their email servers that emails are legitimately sent from your domain.
Compliance: Reduces the likelihood of your emails bouncing back or being flagged as spam.
Step 1: Request Your DNS Records
To begin, email our support team so we can generate the DNS records you’ll need to authenticate your domain.
Please send an email to [email protected] with the subject line:
Email Authentication
Include the following in your message:
Sending Domain (e.g.,
yourcompany.com)Sending Email Address (used to send your campaigns)
Reply-to Email Address (appears on your marketing and receives replies)
Once we receive your email, we’ll generate and send your personalized DNS records along with setup instructions.
If your DNS records have already been issued, continue below to add them to your domain host.
Step 2: Add DNS Records to Your Domain Host
Log in to your domain host (e.g., GoDaddy, Namecheap, Cloudflare, Squarespace).
Navigate to your DNS settings or DNS management area.
Add all required DNS records exactly as provided. These typically include CNAME and TXT records.
They may also include optional link branding records.
SPF: Specifies allowed senders for your domain.
DKIM: Adds a digital signature to your emails to prevent tampering.
DMARC: Helps monitor and enforce your authentication policies (optional).
⚠️ If your domain uses HSTS (HTTP Strict Transport Security):
Do not add DNS Records #4 and #5. These are for link branding and require click.yourdomain.com to support HTTPS and additional configuration.
Save your changes and allow time for propagation — this may take up to 24–48 hours.
Tabrasa automatically attempts to validate any unauthorized domains once every 24 hours. If your setup is correct, your domain should be verified automatically during the next validation cycle (typically overnight).
Examples for specific domain name providers
Step 3 (Optional): Register a Custom Domain
If your current email provider (e.g., Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo) does not allow you to add DNS records, you may not be able to authenticate your domain. In that case, we recommend registering your own domain (e.g., yourcompany.com) to gain full control.
Popular registrars include:
Once your domain is registered, follow the same steps above to request and add DNS records.
Step 4 (Optional): Set Up Email Forwarding
If you’re using a custom domain and want to forward emails from your new address to your current inbox (e.g., Gmail), you can set up email forwarding. However, you do not have to setup email forwarding to use your new domain for sending only.
📄 Download our PDF instructions for your provider:
Need Help?
If you're unsure how to proceed at any step, please contact our support team—we’re happy to help walk you through the process.