Starting a new business or introducing a new brand, you probably need a new email domain for marketing.
However, you cannot directly shoot emails from a new email domain, as it could go against you. Sending bulk emails from a new domain may cause it to be blocked by your ISP.
Hence, it is important to warm up new email domains to establish their reputation and protect your brand identity. Now, the question that arises here is how? This is why we are here.
In this post, we will see some tips and tricks on how to warm up new email domains that too without hurting the deliverability. Before we go ahead, let us a quick glimpse at why it is important to warm up new email domains.
Why Email Warming Matters?
When it comes to email warming, it is important to build a positive reputation with internet service providers. How?
When you send emails from a new domain, your ISP sees it as a stranger. Hence, it becomes difficult for the ISP to initially identify whether you are trustworthy or not. Thus, your internet service provider looks closely at every email you send from that domain.
Now, if you blast thousands of emails in one go from the new email domain, your internet service provider may flag it as spam. This is where email warming up comes in.
It helps you make your ISP believe that you are a legitimate sender. In other words, with email warm-up, you are going to build trust, not only with your ISP, but also target audience.
7 Steps to Warm Up New Email Domains
Step 1 – Start Small and Scale Up Gradually
What we mean here is to start sending emails in small groups of 30-40 per day for at least a week. Now, here’s a catch: make sure that emails are sent to a qualified audience who is likely to open or engage with your emails.
After a week, you can slowly increase the numbers per week. On average, you can double the numbers every week. Say, for example, if you start with 40 emails, then in the next week you can send 70-80 emails, later 140-150 emails, and so on.
You can adjust the email numbers based on your audience and engagement levels. If the engagement is good, you can speed up the numbers; however, if engagement is low, push slowly.
Step 2 – Focus on Quality over Quantity
The best way of quick email warmup is to send emails to genuine and interested people. If you send emails to those who don’t care, the chances of landing in the spam folder become high.
Now, another question that comes here is how to find such contacts? Here’s what you can do.
Use opt-in lists: Make sure everyone on your list has given permission to receive emails.
Clean your list: Remove inactive or bounced emails.
Send valuable content: Make your emails relevant, helpful, or interesting.
Step 3 – Keep Checking Your Metrics
While you’re warming up, watch your email performance closely. The key metrics to track are:
Open rates: Aim for at least 20–30% during warm-up.
Click-through rates: Even a small number of clicks helps.
Bounce rates: Should be under 2%.
Spam complaints: Should be zero or close to it.
If your bounce or complaint rates spike, pause and figure out why. Maybe your list isn’t clean enough, or your content isn’t hitting the mark. Adjust before you keep scaling.
Step 4: Authenticate Your Emails
Email authentication isn’t just tech jargon, it’s a must for deliverability. Set up these three protocols:
SPF (Sender Policy Framework): Confirms that your emails are sent from servers you control.
DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail): Adds a digital signature to your emails, proving they’re legit.
DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting & Conformance): Tells ISPs how to handle suspicious emails from your domain.
Authentication shows ISPs you’re not spoofing or phishing. It’s a huge trust boost for your new domain.
Step 5: Use a Consistent Sending Pattern
ISPs love consistency. If you send 50 emails today, zero tomorrow, then 1,000 the next day, that’s suspicious. During warm-up, keep your sending volumes steady and predictable.
Once you’ve finished warming up, stick to a regular sending schedule. Random spikes in volume can hurt your domain reputation.
Step 6: Keep Your Content Personal
Even in the early warm-up days, your content matters. Avoid spammy language like:
- “Buy now!”
- “Act fast!”
- “100% FREE!”
Instead, write like you’re talking to a real person. Use a friendly, natural tone. Make your emails personal and helpful; think “Here’s something you might find useful” rather than “You must buy this now!”
Also, consider plain-text or lightly formatted HTML emails. Heavy design and flashy images can trigger spam filters during warm-up.
Step 7: Monitor Feedback Loops
Some ISPs (like Gmail and Yahoo) offer feedback loops. These let you know if recipients mark your emails as spam. Set up these loops and keep an eye on them. If you see complaints coming in, address them right away—remove those people from your list and make sure your content is hitting the right notes.
Common Mistakes to Avoid During Email Domain Warm Up
Warming up a domain isn’t complicated, but there are traps to watch out for:
Skipping the warm-up
Going from zero to 5,000 emails overnight? Bad idea.
Using purchased lists
These are usually low-quality and can wreck your domain reputation.
Ignoring bounces
High bounce rates are a huge red flag for ISPs.
Sending irrelevant content
If your emails aren’t valuable, your recipients won’t engage, and that hurts your deliverability.
Final Thoughts: Build Trust First
Warming up your new email domain isn’t just about sending more emails. It’s about showing ISPs and your audience that you’re a responsible, trustworthy sender.
By taking it slow, focusing on quality, and watching your metrics, you’ll build a rock-solid foundation for future email success. Once your domain is warmed up, you can start sending more confidently, knowing you’re not just another spammer in the sea of inbox noise.
