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The Importance of Connecting Your Email Domain to Double the Donation

This article explains why it’s important to connect your organization’s email domain to Double the Donation to improve email deliverability and donor engagement.

Work with your IT team to add the new records

 

Email filters have gotten smarter and stricter over the years, and may review your Domain Name Server (DNS) records to verify the From address sending the email. You can give Double the Donation permission to send emails on your behalf by adding a few new records to your DNS. We highly recommend adding CNAME and DMARC TXT records, particularly in light of 2024 improved spam protection measures implemented by Google and Yahoo.

Work with your IT team to add the new records

 

Your IT team or web developer will need to add 3 new records to your DNS and check for the existence of another (and add it if you don't already have it). This is a very simple process, but it's possible that they might not have done this before if you've never sent a marketing email through an Email Service Provider.

 
 

View this article to walk through how this can be completed in just a few minutes. To make the process as streamlined as possible, we recommend adding a member of your IT team as a user in your account.

Here's a sample email you can copy and share with your IT team:
We are now sending matching gift emails through Double the Donation, a marketing automation platform. To give Double the Donation authorization to send emails on our behalf, we need to add 3 new CNAME records to our DNS zone files for our domain, then ensure we have a DMARC TXT file and add one if we don't. The values for these records are all provided in the Double the Donation platform.  This article walks through the process.

 

Why is Connecting Your Email Domain Important?

When you connect your email domain to Double the Donation, emails will be sent from your organization’s email address, increasing the likelihood that donors will open and engage with your communications. This connection helps reduce the chances of your emails being marked as spam.

Benefits of Connecting Your Domain:

  1. Branding Consistency: Emails will come from your organization's domain, making them feel more familiar and trustworthy to donors.

  2. Improved Deliverability: Ensures your emails are less likely to be flagged as spam and improves open and click rates.

  3. Direct Replies: Donor replies will go directly to your organization’s email, not to Double the Donation.

Risks of Not Connecting Your Domain:

  1. Branding Issues: Donors may see emails as coming from Double the Donation’s domain, rather than your organization’s, leading to confusion.

  2. Spam Filters: Emails may be blocked or sent to spam, preventing donors from seeing your communications.

  3. Missed Replies: Donor replies will be sent to Double the Donation, requiring manual forwarding to your team.

  4. Lower Engagement: Unvalidated domains can negatively impact email open and click rates.

How to Set Up Your Email Domain

To enable Double the Donation to send emails from your organization’s domain, your IT team will need to add new records to your DNS. This process is simple and involves adding the following records:

  • CNAME and DMARC TXT records for email authentication.

Steps to Add DNS Records:

  1. Work with your IT team or web developer to add the required records to your domain’s DNS.

  2. Check for existing records: Ensure the records are set up properly.

  3. Follow the instructions provided in the Double the Donation platform for the correct DNS settings.

For a more detailed guide, review this article and share the sample email with your IT team to help them complete the setup.

Double the Donation Email Deliverability: Spam Metrics

One of the biggest concerns is that emails from Double the Donation could be marked as spam. By properly setting up the DNS records and sending emails from your organization’s domain, you significantly reduce the chances of this happening.

Spam Metrics & Deliverability:

  • Google’s Guidelines: Google recommends keeping spam metrics under 0.30%, ideally below 0.10%.

  • Double the Donation’s Performance: In analyzing over 35 million emails sent, Double the Donation clients consistently achieved spam metrics between 0.06% and 0.09%, well below Google’s threshold.

  • Future Improvements: Double the Donation is working on further reducing spam rates, with an estimated target of 0.04%, which is 86% below Google’s threshold.

Takeaway:

Connecting your email domain to Double the Donation improves deliverability and helps your organization’s emails land in your donors’ inboxes, ensuring higher engagement rates.

FAQs:

Q: What DNS records do I need to add to my domain?

A: You only need to add the CNAME and DMARC TXT records provided by Double the Donation. No additional steps like SPF or DKIM are necessary.

 

Q: Will setting up the DNS records help with spam issues?

A: Yes, by setting up the DNS records, you ensure emails are sent from your organization’s domain, greatly reducing the likelihood of being marked as spam.