Setting Up Your DNS Records with BlueHost

This article walks through how to complete the DNS setup for email domains hosted by BlueHost so that the matching gift emails can be sent from your organization's email domain.

Step #1: Complete the CNAME Setup

Step #2: Complete the DMARC Setup

Troubleshooting CNAME records 

 

When you create your account we default to sending emails from a Double the Donation email address. You can give Double the Donation's platform permission to send emails on your behalf by adding a few new records in your DNS.

Step #1: Complete the CNAME Setup

1. Log in to your BlueHost account

 

2. Navigate to the Domains.

 

3. Select Settings of the appropriate email domain:

 

 

4. Under Advance Tools, click Manage beside Advance DNS Records:

 

 

5. A pop-up will appear, click Continue:

 

 

6. Click Add Record:

 

 

7. Enter the details for your CNAME record:

  • Type: CNAME
  • Refers to: Other Host
    • Navigate to the "Hostname" field from the matching module. Copy only the text before .yourdomain.org. See the box in the picture below.
  • Alias to: Paste the information found under "Value Should Be" from the matching module
  • TTL: 15 Minutes

 

 

8. Click Add.

 

DNS changes can take 48 hours to propagate. That means after you complete the above steps, you might need to wait up to 24-48 hours before you can log into Double the Donation and successfully click on the "Validate Domain" button.

 

Step #2: Complete the DMARC Setup

1. In your DNS Settings, look for the option to review the list of records already added. If you see a DMARC TXT record already added, congratulations! You're done. You can check to make sure that the matching module has correctly identified your DMARC record by checking the "TXT" row in matching module's "Email Customization - Sending" tab:

 

DMARC record setup valid notification in 360MatchPro

 

If you do not see a TXT record in the list, move on to step 2 below.

 

2. Follow the steps 1-6 in the CNAME setup above.

 

3. Enter the details for your DMARC record:

  • Type: TXT
  • Refers to: Other Host
    • Navigate to the "Hostname" field from the matching module. Copy only the text before .yourdomain.org. See the box in the picture below.
  • Alias to: Paste the information found under "Value Should Be" from the matching module
  • TTL: 15 Minutes

 

 

Please note: The sample value provided for your DMARC TXT record is very simple. Your IT team may want to modify it slightly. This value is sufficient for the purposes of sending matching gift emails through Double the Donation.

 

4. Click Add.

Troubleshooting CNAME records 

If your DNS records still need to be set up or are still being processed, you'll see each record with a CNAME Not Found error displayed for one or all of them. Please check back 24-48 hours later to see if the changes have propagated. If you still see the CNAME Not Found error, please refer to the troubleshooting tips below.
 
  • If there are one or two valid records, but at least one record is still invalid, confirm that all three records have been added to the DNS settings.

  • Ensure CNAMEs were added to the correct domain. (If the From address in the matching module is matchinggifts@catrescueclub.org, ensure CNAMEs weren’t accidentally added to the catrescueclub.com domain). 

  • Ensure the CNAME records do not include typos- CNAME records should be copied and pasted directly from the matching module to ensure the best results. Hand-typing records from a screenshot can lead to accidentally entering the wrong value. Double-check for extra spaces or punctuation on the records.

  • Refer to the instructions provided by your individual DNS service. Instructions for service providers such as GoDaddy, Network Solutions, and DigitalOcean require Hostnames/Aliases to be entered without your organization’s domain included (for example dtd._domainkey.catrescueclub.org will be entered as dtd._domainkey for these providers).

  • If you use a custom nameserver, in place of the default nameserver of your provider, your CNAME records need to be entered into the account associated with the custom nameserver.


If these scenarios do not apply to your CNAME records, please reach out to support@doublethedonation.com to troubleshoot to find a solution.