Cold Email Domain Variations: Enhancing Deliverability and Response Rate

Cold emailing, the process of sending unsolicited emails to potential customers or clients, remains a staple strategy in modern marketing. However, with growing concerns over spam and a multitude of email service providers imposing strict policies, the execution of cold email campaigns has become increasingly challenging.

This blog post offers insights into one solution that is often overlooked – the strategic use of cold email domain variations.

Understanding Cold Email Domains

A cold email domain, simply put, is the domain associated with the email address you’re using for cold outreach. It’s where your sales outreach email originates from, and it’s the reference point for spam filters when determining the credibility and safety of your cold outreach message.

The traditional approach for many has been to use their primary domain (the main domain tied to their company or brand) for cold emailing. But when it comes to sending cold emails, this may not always be the most effective strategy.

That’s where the concept of domain variations comes into play.

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The Power of Domain Variations in Cold Emailing

Domain variations are different versions or adaptations of your main domain name, used for sending out cold emails. For instance, if your main domain is “example.com,” a domain variation might be “mail.example.com” or “outreach.example.com.”

Intricately woven into the fabric of cold emailing, the use of domain variations can help maintain your primary domain’s reputation. This is especially crucial as a poor domain reputation can lead to your emails being flagged by spam filters, drastically reducing email deliverability, and inhibiting the success of your cold email campaigns.

Maintaining a separate domain for your cold email outreach efforts allows you to safeguard your primary domain reputation. This is beneficial for not only your cold email campaigns but also any other email marketing campaigns that you may run.

Furthermore, using a separate domain for cold emailing can give your cold email address a more focused branding, making it more relevant to your target audience.

Google Workspace and Domain Variations

Platforms like Google Workspace make it easy to manage multiple domains and create distinct email addresses and accounts for each one. Known for its reliability, Google Workspace also seamlessly integrates with Google Domains, where you can purchase and manage various domain variations.

But while it’s relatively easy to set up new domains for your cold email campaigns, it’s crucial to properly manage these domains to avoid deliverability problems.

Email service providers like Google Workspace scrutinize the domain age, among other factors, to prevent spam. Hence, it’s necessary to warm up new domains gradually by sending a few emails first before ramping up to high volume.

Managing Your Email Reputation

The key to successful cold outreach using email domain variations lies in maintaining a good sender reputation. Each email domain has its own reputation in the eyes of email providers, largely determined by the volume and quality of the emails sent from that domain. Hence, one advantage of using domain variations for cold emailing is the ability to compartmentalize and manage these reputations separately.

To ensure your emails land in the recipient’s inbox and not the spam folder, there are several strategies to consider. These include carefully crafting your subject line or lines that avoid spam-triggering phrases, incorporating a professional email signature, and ensuring your email content is valuable and relevant to your recipients.

In the next section, we will delve deeper into the strategies for managing domain variations and sender reputation to maximize the success of your cold email outreach campaigns. Stay tuned, and don’t forget to explore Mailarrow, our cold email outreach tool, designed to help you optimize your cold email campaigns with ease.

Building a Strong Reputation with Domain Variations

The Role of IP Addresses and Email Service Providers

Each domain, including cold email domains and their variations, is associated with certain IP addresses. These IP addresses, managed by your email service provider, play a crucial role in the overall sender reputation and subsequently, the success of your cold email outreach.

Email service providers like Google Workspace meticulously monitor these IP addresses for any signs of spam or unethical email practices. This is why it’s essential to choose a reliable email provider that supports multiple domains and offers robust tools to manage your email deliverability effectively.

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Nurturing a New Domain

When you set up a new domain for your cold email campaigns, it’s important to warm up it up before sending high-volume emails. Warming up your new domain involves gradually increasing the volume of your emails over time, helping you establish a positive reputation with email providers and avoid being flagged by spam filters.

To further enhance the reputation of your new email domains, consider linking them to your company’s LinkedIn profile and incorporating a professional profile picture.

These elements help build credibility and signal to email providers and potential customers that your domain is legitimate.

Maintaining Domain Reputation

Ensuring that your cold emails are well-received is an ongoing process. It involves continually monitoring the performance of sending emails to your domain variations, adjusting your cold email strategies as necessary, and staying abreast of changes in email provider policies and spam filter algorithms.

Strategies to maintain your domain reputation include crafting compelling subject lines, personalizing the first line of your emails, and making sure your cold email campaigns provide value to your target audience.

Having a clear call to action in your emails and following up appropriately also contribute to maintaining a positive domain reputation and ensuring the success of your cold email campaigns.

The Role of Top-Level Domains

Another critical aspect to consider in the realm of domain variations is your choice of top-level domain. Top-level domains (TLDs) are the last segment of a domain name – the letters immediately following the final dot in an Internet address. Examples include .com, .org, or .net.

Different TLDs may impact your email deliverability in different ways. While this largely depends on your email service provider and its spam filters, choosing a well-recognized and reputable TLD can help ensure that your cold emails reach the primary inbox of your potential clients.

In the upcoming section of blog post, we’ll further explore specific strategies for leveraging domain variations in your cold email campaigns and tips for avoiding common pitfalls. Don’t forget to check out Mailarrow, the comprehensive cold email outreach tool, for maximizing the effectiveness of your cold email efforts.

Strategizing Domain Variations for Effective Cold Email Campaigns

Implementing Multiple Domains

Having multiple domains at your disposal allows you to segment your email campaigns based on your target audience, the nature of the campaign, and the volume of emails sent. Moreover, it allows you to test different variations of your cold email domain to see which resonates best with your potential customers.

Be cautious, however, not to send the same email from multiple domains simultaneously, as it can lead to deliverability problems. Email providers may see it as an attempt to bypass spam filters and block messages from your domains.

Building a Consistent Brand Identity

When choosing domain variations for your cold emails, it’s important to maintain consistency with your primary domain name and overall brand identity. A consistent domain name can make your emails more recognizable to your potential customers and increase the likelihood of your emails being opened and read.

Make sure to also use the company name in your email address to further solidify your brand identity in your cold email outreach. The domain name in your cold email address should reflect your company name, and ideally, the purpose of the email, to make it clear to the recipient who the email is from and why they’re receiving it.

Overcoming Spam Filters

Despite our best efforts, spam filters can sometimes mistakenly categorize legitimate cold emails as spam. To avoid your emails landing in the spam folder, use your email domains wisely.

Establish the reputation of your new domain, and avoid spam filters by sending high volume emails too quickly, and ensure that the content of your emails, including subject lines and the first line, doesn’t trigger spam filters.

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The Future of Cold Emailing

As the digital marketing landscape continues to evolve, the techniques and strategies used in cold email outreach also need to evolve. Leveraging domain variations is just one of the strategies that businesses can use to improve their cold email campaigns’ success rate. It’s important to continually review and update your cold email strategies based on data and feedback from your email marketing campaigns.

In conclusion, using different cold email domain variations more strategically can enhance the deliverability and success rate of your cold email campaigns. The power to perfect your cold email domain strategy is in your hands, and tools like Mailarrow are here to make the process seamless and effective.

Harnessing the Power of Cold Email Domain Variations: From Strategy to Execution

Having understood the importance of domain variations in your cold email strategy, the next critical step involves leveraging these insights into action.

In this section, we explore concrete steps on how to implement this strategy and circumvent challenges that may arise, primarily avoiding spam filters and ensuring high deliverability.

Setting Up Your Cold Email Domains

While your email service provider will guide you through the technicalities of setting up new email accounts for different domains, choosing your domain name wisely is essential. Your domain name should reflect your brand, be easy to remember, and avoid any terms that might trigger spam filters.

Google Domains offers a broad range of domain names, including traditional .com and .net top-level domains, and more niche options. Your choice of domain name can significantly impact the success of your cold email campaigns.

Experimenting with different domain variations and tracking their performance can help you determine the best options for your business.

Email Marketing and Sales Outreach

Cold email domain variations can also be an asset for your email marketing campaigns and sales outreach. By segmenting your email marketing campaigns based on different domains, you can target specific audiences more effectively and track the success of your campaigns with more data.

Similarly, sales reps can use different email accounts associated with various domains for their sales outreach, ensuring their messages reach the right audience and avoid being flagged as spam.

Maintaining Compliance and Ethical Standards

While leveraging domain variations can increase your cold email campaign success, it’s crucial to remember that this strategy must be implemented ethically and comply with all relevant laws and regulations. Never use domain variations to trick recipients or bypass spam filters unethically.

Ensure that all your cold emails include a clear and easy way for recipients to opt out of future messages. Not only is this a legal requirement in many jurisdictions, but it also helps maintain your sender reputation and improves the quality of your email lists.

In the end, the successful implementation of cold email domain variations boils down to a blend of strategic planning, continuous testing, and data-driven decision-making.

Remember, tools like Mailarrow are designed to facilitate your journey, from setting up multiple cold email domain accounts to managing your domain reputation and ensuring high deliverability rates. Embrace the power of cold email domain variations and unlock new opportunities for your business.

Don’t forget to sign up to Mailarrow, your perfect partner in the world of cold email outreach, to bring your cold emailing to new heights.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best domain for cold emails?

The best domain for cold emails is one that is reputable, recognizable, and directly connected to your brand or company name. Consider using a variation of your primary domain to maintain brand consistency and domain reputation.

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Should you send cold emails from your primary domain?

It’s typically better to avoid using your primary domain for cold emailing. Doing so can risk damaging your primary domain’s reputation if your cold emails are marked as spam. Instead, use a separate domain or a variation of an existing domain as your primary domain for cold emails.

How many email accounts per domain for cold email?

There is no hard and fast rule for the number of email accounts per domain for cold emails. However, it’s crucial to maintain a manageable number that allows you to maintain a positive sender reputation for each email account used. This number may vary depending on the size of your team, the volume of your cold email campaigns, and your email service provider’s capabilities.

 

 

 

 

 

Serge Shlykov is the founder of Mailarrow. Rotterdam Business School graduate and a long-time software engineer he has been running his own agency and SaaS business before realizing how many people are struggling with cold email outreach. This made him create Mailarrow, the cold email outreach software that helps you build great relationships at scale. Find him on Twitter and LinkedIn