Custom Email Sending Domains
By default, emails sent from Qik go out from a Qik system address. If you authenticate your own domain, emails can be sent from your own addresses (for example news@acme.com), which looks more trustworthy to recipients and improves deliverability.
How sender addresses work
Every email in Qik has a From name and address. For a campaign this is the Sender First Name, Sender Last Name and Sender Email you set on the campaign. For an email you compose to a person, it's normally your own name and login email. Qik only sends from an address whose domain your organisation has verified. When an email goes out, Qik picks the From address like this:
- If the sender's email address is on one of your verified domains, it's used as-is.
- Otherwise, if your Organisation Email (in Organisation Settings) is on a verified domain, that address is used instead.
- Otherwise the email is sent from a Qik system address.
In every case the sender's display name is kept (recipients still see "Jane Smith" in their inbox), and replies go to the original sender's email address. So even before you verify a domain, people who reply will reach the right person. Verifying your domain just means the From address itself shows your domain.
Adding a sending domain
Only organisation administrators can manage sending domains.
- Click your avatar at the top right of the dashboard and choose Organisation Settings.
- Scroll to the Sending Domains section.
- Type your domain, for example
acme.com, into the box and click Add Domain. Enter the domain only, not an email address. - The domain appears in the list with the status pending, along with the DNS records you need to add.
DNS records to add
Log in to wherever your domain's DNS is managed (your domain registrar, Cloudflare, your IT provider, etc.) and add the records shown under your domain. Click any name or value in Qik to copy it.
Required: three CNAME records
These DKIM records prove that you own the domain and let receiving mail servers confirm that the email really came from you. Qik shows three of them, each looking like this:
| Type | Name | Value |
|---|---|---|
| CNAME | abc123…._domainkey.acme.com | abc123….dkim.amazonses.com |
Copy the exact values Qik shows you; they're unique to your domain. Some DNS providers automatically add your domain to the end of the name. If yours does, enter only the part before your domain (for example abc123…._domainkey).
Recommended: TXT records
Qik also shows two TXT records. You don't need them for verification, but they help your emails get delivered:
| Type | Name | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| TXT | acme.com | v=spf1 include:amazonses.com ~all | SPF. If you already have an SPF record, add include:amazonses.com to it instead of creating a second one. A domain should only have one SPF record. |
| TXT | _dmarc.acme.com | v=DMARC1; p=none; | DMARC. Skip this if you already have a DMARC policy. |
Verification
You don't need to do anything else after adding the records. Qik checks pending domains automatically every few minutes. DNS changes usually take a few minutes to take effect, but can take up to a few hours. When the records are found, the status changes to verified, and from then on any sender address ending in that domain can be used.
To check sooner, click Check next to the domain. If it says "Not verified yet", your DNS records may still be taking effect. Wait and try again.
Statuses
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| pending | Waiting for the DNS records to be found. Emails from this domain are still sent from the Qik system address (with your display name and reply-to). |
| verified | The domain is authenticated. Emails from addresses on this domain are sent from that address. |
| failed | The records couldn't be verified. Check that the CNAME records exactly match what Qik shows, fix them, then click Check. Qik no longer checks a failed domain automatically, so use Check after you fix the records. |
Removing a domain
Click Remove next to the domain and confirm. The domain can no longer be used for sending, and emails from addresses on that domain go back to the Qik system address. You can then remove the DNS records if you want to.
What this affects
- Campaigns: the campaign's Sender Email is used if it's on a verified domain.
- Emails to people, notification emails and workflow emails: the sender's address is used if it's on a verified domain.
- Account emails (invitations and password resets your apps send): you can send these in your own style and from your own domain by choosing a template under Account Emails in Organisation Settings.
Bounces and spam complaints for your domain are handled by Qik automatically (see Unsubscribes and Suppressions). They aren't forwarded to your mailbox.
Tips
- Set Organisation Email in Organisation Settings to an address on your verified domain. Emails from staff whose login uses a personal or other domain then go out from your organisation's address instead of the Qik system address.
- If your organisation sends from more than one domain, add and verify each one.
- Use real, monitored sender addresses. Replies go to the sender's address.