When it comes to B2B lead generation, cold email outreach is a powerful tool for reaching new clients. But setting up your email correctly is crucial. Without the right technical setup, you risk deliverability issues that can hinder your entire campaign. This blog will guide you through the key steps to ensure your cold email system is optimized and ready to convert, with tools like Instantly.ai making the process smoother.

Why Proper Setup Matters in Cold Email Campaigns
Technical setup might not seem glamorous, but it’s vital to cold email success. A strong setup, especially when automated with Instantly.ai, maximizes email deliverability and ensures your outreach lands in the inbox, not the spam folder. Properly configured domains, tracking, and warm-up processes build your sending reputation, allowing you to focus on crafting compelling messages and driving engagement.

1. Domain Setup and Email Accounts
To run high-volume campaigns, separate domains from your main company domain are essential. These domains keep your main brand safe and allow for volume scaling. Here’s how to set up domains effectively:

  • Create Accounts in Instantly: Start by logging in to Instantly.ai and adding email accounts using the “Done-for-You” setup, which automates domain and email configurations.
  • Choose High-Quality Domains: Instantly recommends secondary domains and sets up subdomains for you, streamlining the entire process.
  • Add Forwarding: Forward your secondary domains to your main site to add a layer of legitimacy and credibility.

This setup will help build your brand’s online presence while supporting higher sending volumes and improved deliverability.

2. Configuring SPF, DKIM, and DMARC
Ensuring emails reach inboxes, not spam folders, requires setting up SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records. These technical steps authenticate your emails and help build trust with email providers.

  • SPF (Sender Policy Framework): Specifies the servers allowed to send emails on behalf of your domain.
  • DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail): Adds a digital signature, proving the email’s origin.
  • DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting & Conformance): Helps ensure SPF and DKIM work together, providing another layer of email protection.

With Instantly’s done-for-you setup, this complex process is handled automatically, so you can focus on what matters most—engaging your audience.

3. Setting Up a Custom Tracking Domain
Tracking engagement is key in B2B lead generation, and setting up a custom tracking domain ensures accurate data while protecting your sender reputation. Instantly.ai simplifies this with just a few clicks, allowing you to monitor email opens, clicks, and more effectively.

4. Warm-Up Process for Optimal Deliverability
Warming up new email accounts is essential for maintaining deliverability. Allowing accounts to warm up gradually over two weeks builds trust with email providers and helps avoid spam filters. With Instantly, this is as easy as clicking a flame icon next to each account, automating the gradual increase in daily sends and maintaining a strong sender reputation.

5. Scaling with the Right Number of Domains and Accounts
As your campaigns grow, scale by adding domains and inboxes as needed. Each email account can send roughly 50 emails daily, so if your goal is 1,000 emails per day, you’ll need around 20 accounts. Instantly recommends using 3-5 accounts per domain, so for 20 accounts, you’ll need around 4-7 domains. This setup offers flexibility, ensuring your campaigns can continue smoothly without disruptions.

Setting up cold email outreach correctly may seem like a technical task, but it pays dividends in campaign performance. Automated tools like Instantly.ai make this process seamless, allowing you to build a strong B2B lead generation engine without the hassle.

For businesses aiming to scale their pipeline and generate consistent leads, expert help can make all the difference. Book a discovery call with SocialBloom here to learn how we can help you grow your pipeline faster with expert support and proven multichannel outreach strategies.