How to move cold email off your main domain
If cold outreach runs from the same domain as your invoices and client emails, one bad campaign can push all of it into spam. Here is the checklist we use to move outreach onto separate, protected domains — without losing momentum.
Clients, invoices, day-to-day email. Never used for cold outreach.
2–3 inboxes per domain · warmed up before launch · volume ramped slowly
- 01
Stop sending cold email from your main domain
Your main domain carries invoices, client threads and recruitment. If cold outreach damages its reputation, all of that starts landing in spam. Pause cold campaigns on it before you change anything else.
- 02
Register 2–3 lookalike sending domains
Use clear variations of your brand (for example get-yourco.com or yourco-mail.com) and redirect each one to your main website, so anyone who checks the domain lands somewhere familiar.
- 03
Authenticate every domain: SPF, DKIM and DMARC
SPF lists who may send for the domain, DKIM signs each message, and DMARC tells receiving servers what to do when checks fail. Start DMARC at p=none with reporting switched on, then tighten it once reports are clean.
- 04
Add a custom tracking domain — or switch tracking off
Shared tracking links in sending tools are a common spam signal. Either set a custom tracking domain for each sending domain or turn open and click tracking off entirely.
- 05
Create 2–3 inboxes per domain and warm them up
Real names, profile photos and signatures. Warm each inbox for two to three weeks before it sends a single cold email.
- 06
Ramp volume slowly
Start around 10–15 new contacts per inbox per day and increase gradually while you watch bounces and replies. Spread volume across inboxes instead of pushing one hard.
- 07
Clean the list before it goes live
Verify emails, remove duplicates, existing customers, competitors and anyone who has opted out. In the UK, corporate addresses only: sole traders and some partnerships count as individuals and need consent.
- 08
Monitor and set pause rules
Check Google Postmaster Tools and blacklists weekly. Agree in advance what pauses a campaign — for example a bounce rate above 3% or any spam complaint — so nobody has to decide under pressure.
The mistake to avoid
Moving domains and doubling volume in the same week. New domains have no history, so sudden volume looks exactly like spam. Change one thing at a time and let the data tell you when to push.
Want a quick check first? Run your domain through the free deliverability checker, or book a 30-minute call and we'll go through your setup with you.