Question:

How does having ‘gmail’ as a substring of my custom domain affect the email deliverability?

I am using SimpleLogin to create a custom domain for my email address. My last name ends with a ‘g’ and I want to use it as the prefix of my domain, followed by ‘mail.com’. For example, if my last name is Young, my domain would be youngmail.com. However, I am worried that this might cause some of my emails to be marked as spam, since ‘gmail’ is a substring of my domain. Is this a valid concern? How can I avoid any potential issues with email deliverability?

Answer:

Email deliverability is the measure of how successfully your emails reach the intended recipients’ inboxes without being blocked, bounced, or filtered as spam. It depends on various factors, such as the reputation of your sender domain, the quality and relevance of your email content, the authentication and security protocols you use, and the feedback from the recipients (such as spam reports or unsubscribes).

One of the common questions that people have when creating a custom domain for their email address is whether having ‘gmail’ as a substring of their domain would affect their email deliverability. For example, if your last name is Young and you want to use youngmail.com as your domain, would that cause some of your emails to be flagged as spam, since ‘gmail’ is a part of your domain?

The short answer is: no, having ‘gmail’ as a substring of your custom domain does not automatically affect your email deliverability. However, there are some other factors that you need to consider to ensure that your emails are delivered properly.

First of all, you need to make sure that your custom domain is registered and verified by a reputable domain registrar. This will help you avoid any potential issues with domain ownership, such as domain hijacking or spoofing. You also need to configure your domain’s DNS settings to point to the email service provider that you use, such as SimpleLogin. This will enable you to send and receive emails from your custom domain.

Secondly, you need to authenticate your custom domain using various security protocols, such as SPF, DKIM, and DMARC. These protocols help you prove that you are the legitimate owner of your domain and that your emails are not forged or tampered with. They also help you protect your domain from phishing, spoofing, and other malicious attacks. You can use tools such as [MXToolbox](https://mxtoolbox.com/) to check your domain’s authentication status and fix any issues.

Thirdly, you need to maintain your domain’s reputation by following the best practices of email marketing. This includes sending relevant, engaging, and personalized emails to your recipients, segmenting your email list based on their preferences and behaviors, avoiding spammy or misleading subject lines and content, testing your emails for spam score and deliverability, and monitoring your email metrics, such as open rate, click rate, bounce rate, and spam rate. You also need to respect your recipients’ consent and preferences, such as providing them with clear and easy ways to opt-in, opt-out, or update their subscription settings.

By following these steps, you can ensure that your custom domain does not affect your email deliverability, regardless of whether it contains ‘gmail’ or not. Having a custom domain can help you create a unique and professional email identity, as well as enhance your brand awareness and trustworthiness. However, you need to be careful and responsible when using your custom domain, as it also reflects your reputation and credibility as an email sender.