Gmail & Yahoo Email Requirement Updates

Kayla M.

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Have questions about the Gmail and Yahoo email requirement updates? We’ve put together a few Frequently Asked Questions to help!

In this article:

What’s happening?

You may have heard about the new email requirements for bulk senders starting February 4, 2024.

Yahoo and Gmail have separately announced updated requirements to deliver email to their platforms. Their goal is to better secure customers' inboxes and provide an improved consumer email experience.

The updated recommendations cover the following:

  • Ensure proper setup and authentication
    For senders to Yahoo or Gmail, both mail providers require that all emails be fully authenticated with Sender Policy Framework (SPF), Domain Keys Identified Mail (DKIM), and Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting and Conformance (DMARC).
  • Make it easy to unsubscribe 
    To provide a hassle-free experience for users, senders must support one-click unsubscribe in the List-Unsubscribe header in the email. This does not affect the visible Unsubscribe link in the body of the email. Both mailbox providers require senders to honor the unsubscribe request within two days.
  • Send emails that your subscribers want to receive
    To help reduce spam in their users' inboxes, both Yahoo and Gmail will enforce a spam complaint threshold of 0.3%. However, Kajabi enforces a complaint threshold of 0.2% to ensure email success for our Heroes. Exceeding this threshold will likely increase the number of blocked emails or emails being directed to the bulk folder.

Although this change will improve your email deliverability, there are actions you may need to take if you have a custom email domain connected to Kajabi.

Which email providers are implementing changes?

Google and Yahoo are adding new email requirements for bulk senders starting February 2024.

What do I need to do?

For our Kajabi Heroes, we are dedicated to empowering you with the tools necessary to succeed. Because of this, Kajabi has been hard at work building updates for our email tool to match the updated requirements.

Therefore, the majority of our Heroes will not need to take any action, and the updates to accommodate these new requirements will not impact your email deliverability through Kajabi. 

Additionally, your email metrics will not be impacted.

If you send email from a Kajabi email domain:

You are already set up to match the updated requirements and there is nothing for you to do! All required DNS records are already in place for shared sending pools.

If you send email from a custom sending domain and Kajabi controls your DNS:

There is nothing for you to do! SPF, DKIM, and PTR records are already in place, and DMARC records will be in place by February 4, 2024.

Who needs to take action?

For Heroes with custom email domains who control their own DNS, there is one small action item: You will need to implement a DMARC. 

If this applies to you, we will reach out with a reminder. If you don’t add the DMARC record to your DNS by February 4, 2024, you will still be able to send email through Kajabi, but your custom email domain will be disabled, and your email will be sent from a shared sending pool.

Not sure if you control your DNS? Learn more.

If you send email from a custom sending domain and you control your DNS:

You will need to add a DMARC record specific to your sending domain to your DNS by February 4, 2024. Your SPF, DKIM, and PTR records are already in place. 

Unless you have an existing DMARC record, the following will need to be added to your DNS:

Type:TXT

Name:_dmarc

Content (or Value): "v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:dmarc_kjb@kajabi.com; pct=100; rf=afrf"

(Be sure to include all special characters, e.g., “”)

Example of DMARC record added to GoDaddy:

If you already have a DMARC record and your parameter is set to adkim=s:

If you have a DMARC record, without an ADKIM tag or an ADKIM tag is set to adkim=r (relaxed) and not adkim=s (strict), there is nothing more for you to do!

However, if your ADKIM tag is set to adkim=s, please reach out to Support for assistance.

Add a DMARC record to your DNS

Adding a DMARC record to your DNS will vary depending on your DNS Provider. Follow the instructions for your specific DNS Provider:

Warning:
The verification process can take up to 48 hours due to the timeframe for the Domain Name System (DNS) changes to propagate. To create a successful connection: (1) A custom subdomain has been added to ensure that your records don't interfere with existing domains. (2) Your DNS changes must propagate, meaning that Internet Service Provider (ISP) nodes across the world must update their caches with your new DNS information.

GoDaddy

To add a DMARC record to GoDaddy, you will need to add it as a TXT record:

  • In your GoDaddy DNS Records, click Add and select TXT from the Type dropdown.
  • Enter the Name _dmarc into the Name field in GoDaddy.
  • Then, enter "v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:dmarc_kjb@kajabi.com; pct=100; rf=afrf" into the Value field in GoDaddy. (See example)
    Note: Be sure to include all special characters, including quotations, apostrophes, and spaces. We recommend copying and pasting the exact value into the Value field.
  • Keep the default value in the TTL field.
  • Click Add record.

CloudFlare

To add a DMARC record to CloudFlare, you will need to add it as a TXT record:

  • Log into your CloudFlare dashboard and click into your Active domain.
  • Select the DNS tab.
  • Click +Add Record and select TXT from the Type dropdown.
  • Enter the Name _dmarc into the Name field in CloudFlare.
  • Keep the default value in the TTL field.
  • Then, enter "v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:dmarc_kjb@kajabi.com; pct=100; rf=afrf" into the Content field in CloudFlare. (See example)
    Note: Be sure to include all special characters, including quotations, apostrophes, and spaces. We recommend copying and pasting the exact value into the Value field.
  • Click Save to add your record.

Bluehost

To add a DMARC record to Bluehost, you will need to add it as a TXT record:

  • In your Bluehost DNS Manager, scroll down to the TXT card and click Add Record.
  • Enter the Name _dmarc into the Name field in Bluehost.
  • Then, enter "v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:dmarc_kjb@kajabi.com; pct=100; rf=afrf" TXT Value field in Bluehost. (See example)
    Note: Be sure to include all special characters, including quotations, apostrophes, and spaces. We recommend copying and pasting the exact value into the Value field.
  • Select 4 Hours in the TTL field.
  • Click Save.

Namecheap

To add a DMARC record to Namecheap, you will need to add it as a TXT record:

  • In your Namecheap Advanced DNS settings, locate your Host Records.
  • Click + Add New Record and select TXT Record from the dropdown menu.
  • Enter the Name _dmarc into the Host field in Namecheap.
  • Then, enter "v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:dmarc_kjb@kajabi.com; pct=100; rf=afrf" into the Value field in Namecheap. (See example)
    Note: Be sure to include all special characters including quotations, apostrophes, and spaces. We recommend copying and pasting the exact value into the Value field
  • Keep the default value (Automatic) in the TTL field.
  • Then, click Save All Changes.

SiteGround

To add a DMARC record to SiteGround, you will need to add it as a TXT record:

  • In your SiteGround DNS Zone Editor, navigate to Create New Record and select the TXT tab.
  • Enter the Name _dmarc into the Name field in SiteGround.
  • Then, enter "v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:dmarc_kjb@kajabi.com; pct=100; rf=afrf" into the Value field in SiteGround. (See example)
    Note: Be sure to include all special characters, including quotations, apostrophes, and spaces. We recommend copying and pasting the exact value into the Value field.
  • Keep the default value in the TTL field.
  • Click Create.

How do I know if I control my DNS?

  • Visit your site's Domain Settings in your Kajabi account.
  • If a "DNS Settings" button is visible AND you have a Marketing Email Domain that matches the Custom Domain, we will make the changes necessary for you, and no action is needed:

gmail-yahoo-email-requirement-updates-hc-draft-google-docs.png

  • If you do not see these settings and you have a Custom Email Domain connected, you control your DNS and will need to add the DMARC record:

gmail-yahoo-email-requirement-updates-hc-draft-google-docs (1).png

Still have questions? Let us know your question below to have it added to the list, or reach out to Support if you need additional assistance. Thanks for being the best part of Kajabi!

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