A professional email on your own domain, set up right

"contact@yourcompany.com" tells a client you are a real business. "yourcompany2024@gmail.com" tells them the opposite. The good news: a professional email takes less than an hour, and most of that is waiting for DNS.

What you need

1. A domain, such as yourcompany.com.
2. An email service for that domain. Many hosting plans include one; this site uses Hostinger's email for contact@ahmed-adil.com.

Step 1: create the mailbox

In your email provider's panel, add a mailbox such as contact@ or name@. Use a long, unique password and turn on two-step verification if it is offered.

Step 2: point the domain's mail to it (MX)

MX records tell the world where to deliver email for your domain. If your domain and email are with the same provider, this is often done automatically. If not, copy the MX records from your email provider into your domain's DNS.

Step 3: the three records that keep you out of spam

This is the part most people skip, and it is why their emails land in junk.

SPF says which servers may send email for your domain. It is one TXT record, for example:

v=spf1 include:_spf.mail.hostinger.com ~all

DKIM signs every email so receivers can verify it really came from you. Your provider gives you the record; often you just switch it on.

DMARC tells receivers what to do when SPF or DKIM fail, and can send you reports. A safe starting point:

_dmarc.yourdomain.com  TXT  "v=DMARC1; p=none"

Start with p=none, check that everything passes, then tighten to quarantine later.

Step 4: check it

• Your provider's domain settings page should show SPF, DKIM and DMARC as configured.
• Send a test to a Gmail address, open it, choose "Show original", and look for SPF: PASS, DKIM: PASS and DMARC: PASS.

Step 5: let your website send from it

Contact forms and notifications should send through your mailbox using SMTP (for Hostinger: smtp.hostinger.com, port 465, SSL), not through a random server. That is how this site's request emails reach the inbox.

FAQ

Can I use my business email in Gmail or Outlook apps?

Yes. Add it as an IMAP account in the app with the server details from your provider.

Why do my emails still go to spam?

Usually one of SPF, DKIM or DMARC is missing or failing. Check the headers of a test email; the failing one is named there.

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Need your domain email and website set up properly? Ask the editor on ahmed-adil.com.