Role That Can Set A Custom Email Domain: Owner

Zendo plans for which the feature is available: Pro, Max

You need your own SMTP server to send emails and you can only send emails from your Custom Domain.

Example workspace name we’ll be using to showcase how this feature works: support.getzendo.io

Table Of Contents

What Is An Email Domain And SMTP Server?
What Does The Custom Email Domain Feature Do In Zendo?
Who Can Access This Feature?
Step-By-Step Guide To Connecting A Custom Email Domain In Zendo
FAQ

What Is An Email Domain And SMTP Server?

An email domain is a branded name that is used to identify a website or an email sender.

SMTP is a protocol used to send emails on the Internet. An SMTP server, also known as an outgoing mail server, is an application or a machine that uses the SMTP protocol to send, relay, or forward emails. When you send an email, your email client communicates with the SMTP server to handle the sending of that email to the recipient's email server.

What Does The Custom Email Domain Feature Do In Zendo?

The Custom Email Domain feature in Zendo allows you to connect your own SMTP server and send emails from an address within the Custom Domain.

Basically, getting rid of the getzendo.io suffix in the Sender Address of any email that is sent to your client, turning it e.g. from no-reply@getzendo.io to no-reply@yourdomain.com for system notifications and from requestId@getzendo.io to requestId@yourdomain.com for communication within Request.

This gives your clients a more branded and consistent experience, which in turn looks more professional.

To ensure that we can inform you about the problems within the platform, each email sent to your account email will be sent from our servers, without the Custom Email Domain. Your team members and clients will receive emails from your custom SMTP server (unless it stops working).

Who Can Access This Feature?

The Custom Email Domain feature is available to all Zendo users who are subscribed to any of the paid plans: Pro or Max.

Users on the free Essential plan cannot access the Custom Email Domain feature.

Moreover, it’s only the workspace Owner who can connect a Custom Email Domain in Zendo after setting up a Custom Domain.

Step-By-Step Guide To Connecting A Custom Email Domain In Zendo

There are two main steps of adding a custom email domain to Zendo: adding an MX record in the DNS settings of your website’s hosting provider and then updating the SMTP server details in Zendo’s Custom Email Domain settings.

Remember that you need to connect a Custom Domain first, as this feature needs to be enabled before connecting a cutom email domain. To learn how to do that, read this article.

Step One: Adding An MX Record In Your Domain DNS Settings

The first step to connect your domain to a Zendo email server is adding a new MX record in your domain’s DNS settings.

This process usually takes a few minutes to complete. All you have to do is:

log in to your domain’s hosting account and find the DNS or DNS Zone settings
click Add a new MX record and enter the following data:

Type: MX
Host/Name: yourdomain.com
Value: mails.getzendo.io
Priority: 10

Please note: the DNS changes usually take anywhere from 5 to 30 minutes to be updated, but it may take even up to 48 hours to get configured. You can use a DNSChecker to see if the MX propagation was successful.

once the MX record you’ve added starts redirecting, you can move on to the next step.


It’s crucial to note that the process of adding a new MX record in the DNS settings may vary between different host providers.

You can find some example tutorials for adding an MX record here:

Cloudflare: https://developers.cloudflare.com/dns/manage-dns-records/how-to/email-records/#add-mx-records
cPanel: https://support.cpanel.net/hc/en-us/articles/4403206123671-How-to-create-an-MX-record-in-cPanel
NameCheap: https://www.namecheap.com/support/knowledgebase/article.aspx/322/2237/how-can-i-set-up-mx-records-required-for-mail-service/
GoDaddy: https://www.godaddy.com/help/add-an-mx-record-19234

Step Two: Enable And Set SMTP Server Details For Your Custom Email Domain In Zendo Settings

Log in to Zendo and find Client portal under Settings & Customization. Next, choose White Label from the drop-down menu, and switch the tab to Emails. Find the Custom Email Domain section and enable Custom Email Domain on the right by switching the toggle,



type in your SMTP server settings details:

"From" Name: the name which appears as the Sender in email clients,
"From" Email Address: the custom email domain you want to use,
Host, Port: address to your custom SMTP server which is allowed to sent emails from your Custom Domain,
Encryption: determine if the emails use a secure connection. It may fail if your server does not have a signed SSL certificate,
Username, Password: authentication details for the SMTP server,

select “Test Connection” to make sure the connection is working correctly,
select the Save changes button.

And you’re done! The emails sent to your clients from Zendo will now be delivered from your custom email domain address.

Note that if you use an SMTP for regular email service providers like Gmail and don't use additional tools, like Send Grid or AWS SES, you must enter the same email address used for logging into Zendo in the "from" field. Using regular email providers, like Gmail, without additional tools mentioned earlier results in the email being overwritten by the one used for logging in to Zendo.

If you do use additional tools, like Send Grid or AWS SES, you can enter any email address in the "from" field thanks to additional custom email domain verification that can be done in the DNS settings."

FAQ

Is An SMTP Server Required To Send Emails From A Custom Domain?

Yes, an SMTP server is required to ensure emails are delivered without entering the SPAM folder. We will work on a built-in solution in the future.

What About DKIM And SPF Records?

We do not send emails directly from our servers, we connect to your SMTP server which is responsible for email delivery. To set up DKIM and SPF records, please contact your Email Server Provider.

General Details To Know

SMTP Server Address: This is the domain name or IP address of the SMTP
SMTP Port: SMTP servers listen on certain ports for connections. We support 465 (with SSL), and 587 (with or without TLS).
Username & Password: Most SMTP servers require authentication. The username is often your full email address, and the password is your email account password.

How To Obtain Details For An SMTP Server?

From Your Web Hosting Provider:
If you have a hosted website, your hosting provider might provide email services as part of your hosting package. They will provide the details for their SMTP server if this is the case.

ISP (Internet Service Provider):
Some ISPs provide SMTP servers for their customers. Check with your ISP if they offer this service.

Use Third-Party SMTP Services:
There are many third-party SMTP services like SendGrid, Mailgun, and Amazon SES. They often provide better deliverability rates, especially if you're sending out large volumes of emails. Once you sign up, they'll provide the necessary SMTP details.

On-Premise Or Self-Hosted Solutions:
Organizations might run their own SMTP servers. In this case, the IT department or systems administrator would provide the SMTP details.

Google Workspace:
Host: smtp.gmail.com
Port: 465
Encryption: SSL/TLS
Username: Your email address
Password: You need to set up an app password in your Google Admin. Follow the official docs to learn how to proceed.

Updated on: 21/03/2024