What is DKIM and how to configure it? Video

Custom DKIM is not required to be able to send messages through GetResponse. You will still be able to send messages using a from field address on your domain, which will be sent with a GetResponse DKIM key and your sender email address will be displayed as “example@example.com via GetResponse-mail.com” in some email clients.

Configuring DKIM for your own domain can give you a significant boost in your email marketing communication as it lets you authenticate messages using your domain.

Firstly, it will hide any references to GetResponse in the messages you send, which are otherwise always visible for Gmail and all Microsoft tools (Outlook.com and Microsoft Outlook) and the messages will now only display the from email address.

Secondly, you will build your own deliverability reputation for this domain, allowing you to boost even further your deliverability rates.

Thirdly, if you would like to or are already using DMARC, this needs to be implemented before you start sending messages through GetResponse.

Before you begin

To be able to add your own DKIM key, you will need:

  • Your own domain
  • Access to the DNS administration panel
  • A DKIM key provided by GetResponse

How do I generate a DKIM key?

To generate a DKIM key in GetResponse you need to:

  1. In the GetResponse Dashboard, click Tools >> Emails and Domains.
  2. Go to Email addresses tab and Authenticate next to the domain name you would like to generate the DKIM key for.
  3. Copy TXT host and value from the pop-up window:

How do I add a DKIM record for my domain?

The process may differ depending on where your domain is hosted.

To add a DKIM record to your domain, you need to:

  1. Log in to your domain hosting control panel.
  2. In the domain settings section, look for the DNS settings.
  3. Add a TXT record with appropriate values (name, value, TTL).
  4. Save the changes.

Depending on your domain host it can take up to 24 hours for the changes to propagate. We recommend sending a newsletter to yourself to test if the DKIM key has propagated correctly.

How do I add a DKIM record in my GoDaddy account?

Follow these steps to add the GetResponse DKIM records to your domain:

1. Log in to your GoDaddy account.
2. Click on the DNS button next to your domain name.

GoDaddy DNS configuration

3. On the DNS Management page, at the bottom of the Records section, click Add and select TXT from the menu.
4. Set the values as follows:

Host – Enter the host name for the TXT record. For example: 61715esc._domainkey
TXT Value – Enter the value, e.g. k=rsa; p=MIGfMA0GCSqGSIb3ewEBAQUAA4GNADCBiQKWqQDtkQU+H1WYHOa2vAALdicfVGghHZULJ+
aTggBJ7upymm+SeSIhe+EhcKojOsDICGlydo9U5Ky/
gRZlpVJfd8c66Z7HHJ3j5vOOEg9CZvL36EULgteZEwHADZgEgU0CreDXnCz6x9oC3/
34+4d9PFyjhD70eamQeywuMeAUE7PksQIDAQAB
TTL (Time to Live) – leave the value as the default.

5. Click the Save button.

Common issues when adding a DKIM key

The DKIM record does not work

This is caused by a selector mismatch. Please make sure the name input in your configuration does not miss the last sign of the correct selector (e.g. using “4e4a47e” instead of the correct “4e4a47eb”).

Some hosting providers require host field with dot, some witout dot, some with or without the domain. Please make sure to always verifiy domain name after saving it. In case of doubts contact your domain provider.

After adding DKIM messages go to SPAM or are rejected

Implementing DMARC without SPF and DKIM working properly will result in messages landing in spam and / or being rejected. Please test the domain with https://mxtoolbox.com/dmarc.aspx.
In such case, if there are mistakes in SPF and DKIM configuration, records need to be removed and added again. DKIM must be configured properly before DMARC is configured, while SPF is optional.

Only a part of the DKIM record is published

This is caused by the hosting provider allowing only up to 128 characters in a key. Please contact your hosting provider or domain administrator for assistance in adding the key.

Subdomain address is doubled

In some hosting panels the first column should only include the subdomain. In this case the correct configuration of this column would be formatted as “4a4b4c._domainkey” for example. On DNS servers of this type, adding“4a4b4c._domainkey.testgetresponse.com” results in the record being added to a duplicated domain like “4a4b4c._domainkey.testgetresponse.com.testgetresponse.com” for example.

DKIM working intermittently

Please make sure that you don’t have more than one DNS server for your domain. It is possible that one of your DNS servers may not be configured correctly. Please check all DNS servers to ensure that they are all configured with the correct DKIM and SPF settings.

For more information on email authentication, please see our blog post.

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