If you want to send a newsletter, announcement or promotion to your customers, send it through an email marketing (mailing) service, not from your hosting mailbox. This guide explains why bulk email from a normal mailbox causes problems, how to set up a mailing service with your domain, and how to add SPF and DKIM so your newsletters reach the inbox.
Why not send newsletters from your hosting mailbox?
Your hosting email account is built for everyday, person-to-person email. Mass mail sent from it, whether by pasting a long list into BCC or by using a "bulk mailer" app or plugin, causes trouble:
- Deliverability suffers. Gmail, Outlook and Yahoo watch for bulk mail from ordinary mail servers. Spam complaints and bounces from one newsletter can send your everyday email to spam as well.
- It affects your whole account. Heavy sending can get your account's outgoing mail blocked, and then your normal business email stops too.
- No unsubscribe handling. Newsletters need a working unsubscribe link and must stop mailing people who opt out. A mailbox can't do that for you.
- No bounce or complaint handling. Mailing services remove dead addresses and complainers automatically, which protects your reputation.
Mailing lists (cPanel's Mailman) aren't included on standard plans, so use a mailing service for anything sent to a list.
What's fine to send from your Instant Access Internet Services hosting account
- Normal email to customers, suppliers and colleagues, including to a few people at once.
- Your website's own automatic email: contact-form notifications, password resets, WooCommerce order confirmations and similar one-to-one messages.
Anything sent to a list of subscribers, customers or contacts in one go belongs in a mailing service.
Choose a mailing service
Popular options include Mailchimp, MailerLite, Brevo, Constant Contact and Kit (formerly ConvertKit). Most have a free or low-cost plan for small lists. They handle sign-up forms, unsubscribes, bounces, templates and reports. Pick one that suits your list size and budget.
Send from your own domain with SPF and DKIM
To send as news@example.com without landing in spam, the mailing service has to be allowed to send for your domain. You do this by adding DNS records it gives you. The exact records differ between services, so always copy them from the service's own domain authentication or sender verification page.
- In the mailing service, find its domain authentication page (often under account or domain settings) and add your domain. It will show you one or more DNS records to add, usually a DKIM record (TXT or CNAME) and sometimes an SPF entry, a DMARC record or a verification code.
- In cPanel, go to Domains > Zone Editor and click Manage next to your domain. Add each record exactly as shown. See How to Use the cPanel Zone Editor (A, CNAME, MX and TXT Records) and How to Add a CNAME Record in cPanel for how.
- SPF: edit, don't add a second one. Your domain can have only one SPF record (a TXT record starting with
v=spf1). If the service asks you to add aninclude:, edit your existing SPF record and add it before the ending, for example:v=spf1 +a +mx +ip4:203.0.113.10 include:spf.mailservice.example ~all
Keep the parts that are already there so your hosting mail keeps passing. Many services now use their own sending domain for SPF and only need DKIM from you, so only add an SPF include if the service tells you to. - Verify. Go back to the mailing service and click its verify or check button. DNS changes can take a little while to show up.
- Check DMARC. A DMARC record helps big providers trust your mail. If you don't have one yet, see How to Add a DMARC Record to Your Domain.
Your hosting mail's own SPF and DKIM are set in cPanel under Email > Email Deliverability; see How to Set Up SPF and DKIM with Email Deliverability. After changing your SPF record, check that page again: SPF should still show as valid for your hosting mail. If it reports a problem you can't sort out, open a ticket.
Good list habits that keep you out of spam
- Only email people who asked for it. Never buy or rent lists, and don't import every address from your inbox.
- Make unsubscribing easy and honor it. Mailing services include the link and handle it for you.
- Include your business name and postal address in the footer, as anti-spam laws such as the US CAN-SPAM Act require.
- Use a clear sender name and honest subject lines.
- Clean your list. Remove addresses that bounce or haven't opened anything in a long time.
- Use a real reply address such as
hello@example.comso replies reach you.
Common questions
How many emails can I send from my hosting account?
Normal business use is fine. Bulk mailing is what causes blocks, regardless of the exact number, so send newsletters through a mailing service.
My newsletter goes to spam. What should I check?
Check that the mailing service shows your domain as authenticated (DKIM passing), that you have only one SPF record, and that you have a DMARC record. Then look at your list quality and content. See Why Your Emails Go to Spam (and How to Fix It).
Can I use a WordPress newsletter plugin?
Yes, if the plugin sends through a mailing service's API or SMTP service rather than through your hosting server. Check the plugin's settings for a "sending method" option.
Related guides
- How to Set Up SPF and DKIM with Email Deliverability
- How to Add a DMARC Record to Your Domain
- Why Your Emails Go to Spam (and How to Fix It)
- How to Use the cPanel Zone Editor (A, CNAME, MX and TXT Records)
Still stuck? Open a support ticket and the Instant Access Internet Services team will help.
