Does sending email from a domain without a website hurt deliverability?
Summary
What email marketers say9Marketer opinions
Email marketer from Litmus shares that proper email authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) is vital, which are all linked to your domain. A website enhances your domain's trustworthiness.
Email marketer from MailerLite shares that sender reputation and authentication are key. A non-existent website can harm your reputation.
Email marketer from GMass answers that domain reputation impacts deliverability. Email service providers (ESPs) do look at the domain and if there is no website and nothing to tie back to the email sender it may hurt reputation.
Marketer from Email Geeks answers that sending email from a domain you own but without a working website does not really hurt deliverability, but redirecting that domain to an existing site would be better.
Email marketer from SendPulse indicates that several factors affect email deliverability, including sender reputation. A domain without a website may negatively influence this reputation.
Marketer from Email Geeks recommends making it as obvious and transparent about who you are and what the domain is about.
Email marketer from Email Marketing Forum explains that a website is essential for verifying your identity and building trust with ISPs. No website can suggest a lack of legitimacy.
Email marketer from Neil Patel shares that domain reputation is crucial for deliverability. A domain without a website might raise red flags for ISPs, impacting deliverability.
Email marketer from Reddit states a domain not resolving is a problem from a trust perspective as there is nothing there to validate who you are.
What the experts say3Expert opinions
Expert from Word to the Wise explains that having a website shows legitimacy and that not having a site makes it appear as if you have something to hide. It makes a difference to your reputation.
Expert from Spam Resource suggests that domain reputation plays a crucial role in email deliverability. A domain without a website might raise concerns and hurt reputation.
Expert from Email Geeks shares they usually request clients to redirect the page somewhere live using a 301 redirect. Also sending from a known brand domain is significantly better if a Mailbox provider is looking into complaints or delivery issues
What the documentation says3Technical articles
Documentation from Google Workspace states that to help ensure your mail is delivered to Gmail users, authenticate your email, avoid sending unwanted mail, and follow Gmail's sender guidelines, which includes having a valid, working domain.
Documentation from Mailjet explains that sender reputation is based on IP address, sending domain, email content, and subscriber engagement. Not having a website can impact how mailbox providers view the sending domain.
Documentation from SparkPost explains that maintaining a good sending reputation involves verifying your domain and ensuring it's properly configured, suggesting that a functional website adds credibility.