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Outbound Infrastructure Checklist

The complete pre-flight checklist for cold email infrastructure. Check off each item as you build — your progress saves automatically.

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Getting Started

Purchase dedicated sending domains (separate from main domain)

Set up 3-5 sending domains for rotation

Configure DNS records for each domain

Age domains 2+ weeks before sending

Set up domain forwarding to main site

Configure SPF records on all sending domains

Set up DKIM signing

Implement DMARC policy (start with p=none)

Verify authentication with mail-tester.com

Create 3-5 mailboxes per sending domain

Use Google Workspace or Microsoft 365 (not shared hosting)

Set up professional signatures (no images/HTML)

Configure reply handling

Enable warmup on all mailboxes (Instantly/Smartlead built-in)

Warmup for minimum 14 days before sending

Start at 5 emails/day, increase gradually

Monitor warmup health scores daily

Set daily sending limits per inbox (max 50/day)

Verify all emails before sending (Debounce/ZeroBounce)

Remove catch-all and risky addresses

Monitor bounce rates (keep under 3%)

Build targeted list (under 500 contacts per campaign)

Write 3-5 email sequence with angle rotation

Set up A/B testing on subject lines

Configure send schedule (Tue-Thu, 9-11 AM local)

Track open rates, reply rates, bounce rates daily

Monitor blacklist status weekly

Review and pause underperforming campaigns

Get the full infrastructure blueprint

The checklist covers the essentials. The blueprint goes deeper — domain buying strategies, warmup schedules, copy frameworks, and the exact settings we use to land in primary inboxes.

Outbound Infrastructure Checklist

Domain Setup

Email Authentication

Mailbox Setup

Warmup

Deliverability

Campaign Setup

Monitoring

Get the full infrastructure blueprint