Authenticate your Domain
Domain authentication allows DonorDock to send email using your organization's domain instead of a generic DonorDock sending address.
When you authenticate your domain, email providers can verify that DonorDock is authorized to send email on behalf of your organization. This can help improve deliverability and make your emails appear more consistent and trustworthy to recipients.
Why Domain Authentication Matters
Authenticating your domain can help:
Verify that DonorDock is authorized to send email for your organization
Improve email deliverability and inbox placement
Reduce the likelihood that messages are identified as suspicious or spam
Protect your organization's sending reputation
Allow emails to display the selected team member's organizational email address rather than noreply@donordock.com
How Domain Authentication Affects the Send From Address
When creating an email in DonorDock, the Send From field determines which team member is associated with the message.
If your domain has not been authenticated, DonorDock will still display the name of the selected Send From team member, but the sending email address will appear as noreply@donordock.com.
For example, if Jane Smith is selected as the Send From team member, the recipient may see: Jane Smith noreply@donordock.com
Once your organization's domain is authenticated, DonorDock can send using the email address associated with that team member on your authenticated domain. For example: Jane Smith jane@yourorg.org
What Domains Can Be Authenticated?
Domain authentication is intended for domains your organization owns or controls.
For example, if your organization owns yourorg.org, you can authenticate that domain by adding the required DNS records.
Free email providers such as Gmail or Yahoo cannot be authenticated by your organization because you do not control the gmail.com or yahoo.com domain.
If a team member uses an address such as:
janesmith@gmail.com
janesmith@yahoo.com
DonorDock will continue to use noreply@donordock.com as the sending email address while still displaying the selected team member's name.
What Happens When a Recipient Replies?
Domain authentication does not determine where replies are sent.
Whether your domain is authenticated or not, replies are directed to the email address associated with the team member selected in the Send From field.
For example, if Jane Smith is selected as the Send From team member and her DonorDock account uses jane@yourorg.org, a recipient who clicks Reply will send their response to: jane@yourorg.org
This is also true if the original email displayed noreply@donordock.com as the sending address.
Replies received in the team member's email inbox are not currently tracked back to DonorDock as an activity. If you want the reply recorded on the contact's DonorDock record, it will need to be logged separately.
How Domain Authentication Works
DonorDock generates three CNAME DNS records for your organization's domain.
Each record includes:
Host or Name
Value or Points To
These records must be added to your domain's DNS settings.
Your DNS is typically managed through the provider where your domain or website is hosted, such as:
GoDaddy
Cloudflare
Bluehost
Squarespace
DreamHost
Your organization may use a different DNS provider.
Step 1: Get Your CNAME Records
You will need the three CNAME records DonorDock generated for your domain.
If you have not received these values, contact the DonorDock Support Team at support@donordock.com
Each CNAME record includes the exact Host/Name and Value/Points To information you need to add to your DNS.
Step 2: Add the CNAME Records to Your DNS
Log in to the platform where your organization's DNS is managed and add all three CNAME records exactly as provided.
Be careful when copying the values. Even a small difference, such as an extra character, a missing portion of a value, or an incorrect record type, can prevent authentication from completing successfully.
Add the new DonorDock CNAME records without removing or replacing your organization's existing DNS records.
If you don't have access to your organization's DNS, you may need help from the person or company that manages your website, domain, or IT services.
Step 3: Notify DonorDock for Verification
After the CNAME records have been added:
Open a DonorDock Support Ticket or reply to your existing domain authentication ticket.
Let the Support Team know which domain has been updated.
DonorDock will verify that the required DNS records are resolving correctly.
The Support Team will notify you once authentication is complete.
You can use a message such as:
Hi, we have added the required CNAME records and our domain is ready to be verified. Our domain is: __________. Thank you!
DNS Changes May Take Time
DNS changes do not always become available immediately.
Many updates appear quickly, but depending on your DNS provider, changes may take up to 24 hours to fully propagate.
If DonorDock cannot verify the records immediately after they are added, you may need to allow additional time before the domain can be authenticated.
After Authentication
Once your domain has been successfully authenticated, DonorDock can send email using addresses associated with that authenticated organizational domain.
For example:
Domain Status | Recipient May See |
|---|---|
Not Authenticated | Jane Smith <noreply@donordock.com> |
Authenticated | Jane Smith <jane@yourorg.org> |
Free Email Service such as Gmail or Yahoo | Jane Smith <noreply@donordock.com> |
Authentication is completed at the domain level, so multiple team members using email addresses on the same authenticated domain can use the authenticated sending configuration.
Keep Your Authentication Records in Place
After your domain is authenticated, keep the DonorDock CNAME records in your DNS.
Removing or changing these records may cause your domain to lose its authenticated status and can affect how future emails are sent through DonorDock.