The Startup Email Checklist
A linkable utility page for founders setting up email infrastructure. Work through it in order; skipping the authentication section is the most expensive mistake.
41 items · 7 sections
section 01
Domain and authentication (do this first)
- 01.01 Pick a sending subdomain (mail.yourdomain.com or similar) for marketing; keep apex for transactional reputation isolation.
- 01.02 Publish an SPF TXT record listing your provider as authorized.
- 01.03 Enable DKIM signing on your provider; add the public key TXT record.
- 01.04 Publish DMARC at p=none with an rua report address you check.
- 01.05 After two to four weeks of clean DMARC reports, tighten to p=quarantine then p=reject.
- 01.06 Confirm one-click List-Unsubscribe header is configured if you will exceed 5,000 daily sends to Gmail or Yahoo.
- 01.07 Verify the sending domain in your provider dashboard.
- 01.08 Send a test to a Gmail and Outlook address; inspect the headers to confirm SPF, DKIM, and DMARC pass.
section 02
List capture and consent
- 02.01 Use double opt-in if you sell into the EU or any market with stricter consent rules.
- 02.02 Disclose the sending frequency on the signup form.
- 02.03 Capture timestamp, IP, and source for every signup.
- 02.04 Honor unsubscribe within 24 hours; do not require the user to log in.
- 02.05 Suppress hard bounces and complaints automatically.
- 02.06 Maintain a separate suppression list in your CRM in case you switch providers.
section 03
Waitlist sequence
- 03.01 Confirmation email within 5 seconds of signup.
- 03.02 A clear product description and rough timeline in the confirmation.
- 03.03 An optional update cadence (monthly is plenty pre-launch).
- 03.04 A "you are still on the list" reminder if more than 60 days pass without an update.
section 04
Launch sequence
- 04.01 Teaser email 3 to 7 days before launch.
- 04.02 Day-before invite with the access link.
- 04.03 Launch-day founder note.
- 04.04 Product Hunt or HN nudge to your activated segment only.
- 04.05 Follow-up to non-openers 24 hours later.
- 04.06 Post-launch activation nudge to signed-up-but-not-activated users.
section 05
Onboarding sequence
- 05.01 Welcome email immediately after signup with one next action.
- 05.02 Setup-progress nudge if user stalls before key milestone.
- 05.03 Aha-moment confirmation email when user hits the milestone.
- 05.04 Founder reply line on at least the first onboarding email; read every reply.
- 05.05 A 14-day check-in if usage drops to zero.
section 06
Transactional emails
- 06.01 Receipts include itemized charges and a billing-portal link.
- 06.02 Password reset links expire within 60 minutes.
- 06.03 Magic link emails respect rate limits and reuse-protection.
- 06.04 Failed-payment emails state the date access ends if not resolved.
- 06.05 Trial-expiration emails sent at T-3 days and T-1 day, with a clear convert-or-cancel choice.
- 06.06 Email verification links work on mobile in-app browsers.
section 07
Metrics
- 07.01 Track delivery rate per stream (transactional, lifecycle, broadcast).
- 07.02 Track activation rate per cohort, attributed to email-receiving versus not.
- 07.03 Track unsubscribe and complaint rates; act if complaint rate exceeds 0.1%.
- 07.04 Track revenue assist (last-touch is fine for early signal).
- 07.05 Set up DMARC report parsing (Postmark DMARC is free) so you see auth failures.
- 07.06 Audit the metrics monthly. Cut sends that do not move them.