Cold Email Infra

SOP: Cold Email Infrastructure Setup (50k/Month Volume)

Objective: Build a resilient, cost-effective email sending system capable of 50,000 emails/month with high deliverability.
Estimated Setup Time: 4–6 Hours.
Warm-up Time: 14–21 Days (passive).

💰 Monthly Cost Estimate

Tier 1 Inboxes (GoDaddy MS 365): ~$50.00
Tier 2 Inboxes (Microsoft Tenant): ~$15.00
Domains: ~$35.00 (amortized)
Sending Software (Smartlead): ~$94.00
TOTAL: ~$194.00 / Month

🏗️ Phase 1: Domain Acquisition

Goal: Purchase 40 neutral domains similar to our main brand.

Example: If main brand is Agency.com, buy AgencyGlobal.com, AgencyTeam.net, GetAgency.com.

Steps:

Go to Namecheap or Cloudflare (Cloudflare is cheaper for renewals).
Search for available domains. Prioritize .com extensions. If unavailable, use .net or .io. Avoid .xyz, .online, or cheap spammy extensions.
Purchase 40 Domains.
Assign Domains:

Label 10 Domains as "Tier 1" (High Quality).
Label 30 Domains as "Tier 2" (High Volume).

Forwarding (Crucial): Log into the DNS settings for every domain and set up a 301 Redirect (Forwarding) to our main company website.

Why: If a prospect gets an email and types the domain into their browser, they must land on our actual website, not a blank error page.

🛡️ Phase 2: Tier 1 Setup (The "Safe" Layer)

Goal: Set up 20 high-reputation inboxes via GoDaddy Microsoft 365.
Use Case: Use these for high-ticket prospects and "Dream 100" clients.

Steps:

Go to GoDaddy and search for "Microsoft 365 Email Essentials."
Look for the first-year discount (usually ~$2.50 - $3.00/user/month).
Purchase 20 User Licenses.
Map Domains: Connect your 10 "Tier 1" domains (from Phase 1) to this account.
Create Users: Create 2 email addresses per domain.

Format: firstname@domain.com (e.g., alex@agencyglobal.com, sarah@agencyglobal.com).

DNS: Since you bought through GoDaddy, click the "Auto-Setup" button to configure DNS records automatically.

🚀 Phase 3: Tier 2 Setup (The "Volume" Layer)

Goal: Set up 100 bulk inboxes via a Microsoft Tenant Reseller.
Use Case: Broad market outreach and testing.

Steps:

Purchase Tenant: Go to a reseller like MailDeck or F60Host. Buy 1 Microsoft 365 Tenant (approx $15/month).
Log in: You will receive a Super Admin login (usually an .onmicrosoft.com email). Log into portal.office.com.
Add Domains:

Go to Settings > Domains.
Click Add Domain.
Enter one of your 30 "Tier 2" domains.
Microsoft will give you a TXT record. Copy this.
Go to your Domain Registrar (Namecheap/Cloudflare), add that TXT record to verify ownership.
Repeat this for all 30 domains.

Create Users:

Go to Users > Active Users.
Create roughly 3 users per domain (Total: ~90-100 inboxes).
Tip: Vary the names. Don't use "Alex" for all 100 inboxes. Use real team member names or generic personas.

⚙️ Phase 4: DNS Authentication (MANDATORY)

Goal: Authenticate emails so they don't go to Spam. This must be done for ALL 40 domains.

Steps for every domain (Tier 1 & Tier 2):
Log into your Domain Registrar (Namecheap/Cloudflare) and add the following records:

SPF (TXT Record):

Host: @
Value: v=spf1 include:spf.protection.outlook.com -all

DMARC (TXT Record):

Host: _dmarc
Value: v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:admin@yourmaindomain.com

DKIM (CNAME Record):

You must generate these inside the Microsoft Admin Panel for each domain.
Go to Microsoft Admin > Security > Policies & Rules > Threat Policies > Email Authentication Settings > DKIM.
Click the domain > "Create DKIM keys".
Copy the CNAME records provided and paste them into Namecheap/Cloudflare.
Wait 30 mins, then click "Enable" inside Microsoft. (Do not skip this).

🧠 Phase 5: The Engine (Smartlead.ai)

Goal: Connect all 120 inboxes to one central sending software.

Steps:

Create a Smartlead.ai account (Pro Plan).
Add Email Accounts:

Click "Add Account" > select "Microsoft 365 / Outlook".
For Tier 1: Log in with the GoDaddy credentials.
For Tier 2: Log in with the Tenant credentials.
Note: You can bulk upload these via CSV if you have the login/passwords organized in a spreadsheet.

Enable Master Inbox: In Smartlead settings, ensure "Master Inbox" is turned ON. This allows the team to reply to leads from one dashboard.
Set Daily Limits:

Set "Messages per day" to 35 (Conservative start).
Set "Minimum time gap" to 10-15 minutes.

🔥 Phase 6: Warm-Up & Launch

Goal: Build reputation so Google/Microsoft trust us.

Steps:

Enable Warm-up: Inside Smartlead, turn on "Warm-up" for ALL inboxes.
Settings:

Ramp Up: 2 per day.
Daily Max: 40 warm-up emails per day.
Reply Rate: 45%.

Wait: Do NOT send any cold emails for the first 14 days. Let the warm-up run.
Day 15: Start campaigns slowly.

Week 1: Send 10 cold emails/day per inbox.
Week 2: Send 20 cold emails/day per inbox.
Week 3: Send 30 cold emails/day per inbox (Max Capacity).

⚠️ Critical Maintenance Rules

The "Burn" Rule: The Tier 2 (Tenant) inboxes are on a "Gray Market" license. Microsoft could ban the tenant.

Rule: Download your leads/csv data every Friday. If the tenant gets banned, we simply buy a new $15 tenant, move the domains over, and restart. We do not lose our data.

The "Safe" Rule: Never use the Tier 1 (GoDaddy) accounts for untested, high-risk scripts. Keep those for high-quality, personalized outreach only.
Rotation: If a specific domain gets bad open rates (<30%) for 3 days in a row, pause it in Smartlead and let it warm up for 2 weeks before using it again.