Branded Tracking Links

Use your own address, such as link.yourdomain.com, for open tracking, click tracking and the unsubscribe header instead of a Mailnaptic address.

Branded Tracking Links

Normally the links Mailnaptic adds to your emails (the open-tracking image, wrapped click links and the unsubscribe header) use a Mailnaptic address. With branded links they use an address on your own domain, for example https://link.yourdomain.com/.... The links then match your From domain, which looks more trustworthy to recipients and mailbox providers.

Plans and requirements

• Branded links are available on the Pro and Business plans. Only owners and admins can set them up.
• The sending domain must be verified (see Adding and Verifying a Sending Domain).
• The host must be a subdomain of the sending domain, such as link.yourdomain.com. The bare domain and addresses on other domains are not accepted.
• Each sending domain has one branded host.

Setting it up

1. Open Domains, then open the domain with Show details.
2. In the Branded links card, type the host you want (for example link.yourdomain.com) and click Add host.
3. The card shows the DNS record to create. At your DNS provider add a CNAME record named link that points to the value shown (track.mailnaptic.com).
4. If your DNS is on Cloudflare, set the record to DNS only (grey cloud), not proxied.
5. Click Check now. Mailnaptic checks the DNS record and then whether https://link.yourdomain.com answers with a valid certificate. The certificate is issued automatically and is free; this usually takes a few minutes after the DNS record exists.

Until the check passes, the card shows Waiting for DNS and HTTPS and your emails keep using the Mailnaptic address, so nothing breaks while you set this up. Pending hosts are also checked again automatically every few minutes, so the host switches to Active by itself once everything is in place.

What changes once it is active

New emails sent from this domain use your host for:

• the open-tracking image,
• wrapped click links,
• survey vote links,
• the List-Unsubscribe header,
• the “view in browser” link.

The unsubscribe and preferences links inside the email body still point to Mailnaptic, because those pages are part of the Mailnaptic app. Test emails sent from the campaign editor also keep the Mailnaptic address. Emails you already sent keep working on the old address.

Keeping it healthy

• Mailnaptic re-checks an active host every few hours. If the DNS record is removed or the certificate stops working, the host leaves Active and new emails go back to the Mailnaptic address automatically. On plans that include the audit log, the change is recorded there.
• If you delete the CNAME, links in emails you already sent through your host stop working for those recipients. Keep the record in place for as long as those emails may still be opened or clicked.
• A branded host builds its own reputation. When you switch a high-volume domain, consider doing it while you are not sending your biggest campaign.

Changing or removing the host

Click Remove in the card to go back to the Mailnaptic address. New emails use it again within about a minute. Changing the host name starts the process again from the DNS step.

Troubleshooting

• “We do not see a CNAME yet”: the record is missing or has not spread yet. Check the name and value, then try again in a few minutes.
• “has a CNAME to … but it should point to …”: the record exists but points somewhere else. Edit it to the value shown in the card.
• “not ready yet (no valid certificate)”: the DNS record is right and the certificate is still being issued. Wait a few minutes. A proxied (orange cloud) record at Cloudflare can interfere with certificate issuance, so use DNS only.
• “Verify this sending domain first”: finish the domain verification, then add the host.