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How to Add and Validate a Sending Domain in SalesNexus (Nexi)

Caleb Ferguson
Updated

Connecting and validating your sending domain is a critical step before sending email campaigns from SalesNexus. When done correctly, it:

  • Authenticates your emails (SPF, DKIM, DMARC)
  • Protects you from spam and spoofing issues
  • Improves deliverability (more emails land in the inbox, fewer in spam)
  • Enables link tracking and form features

This guide will walk you through:

  1. What a “sending domain” is and why it matters
  2. How to add a new domain in SalesNexus
  3. How to add the required DNS records in your DNS provider
  4. How to validate the domain in SalesNexus
  5. How to understand each status column (Ownership, SPF, DKIM, etc.)
  6. Common issues and how to fix them

1. Before You Start: What You’ll Need

To complete this setup, you will need:

  • Access to your SalesNexus (Nexi) account
  • Access to your DNS or domain host (where your domain’s DNS records are managed), such as:
    • GoDaddy, Namecheap, Cloudflare, Google Domains, Bluehost, etc.
  • The domain you want to send email from, for example:
    yourdomain.com

If you’re not sure who manages your DNS, ask your IT team or whoever originally registered your domain.

2. Navigate to the Domains Page in SalesNexus

  1. In the left sidebar of SalesNexus, click Domains.

Domain Outline.png

  1. You’ll see a Domains management table with columns like:
    • Ownership
    • SPF
    • DKIM
    • DMARC
    • MX
    • Tracking
    • Validated
    • Form Ready
    • Email Ready
    • Last Checked

When you first add a domain, most or all of these will show a ❌ (failed / not set up yet).
That’s expected until you add the DNS records and validate them.

3. Add a New Domain in SalesNexus

  1. On the Domains page, click the + (Add Domain) button.
DKB 5.png
  1. Fill in the form:
    • Domain: your main domain (e.g., yourdomain.com)
    • Company: your company name
    • Address, City, State, Country, Zip: your business address
  2. Click Add.

Your domain will now appear in the Domains table, typically with ❌ in the validation columns.
The next step is to tell your DNS provider about this domain configuration by adding the records SalesNexus gives you.

4. Find Your DNS Records in SalesNexus

  1. In the Domains table, find the domain you just added.
  2. Click the DNS setup/info icon next to that domain.
DKB 7.png

This will open a panel showing all DNS records you need to add.
Each record will have:

  • A type (CNAME, TXT, MX, etc.)
  • A Name / Host value
  • A Value / Target value
  • A TTL (time to live, e.g., 1 hour)

Use the copy buttons when available to avoid typos.

Below is what each record type does, using example placeholders only.
Always use the exact values shown in your own DNS setup panel in SalesNexus.

5. Add the Required DNS Records in Your DNS Provider

Log in to your DNS provider (GoDaddy, Cloudflare, etc.), go to the DNS management section for yourdomain.com, and add the following records.

5.1 Tracking CNAME Record

Enables click tracking for links in emails sent via SalesNexus.

  • Type: CNAME
  • Name / Host: tracking.yourdomain.com
  • Value / Target: tracking.salesnexusmail.com
  • TTL: 1 hour

 

Some DNS providers may ask for just tracking as the host and auto-append your domain. This is normal.

Result: When recipients click links, they go through tracking.yourdomain.com so SalesNexus can record the click.

5.2 Ownership Verification (TXT)

Proves that you own the domain you’re connecting.

  • Type: TXT
  • Name / Host: _salesnexus.yourdomain.com
  • Value: verification-token-provided-in-your-account
  • TTL: 1 hour

 

Use exactly the token/token string from your SalesNexus DNS panel.
After this is added and propagated, the Ownership column should eventually show ✅.

5.3 SPF Record (TXT)

Tells receiving mail servers that SalesNexus (and potentially other providers) is allowed to send email on behalf of your domain.

  • Type: TXT
  • Name / Host: yourdomain.com
  • Value (example):
    v=spf1 include:_spf.yourmailprovider.com ~all
  • TTL: 1 hour

 

Important: You should only have ONE SPF record for your domain.

  • If you already have an SPF record, edit the existing record and add the include from SalesNexus instead of creating a new SPF record.
  • Example: If your existing SPF is:
    v=spf1 include:_spf.google.com ~all
    and SalesNexus says to add include:_spf.salesnexusmail.com, the merged result might be:
    v=spf1 include:_spf.google.com include:_spf.salesnexusmail.com ~all

After propagation, the SPF column should eventually show ✅.

5.4 DKIM Record (TXT)

Provides a cryptographic signature for your emails, improving trust and deliverability.

  • Type: TXT
  • Name / Host: smtpselector._domainkey.yourdomain.com
  • Value (example):
    k=rsa; p=PUBLICKEYSTRINGPROVIDEDBYMAILPROVIDER
  • TTL: 1 hour

 

Use the exact public key from your SalesNexus DNS panel (it may be a very long string).

After propagation, the DKIM column should show ✅.

5.5 DMARC Record (TXT)

Defines a policy for how receiving servers should handle emails that fail SPF/DKIM checks.

  • Type: TXT
  • Name / Host: _dmarc.yourdomain.com
  • Value (basic example):
    v=DMARC1; p=none
  • TTL: 1 hour

Notes:

  • p=none means “monitor only” (do not reject or quarantine failing emails).
  • If you already have a DMARC record, do not delete it. Instead, confirm it’s correctly configured, and integrate SalesNexus sending if needed.

Once it’s set and correct, the DMARC column should show ✅.

5.6 MX Records

MX records tell the internet where to deliver incoming email for your domain.

  • Type: MX
  • Name / Host: yourdomain.com
  • Value / Target: Use the MX values from your email hosting provider (e.g., Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, etc.).

SalesNexus doesn’t replace your existing MX records; it just checks that your domain has at least one valid MX record.

Once confirmed, the MX column should show ✅.

6. Validate the Domain in SalesNexus

After all required DNS records have been added to your DNS provider and you’ve waited a bit for propagation:

  1. Return to the Domains page in SalesNexus.
  2. Find your domain in the table.
  3. Click the Validate button next to your domain.

SalesNexus will now check each of the DNS records and update the status columns.

Before Validation

Before everything is set up, you’ll typically see ❌ for:

  • Ownership
  • SPF
  • DKIM
  • DMARC
  • MX
  • Tracking
  • Validated
  • Form Ready
  • Email Ready

This just means the records are either missing or not yet detected.

After Successful Validation

Once your DNS is configured correctly and propagation is complete:

  • Ownership, SPF, DKIM, DMARC, MX, Tracking → all show ✅
  • Validated → ✅
  • Form Ready → ✅
  • Email Ready → ✅
  • Last Checked → updates with the most recent validation time

At this point, your domain is:

  • Fully authenticated
  • Ready for sending emails from SalesNexus
  • Able to use link tracking
  • Ready for form submissions
  • Optimized for better deliverability

7. Understanding Each Column in the Domains Table

Here’s what each column means in plain language:

  • Ownership – Confirms you control the domain (via TXT record).
  • SPF – Confirms your SPF record authorizes SalesNexus to send on your behalf.
  • DKIM – Confirms your DKIM key is properly set for signed emails.
  • DMARC – Confirms your DMARC policy exists and is valid.
  • MX – Confirms your domain has at least one valid mail exchanger record.
  • Tracking – Confirms your tracking CNAME is correctly pointing to SalesNexus.
  • Validated – Overall pass/fail for the domain’s configuration.
  • Form Ready – Forms using this domain can safely send and track.
  • Email Ready – Email sending from this domain is ready and authenticated.
  • Last Checked – The last time SalesNexus verified your DNS settings.

8. Important Notes & Troubleshooting

DNS Propagation Time

  • Changes to DNS are not instant.
  • It can take up to 24–48 hours for all servers to see the updates (though it’s often much faster, sometimes within minutes to a few hours).
  • If you just added the records and validation still fails, wait 30–60 minutes and try again.

Always Use Copy Buttons

  • In the DNS panel inside SalesNexus, use copy icons to copy values.
  • Avoid typing long keys or tokens manually to prevent errors.

Common Reasons Validation Fails

If validation fails, check the following:

  1. Host/Name formatting
    • Some DNS providers automatically append your domain.
    • For example, if SalesNexus shows tracking.yourdomain.com, your DNS may want just tracking.
    • Or for _dmarc.yourdomain.com, you may only need _dmarc.
  2. Missing subdomains
    • Make sure you include prefixes like _dmarc, _domainkey, or _salesnexus exactly as shown.
  3. Incorrect TTL values
    • While TTL usually won’t break validation, using “1 hour” (or 3600) is a good, safe default.
  4. Multiple SPF records
    • Having more than one SPF record on a domain can cause SPF to fail.
    • Always merge includes into a single SPF record.
  5. Overwritten DMARC record
    • If you already had DMARC, ensure you did not delete or incorrectly replace your existing policy.
  6. Typos in the public key or token
    • For DKIM keys and verification tokens, even a small typo will break validation.

If everything looks correct but still won’t validate, wait a bit longer for DNS propagation and re‑try validation.

9. When Setup Is Complete

Once all indicators show ✅:

  • Email authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) is active.
  • Campaign emails will send from your verified domain.
  • Click tracking is enabled via your tracking CNAME.
  • Forms using this domain are ready to go.
  • Your deliverability is significantly improved, reducing the chance of emails going to spam.

You’re now ready to send high‑deliverability campaigns from your own branded domain in SalesNexus.

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