How to connect a mailbox using Amazon SES to Woodpecker

IN THIS ARTICLE Connecting your mailbox Troubleshooting FAQ Connecting your mailbox 1. Click Connect your email. Once your campaign is created, open it (click ‘Campaigns’ in the black bar at the top, then…

IN THIS ARTICLE

Connecting your mailbox
Troubleshooting
FAQ


Connecting your mailbox

1. Click Connect your email.

Once your campaign is created, open it (click ‘Campaigns’ in the black bar at the top, then click your campaign), and click ‘Connect your email’, right below the campaign’s name.

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Alternatively: you can go to ‘Settings’ (expand the menu in the upper right and click ‘Settings’), then click the green button ‘Add Email Account’.

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2. Choose Manual Connection.

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When connecting you need to first make sure that the email address has been verified and that it is not in the sandbox anymore.

4. Add your IMAP and SMTP server data.

Type in your email address or login, password, and ports for the IMAP and SMTP for this account. Trouble finding it? Look for it in the settings of your mailbox, or check your server’s help page.

  • Add Access Key ID in the “Login (optional)” section

  • Add Secret Access Key as the “Password” when connecting Amazon SES.

Not sure how to find your Access Key ID and Secret Access Key? Learn more about it here.

Entering SMTP Server data for the Amazon SES account: Access Key ID and secret Access Key

The Port number is optional, Woodpecker will find it automatically after entering all other data. As for the SMTP server, it all depends on your AWS Region. For more details about it, check the Amazon AWS Help Center right here »


Troubleshooting

Woodpecker may connect your email address conditionally. Check what that means and how to fix it here.

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In case of any other issues, have a look at our article I can’t connect my mailbox.


5. Set your ‘From name’ and ‘Signature’.

You can set the sender’s name that will be visible to your recipients. You can also set a signature that will be attached to the emails you send.

You can skip this step for now and edit your ‘From name’ and ‘Signature later by clicking ‘set it later in Settings’.

Image of the From Name and Siganture settings

6. Click ‘Save’.

… and give Woodpecker a few moments to complete the setup. Afterward, you will be able to select this email as a sender in your campaign.

7. Your account has been connected

Now you are able to select your email address as a sender in your campaign.

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Finalize the setup by clicking the OK button to continue creating your campaign.

8. Check your inbox for “Testing your email connection” message.

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Once you connect your email account to Woodpecker, the App will send you the message confirming the successful connection. You will see it in your primary inbox. Its subject is “Testing your email connection with Woodpecker.co” and should look like the one on the image above.

Don’t worry, this is an automatic message sent from our internal email address [email protected].

In case you’re connecting a mailbox to a company under the Agency panel, we will send the message from the email account connected to your Agency account. The content of that message can be crafted by you in the Agency panel settings. Have a look at the Agency Quickstart Guide »

You can’t find the test message in your inbox?

  1. You might have been connected conditionally.

  2. Check your SPAM or junk folder.

  3. If the message is there, move it to the primary inbox.

  4. Try connecting your mailbox again. Remember to remove any labels or forwarding options. Learn why »

  5. Your email address should be connected successfully!


Testing your connection – campaign email

Woodpecker will be testing your email connection and deliverability every day by sending the test email to another of our internal email addresses, [email protected]. Don’t worry! While you have active campaigns, we will be sending the email once a day to check if your deliverability settings, such as SPF records or DKIM, have been set up correctly. Although a copy of those emails can be different from the original copy of your campaign, we do it to make sure that you’re up-to-date with your domain settings. Here you can read more about our deliverability checks and report »

Deliverability

Deliverability is the number of emails that have reached the recipients’ inboxes compared to the number of sent messages overall. The goal is to have as many of your emails land in your prospects’ inboxes rather than going to spam folders. To ensure high deliverability rates, make sure you set up SPF and DKIM correctly. Click here to learn more about the importance of deliverability.

Warm-up

Also, don’t forget about the domain and email address warm-up.


FAQ

Q: Why do I need to set up SPF and DKIM?

SPF records tell mailboxes which hosts are allowed to send mail from a given domain. You can add SPF records in your DNS settings to easily prove your authenticity and help your email deliverability.

Q: How can I set up SPF and DKIM?

Here is a step-by-step instruction from Amazon on how to set up these records.

Q: What SPF should I add?

Your SPF is: v=spf1 include:amazonses.com ~all"