Let’s face it: the presence and aesthetic of a brand is everything. Sorry, defenders of the “there’s more than looks”. BIMI is the fairy that makes you the whole package–beauty and brains–. Who saw that coming? The so-called “boring and tedious” security protocols finally got a glow-up.
What is BIMI?
In short, BIMI is an email specification that allows email inboxes to show the logo of a brand next to the brand’s email messages.
Does that mean your logo will magically pop up? Not exactly. Here’s the trick: only trusted senders will control the presentation of their brand in messaging services like Yahoo or Gmail, that have adopted this specification. If you’re BIMI-compliant, then your brand’s logo will strut its feathers in the recipient’s inbox.
Why is BIMI so important?
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Improves Brand Trust
What are the chances you open the door to a total rando into your house? Few, right? Now, what about John Brown, the gardener you hired to trim your lawn every week? Exactly. BIMI helps subscribers to identify trusted and caring senders. So, if they see your brand’s logo next to your message, they’ll recognize it and most surely open it.
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Improves Deliverability
Like they see you, they’ll treat you. Grandma knew her stuff. Even in the email world, reputation and authentication are crucial for better deliverability. Sure, content matters too, don’t get us wrong, but…. The magic of BIMI works ONLY if you’re compliant with other authentication protocols like SPF, DKIM and DMARC first.
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Brand Recognition
The cherry on top, or maybe the whole sundae, as you want to see it, is the starring appearance of… *drum roll* your brand’s logo!
How does BIMI work?
BIMI allows an organization to publish a new, standardized DNS record for a domain they own. This record contains a URL to a logo. First, VMC (Verified Mark Certificate) checks and certifies that you can use that logo and then, our dear DMARC, SPF and DKIM friends enter the game. The supporting mailbox provider will check if you comply with the protocols to finish the BIMI validation. Heads up! Your DMARC policy is crucial here. It must be set to either p=quarantine or p=reject. If it’s p=none (meaning the server ignores emails that fail DMARC), BIMI won’t work. But if you pass all checks, your logo will be right there, shining next to your messages.
How to implement BIMI?
1. Create your logo: Needless to say but, invest time on the aesthetic and reference to your company.
2. Any type of image is fine? Nope:
- The format must be SVG Tiny Portable/Secure
- No larger than 32KB
3. Fix your DNS records: Publish a DNS TXT record with your brand’s logo and the VMC.
What does BIMI look like in the inbox?
Pretty simple: One has a cool icon. The other doesn’t.
Is there a different way to get the icon displayed and grab recipients’ attention?
Sure! There are companies that take a shortcut by creating a personal email account and changing their profile picture to have their logo displayed. You’ve probably seen some. It might seem clever at first sight, of course. The problem is that it is not safe.
Anyone can slap a logo on their personal account, making it easier for bad actors to spoof or impersonate brands. Without proper verification, recipients might fall for phishing attempts disguised as legitimate companies.
BIMI, on the other hand, by ensuring that only verified senders can display their logos, offers safety and reliability to strengthen your brand’s presence in the inbox.
Final thoughts
What may seem like a small, aesthetic detail actually has a lot going on behind the scenes. BIMI is more than just a pretty face for your emails—it’s a modern-day seal of approval that gives your messages instant recognition while ensuring your security protocols are solid.