Guide · How-to
Member mailings from your own domain. No BCC mishaps, no spam folder.
The circular to all members is quickly written. Sending it is the hard part: an open distribution list is a data breach, and a hundred messages at once from an ordinary mailbox tend to land in spam. This guide shows how to do it properly.
By Paul Czichos, consulting and project support at czichos.net GmbH · Updated
Why not just BCC?
Sending circulars by BCC. The classic often goes wrong.
A circular with every address in the BCC field works until someone puts the addresses into To or CC. Then every recipient sees all the others. That is a personal data breach, which may have to be reported to the supervisory authority within 72 hours (Article 33 GDPR).
Even without a mishap, this approach has limits. Mailbox providers cap recipients per message and per day. Large mail providers treat many identical messages from an ordinary mailbox as suspicious. There is no unsubscribe option and no overview of which addresses no longer work.
Step by step
Setting up member mailings. How the circular gets through.
The order is the same with or without a service. You do the first two steps once, the rest with every mailing.
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Step 1: Choose a sender address on your domain
Send from your own domain, such as info@your-association.org, instead of a free webmail address. If you send a lot, use a subdomain like news.your-association.org. That way the main domain’s reputation does not suffer if something goes wrong.
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Step 2: Authenticate the domain: SPF, DKIM, DMARC
Three DNS records show recipients that the message really comes from you. The guide to SPF, DKIM and DMARC explains how. Without these records, bulk mailings to Gmail, Yahoo and Outlook land in spam or get rejected.
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Step 3: Sort out the recipient list
For messages that relate to membership, the membership itself is usually the legal basis. For marketing or a newsletter to non-members you need consent. Double opt-in is the usual way to prove it. The guide to the GDPR for associations covers the legal bases.
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Step 4: Offer one-click unsubscribe
Besides the visible unsubscribe link, the message needs a List-Unsubscribe header. It lets mail programs offer an unsubscribe button. Since 2024, Google and Yahoo require bulk senders to support the one-click variant defined in RFC 8058 and to honour it within two days.
List-Unsubscribe: <https://news.your-association.org/unsubscribe?id=…> List-Unsubscribe-Post: List-Unsubscribe=One-Click -
Step 5: Test first
Send the finished message to test mailboxes with different providers, such as Gmail, Outlook and a local provider. Check the layout, the links and whether it reaches the inbox.
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Step 6: Deal with bounces
Addresses that permanently bounce should come off the list or be checked in your membership records. Anyone who keeps writing to dead addresses loses reputation with the large providers. A separate guide shows how to analyse delivery rate and bounces.
Do it yourself or have it done
Newsletter software for associations. For small lists there are good free options.
An association with a few dozen members doesn’t need a mailing provider. The effort grows quickly with the number of recipients and branches, though.
Set it up yourself
If your list is manageable
- A distribution list at your mailbox providerMany providers offer lists where recipients cannot see each other. For a few dozen addresses, that is enough.
- Listmonk or MailmanOpen-source newsletter and list software with unsubscribe and bounce handling. No licence fees, but you need a server and properly configured sending.
- A newsletter service based in the EUSeveral providers have free tiers for small lists. Check the data processing agreement and whether opens are tracked.
Have it done
If circulars are everyday business
- Thousands of recipients, several branchesEvery branch wants its own mailings, lists and senders. Organising that by hand takes a lot of time.
- Nobody knows DNSSPF, DKIM, DMARC and unsubscribe headers first have to be set up correctly.
- Approval before sendingIf one office prepares and another signs off, you need a traceable process.
- Bounces nobody readsThe error messages land in a mailbox and stay there.
On our own behalf: we earn money from the second column. If your association writes to a few dozen members, a properly set up distribution list or a free service is enough.
Common questions
Member mailing FAQ. What associations ask.
May I email members without their consent?
For messages that belong to the membership, such as invitations to the general meeting, the membership is usually the legal basis. For marketing, fundraising appeals to third parties or a newsletter to non-members you need consent. If in doubt, ask your data protection adviser.
Is an open distribution list a data breach?
Yes, if every recipient can see the others’ addresses. Whether you must report it to the supervisory authority depends on the risk to the people affected. The deadline is 72 hours.
What is one-click unsubscribe under RFC 8058?
A standard that lets mail programs trigger an unsubscribe at the press of a button, without the recipient opening a web page. Since 2024, Google and Yahoo require it from senders who send more than 5,000 messages a day to their users.
Why does our circular land in spam?
Usually SPF, DKIM or DMARC records are missing, the mail goes out from an ordinary mailbox, or the list contains many dead addresses. More in the guide to deliverability.
Do we need open and click statistics?
Not necessarily. Open rates have told you little since Apple Mail’s privacy protection, and tracking pixels are contentious under data protection law. Delivery and bounces say more about whether your circular arrives.
Circulars with secMailing
We build and send your mailings from your own domain, with SPF, DKIM and DMARC. You approve every mailing beforehand via a link, without an account of your own. Unsubscribing takes one click as defined in RFC 8058, and bounces go onto a suppression list. We do not track opens or clicks.
Circulars to many members? We’ll help you send them.
Tell us roughly how many recipients you have and how you send today. We will tell you whether secMailing fits or your mailbox will do with a few settings.
No obligation and no contract. We usually reply within one working day and are happy to show you the tool in a short call.
Prefer to reach us directly? Send an email · call 030 994048000