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Step-by-step guides for everything in Utobo Mail — from sending your first campaign to managing your team.
Getting Started
Welcome to Utobo Mail! Here's how to go from a blank account to sending your first email campaign in under 15 minutes.
Step-by-step: your first campaign
Create your account
Sign up at mail.utobo.com. Enter your name, email, and password.
Verify your sending domain
Go to Account → Domains and add your domain (e.g. yourcompany.com). Follow the DNS verification steps — this proves you own the domain and dramatically improves deliverability.
Import or add contacts
Go to Contacts → Import to upload a CSV file, or click Add Contact to enter individual subscribers manually.
Create a list
Go to Lists → New List. Give it a name (e.g. 'Newsletter subscribers') and add your imported contacts to it.
Create a template
Go to Templates → New Template. Use the visual builder to drag-and-drop your email design, or use the AI writer to generate copy.
Create and send a campaign
Go to Campaigns → New Campaign. Choose your list, your template, write a subject line, and hit Send Now — or schedule it for later.
Campaigns
Campaigns are bulk emails sent to one or more subscriber lists — newsletters, announcements, promotions, and re-engagement emails.
Creating a campaign
Go to Campaigns → New Campaign
Click New Campaign in the top right of the Campaigns page.
Choose your recipients
Select one or more lists to send to. The total recipient count is shown at the top. Duplicate subscribers across lists are automatically deduplicated.
Choose a template
Select an existing template or create a new one. You can also use a plain HTML/text editor.
Set subject and preview text
The subject line is what recipients see in their inbox. The preview text (preheader) is the grey snippet shown beneath the subject in many email clients.
Send or schedule
Click Send Now to send immediately, or Schedule to choose a future date and time.
Campaign statuses
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Draft | Saved but not yet sent or scheduled. |
| Scheduled | Will send at the chosen date and time. Can be rescheduled or cancelled. |
| Sending | Currently being delivered. Large campaigns may take a few minutes. |
| Sent | All emails have been dispatched. Check analytics for opens and clicks. |
| Paused | Sending paused (e.g. bounced past the threshold). Resume from the campaign page. |
Campaign analytics
After sending, click a campaign name to see its performance:
Contacts & Lists
Adding contacts
You can add contacts three ways:
CSV import
Go to Contacts → Import. Upload a .csv file. Required column: email. Optional: name, and any custom fields. Utobo Mail skips duplicate and invalid addresses automatically.
Manual entry
Click Add Contact, enter an email address and name. Good for adding individual subscribers.
API
Use the Utobo Mail API to programmatically add contacts from your app (e.g. when a user signs up). See the Developer Docs for details.
CSV file format
Your CSV file should look like this:
email,name,company alice@example.com,Alice Smith,Acme Corp bob@example.com,Bob Jones, carol@example.com,Carol Lee,Startup Inc
The email column is required. All other columns are optional. Column headers are case-insensitive.
Managing lists
Unsubscribes and bounces
When a contact unsubscribes or hard-bounces, Utobo Mail automatically marks them as unsubscribed. They will not receive any future campaign emails — you do not need to manually remove them from lists.
Templates & Design
Templates let you design your email once and reuse it across multiple campaigns.
Three ways to create a template
Visual builder
Drag-and-drop blocks: text, images, buttons, dividers, columns. No code required.
AI writer
Describe your email goal and let AI generate the content. Edit to personalize.
Code editor
Paste or write raw HTML for full control. Best for custom designs.
Merge tags (personalization)
Use merge tags to personalize your emails with subscriber data. They are replaced with the subscriber's actual values when the email is sent.
| Tag | Replaced with | Fallback if empty |
|---|---|---|
| {{name}} | Subscriber's full name | "there" (e.g. "Hi there") |
| {{email}} | Subscriber's email address | — |
| {{unsubscribe}} | Unsubscribe link URL | — (always present) |
Email design tips
Domain Verification
Verifying your sending domain is required before you can send any emails. It proves you own the domain and sets up the DNS records that tell receiving servers your emails are legitimate.
What DNS records are needed?
| Record | Purpose | Required? |
|---|---|---|
| SPF (TXT) | Tells receiving servers that Utobo Mail is authorized to send email on your behalf. | Yes |
| DKIM (CNAME) | Cryptographically signs your emails, proving they weren't tampered with. | Yes |
| DMARC (TXT) | Sets policy for what happens to emails that fail SPF/DKIM checks. | Strongly recommended |
| MX | Handles incoming email if you want to receive replies. | Optional |
How to verify your domain
Account → Domains → Add Domain
Enter your root domain (e.g. yourcompany.com — no www or http://).
Copy the DNS records shown
Utobo Mail displays the exact TXT and CNAME records to add. They are unique to your account.
Add the records to your DNS provider
Login to your DNS provider (Cloudflare, Namecheap, GoDaddy, Route53, etc.) and add all the records exactly as shown.
Click Check DNS
Return to Utobo Mail and click Check DNS. Records usually propagate within 5–15 minutes, though it can take up to 48 hours for some providers.
Billing & Plans
Plan overview
| Plan | Monthly emails | Contacts | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | 30,000 | 5,000 | From $9/mo |
| Growth | 100,000 | 25,000 | From $29/mo |
| Scale | 500,000 | 100,000 | From $79/mo |
| Enterprise | Unlimited | Unlimited | Contact us |
Annual billing available at 20% discount. See full pricing at mail.utobo.com/pricing.
How billing works
Managing your subscription
Go to the Billing page (bottom of the left sidebar in your dashboard) to:
Team & Permissions
Invite your team members to collaborate in Utobo Mail. Each member gets their own login and permissions.
Inviting a team member
Go to Account → Team
Find Team in the Account section of the left sidebar.
Click Invite Member
Enter your team member's email address and select their role.
They accept the invitation
They receive an email with a link to set up their account and join your organization.
Roles
| Role | What they can do |
|---|---|
| Owner | Full access. Manage billing, team members, API keys, and all settings. Cannot be removed. |
| Admin | Full access except billing. Can manage team members and API keys. |
| Member | Can create and send campaigns, manage contacts, templates, and lists. |
| Viewer | Read-only access. Can view campaigns, contacts, and analytics. Cannot send or edit. |
Deliverability Tips
Email deliverability is whether your emails land in the inbox or the spam folder. Utobo Mail is built on AWS SES — one of the most reputable sending infrastructures in the world — but your own practices matter just as much.
The most important things
Verify your domain (SPF, DKIM, DMARC)
This is non-negotiable. Without these records, Gmail and Outlook will send your emails straight to spam. Utobo Mail's domain wizard sets them up in one step.
Only email people who asked to hear from you
Never send to purchased lists, scraped addresses, or people who didn't explicitly opt in. This is both a legal requirement (CAN-SPAM, GDPR) and critical for inbox placement.
Keep your bounce rate below 2%
High bounce rates tell mailbox providers your list is low quality. Monitor the Delivery Issues page weekly. Remove bounced addresses immediately.
Warm up your sending volume
If you're new to Utobo Mail, start by sending small batches (100–500 emails/day) and gradually increase volume over 2–4 weeks. Sudden spikes in volume look suspicious.
Write clear, relevant subject lines
Avoid ALL CAPS, excessive exclamation marks, and phrases like 'FREE!!! ACT NOW!!!'. These trigger spam filters. Focus on what value the email delivers.
Include a plain-text version
Utobo Mail adds a plain-text version automatically for campaigns. For API sends, include the text field alongside html.
Frequently Asked Questions
Still need help?
Our support team typically responds within 24 hours on business days.