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How to send your first newsletter with BillionMail (step by step)

Your BillionMail server is installed, the DNS records are green and SSL works. Now the fun part: sending a newsletter. This guide covers mailboxes, contact lists, templates and your first campaign, plus the settings that keep you out of spam.

Prefer video? This walkthrough covers the whole setup, including sending a first newsletter:


Step 1: Pick a sender mailbox
Open Mailboxes. If you kept "automatically create brand information" when adding your domain, you already have admin@, support@, noreply@, abuse@ and postmaster@.

• Send from an address that can receive replies, like support@ or hello@. People reply to newsletters, and those replies are a good signal to Gmail.
  
• Keep abuse@ and postmaster@. Large providers expect them to exist.
  
• The Copy link under "Login info" gives you the IMAP/SMTP settings for a mail app. Webmail is at https://your-mail-name/roundcube/.
  

Step 2: Create a contact list
In BillionMail, a list is called a group. Open Contacts > Group > Add Group.

Prepare a CSV file, one address per line:

Code:Copy

email,attributes [email protected],"{""name"":""Anna""}" [email protected],

The attributes column is optional. Then:

1. Enter a Group Name, e.g. "Newsletter".
   
2. List Type: Single Opt-in for people who already agreed to receive your emails.
   
3. Drop in the CSV file (up to 10 MB) and click Confirm.
   

Only import people who asked for your emails. Bought or scraped lists bounce a lot and get complaints, and a new server's reputation won't survive that.

The other tabs: Subscribers lists everyone, Suspend List holds people who unsubscribed or bounced (BillionMail won't mail them), and Tags let you send to a segment.

Step 3: Create a template
Open Template > Add Template. You can use drag-and-drop, AI (needs an AI model set up under Settings > AI Model first) or HTML.

Tips for email HTML that works everywhere:

• Use tables for layout and inline styles. Many mail apps strip <style> blocks and scripts.
  
• Keep it light: one main message, one button.
  
• Add a line saying why the person gets this email, e.g. "You get this because you joined our newsletter."
  
• Write like a person. Our first draft used "free", "marketing platform" and "campaign" in a short email, and a spam test flagged the wording. A plain, friendly rewrite fixed it.
  

Use Preview before saving.

Step 4: Create the campaign (a "task")
Open Email Marketing > Add Task and fill in:

• From: your sending domain and mailbox, e.g. [email protected].
  
• Display Name: what people see in their inbox. Use your brand name.
  
• Subject: honest and specific. No ALL CAPS, no "!!!".
  
• Recipients: your group. BillionMail shows how many people will get it. Narrow it down with Tags if needed.
  
• Email template: pick yours; the preview on the right updates.
  

Then the switches:

• Associate IP Warmup System: turn it on for a new server. It limits sending speed so providers get used to your IP.
  
• Unsubscribe link: keep it on. It's required by law in many countries and by Gmail and Yahoo for bulk senders.
  
• Track Opens / Track Clicks: on, if you want statistics.
  
• Threads: Auto is fine.
  

Step 5: Send a test first
At the bottom, type your own address in Test email and click Send test mail. Check it on your computer and phone.

This is also the moment to check deliverability: send the test to a free tester like SEOStackTools Email Tester and fix anything it finds before mailing the whole list. See BillionMail deliverability: test and fix.

Step 6: Send or schedule
Choose Send now or pick a date and time, and click Confirm. The task appears under Email Marketing with its progress, success and failed counts.

Step 7: Read the results
Click Analytics next to a task to see delivered, opened, clicked and bounced, and results per mail provider. The Overview page shows the same for all your mail.

• Bounces above a few percent: clean your list. Old addresses hurt your reputation.
  
• Opens: treat them as a trend, not an exact number. Apple Mail and others load images automatically, which counts as an "open".
  
• Mail stuck? Look at Settings > Send Queue; the delay reason usually says exactly what's wrong.
  

Start small
On a new server, don't send to 10,000 people on day one. Start with your most engaged readers (a few hundred), then grow over two to four weeks. If you need to send a lot right away, add an SMTP relay (Amazon SES, Mailgun, SendGrid) under SMTP while your own IP builds a reputation.

More BillionMail how-to guides

• Send API for transactional email
  
• WordPress email through BillionMail SMTP
  
• Import contacts, groups and tags
  
• Email templates explained
  
• SMTP relay with Amazon SES, Brevo or Mailgun
  
• Mailboxes and webmail
  
• Campaign analytics explained
  
• IP warm-up plan
  
• Move from Mailchimp or Sendy
  
• Add a second sending domain
  

Tested on BillionMail 4.9.0 through aaPanel, October 2026. Sources: BillionMail on GitHub · Google: email sender guidelines.