Follow the steps below for your logo to display correctly at participating mailbox providers. For details on all BIMI technical specifications, please visit:

• bimigroup.org
• BIMI Specifications

Pre-work

1. Make sure BIMI is supported.
   
   • Contact your email administrator, email service provider, or domain hosting provider and ask what steps are required to implement BIMI.
   • If BIMI implementation is not covered under a service agreement, ask what steps you need to take to set it up yourself using the information below. 
2. Implement DMARC authentication on all marketing email.
   • Passing DMARC is required for BIMI to work.
   • Check email headers at Gmail, Microsoft, Yahoo! or AOL in your email monitoring platform (Everest, Return Path Platform, or 250ok) to see if DMARC is passing.
   • DMARC policy (p=) must be "quarantine" or "reject"; otherwise your logo will not display.
     
     • Everest clients can use the Authentication Compliance playbooks for instructions on moving a DMARC policy to quarantine and reject.
3. Determine which logo your subscribers should see for your brand.
   • BIMI requires the SVG (.svg) Tiny Portable/Secure image format. Other image formats may be supported in the future.
     • To convert your SVG Tiny image to SVG Tiny Portable/Secure, tools can be found at https://bimigroup.org/svg-conversion-tools-released/.
   • The image must be a square, centered, and only be your logo without text.
     • Full image requirements, including required elements in the structure of the SVG file, can be found at https://bimigroup.org/creating-bimi-svg-logo-files.
   • Participating mailbox providers should size the image appropriately. 
   • Store your logo using HTTPS and note the URL string (e.g. https://subdomain.brand.com/image/logo.svg).
     • Your logo will not display using HTTP.
     • Be sure to update the image if you rebrand.
     • If you change the location of your logo, your DNS TXT record will also need to be updated with the new URL.
4. (Optional) Obtain a Verified Mark Certificate as your authority evidence document. 
   • A VMC is optional, but required by some mailbox providers, such as Gmail, to display your BIMI logo.
     • If you do not have a VMC, skip this step.
   • Store your certificate using HTTPS and note the URL string (e.g. https://subdomain.brand.com/vmc/logo.pem).
   • The URL is entered into the assertion record within the a= tag.
5. Determine how to measure success once BIMI is deployed.
   • It is a good idea to have your "before BIMI" metrics so you can compare them to metrics after BIMI is implemented.
   • Typical engagement metrics such as reads and click-throughs are good to track, but also look at revenue and average order value.

BIMI Implementation

Step 1: Create the DNS TXT (text) record for your domain

1. Choose your domain and selector.

• Note the "From:" domain (RFC5322) used in your marketing emails. This is the domain where you create the DNS TXT record.
• Choose a selector name. The selector name is what a mailbox provider uses to look up your BIMI record. 

• • • Use the "default" selector name if:
      • You have a single brand or testing one brand prior to implementing your other brands. 
      • You have multiple brands with unique domain names.
      • There are technical constraints to adding the BIMI-selector header into your emails.
        • Some ESPs and sending software do not support modifying email headers.
    • Most senders use the "default" selector name because it is is faster to implement than choosing a custom selector name and inserting the BIMI-Selector header.
    • Choosing the "default" selector name means that you aren't required to insert the BIMI-Selector header into your emails. 
    • Choose a custom selector name if:
      • You have multiple brands that all share the same domain name.
      • You plan on rolling out BIMI to multiple brands and you need more control over how the logos are displayed.
      • A selector name is whatever you want it to be, but keep it short. Examples are:  a date (July2019) or a brand name (brandabc).The selector name you choose should have meaning and purpose that makes sense for your business.
      • When choosing a custom selector name, you are required to insert the BIMI-Selector header for each custom selector name in your emails.

2. Create a DNS TXT (text) record for the domain you noted above.

• Use the instructions provided by your email service provider or domain hosting provider if you are creating the TXT record yourself.
• Be sure you use the correct syntax.
• Be sure you include all required tags in the assertion record.

Your DNS BIMI record should resemble one of the examples below (using your selector, domain, logo URL, and authority evidence document URL):

• No authority evidence document:
  • brandx._bimi.brand.com IN TXT "v=BIMI1; l=https://subdomain.brand.com/image/logo.svg; a=;"
• With an authority evidence document such as a Verified Mark Certificate (VMC):
  • brandx._bimi.brand.com IN TXT "v=BIMI1; l=https://subdomain.brand.com/image/logo.svg; a=https://subdomain.brand.com/vmc/logo.pem;"

If you use the "default" selector name, it should resemble this:

• default._bimi.brand.com IN TXT "v=BIMI1; l=https://subdomain.brand.com/image/logo.svg; a=;"

Step 2: Insert (sign) the BIMI-Selector header into your emails

Skip this step if you are using the "default" selector name. It is not necessary to insert the BIMI-Selector header into your emails when using the "default" selector name. Participating mailbox providers automatically look up your BIMI record using "default". Just make sure your DNS TXT record is accurate as demonstrated by the example above.

Inserting the BIMI-Selector header into your emails is required when using a custom selector name. If you are using a custom selector name other than the "default" selector name:

• Consult your technical team or email service provider to determine the best way to insert the BIMI-Selector header into your emails.
• Be sure the BIMI-Selector header has the correct syntax.
• Be sure the s= value in the BIMI-Selector header matches the selector name in the DNS exactly, or your logo will not display.