Cold Email Domain Setup: Dynadot + Zapmail (Public Edition)

Complete workflow to generate short domain names, purchase them on Dynadot, and set them up on Zapmail with inboxes ready for cold email sending.

First-Time Setup (Onboarding)

Before running anything, you need two API keys stored as environment variables.

1. Get Your Dynadot API Key

1. Log into dynadot.com
2. Go to Tools > API in the left sidebar
3. Enable API access and copy your API key
4. Whitelist your IP address (required by Dynadot)

2. Get Your Zapmail API Key

1. Log into zapmail.ai
2. Go to Settings > API
3. Copy your API key

3. Store Your Keys

Add these to a .env file in your project root (or export them in your shell):

# .env — NEVER commit this file
DYNADOT_API_KEY=your_dynadot_key_here
ZAPMAIL_API_KEY=your_zapmail_key_here

Load them in your script:

import os
from dotenv import load_dotenv
load_dotenv()

DYNADOT_API_KEY = os.environ["DYNADOT_API_KEY"]
ZAPMAIL_API_KEY = os.environ["ZAPMAIL_API_KEY"]

4. Verify Access

Test both APIs before doing anything:

Dynadot — check wallet balance:

GET https://api.dynadot.com/api3.json?key=<YOUR_KEY>&command=account_info

Response includes AccountBalance (e.g., "$106.20").

Zapmail — list domains:

GET https://api.zapmail.ai/api/v2/domains/assignable?limit=10&page=1
Header: x-auth-zapmail: <YOUR_KEY>

If both return 200, you're ready.

Full Workflow Overview

Step 1: Generate domain name candidates         ~instant
Step 2: Check availability on Dynadot            ~1 min per 500 domains
Step 3: Purchase available domains               ~1 min per 100 domains
   | (domains now registered on Dynadot)
Step 4: Switch nameservers to Zapmail            ~1 min per 500 domains
   | WAIT 15-20 minutes for DNS propagation
Step 5: Connect domains on Zapmail               ~2 min per 500 domains
   | WAIT 10-30 minutes for domains to become assignable
Step 6: Create inboxes on Zapmail                ~3 min per 500 domains
   | WAIT 4-6 HOURS for inbox provisioning
Step 7: Export to your email sending platform    ~instant

Step 1: Generate Short Domain Names

The goal is short, clean domains that look like real brands. Shorter = better deliverability and more professional appearance.

Domain Name Strategy

Use a brand keyword (your company name or a variation) combined with short prefixes/suffixes:

Tier 1 — Prefix + Brand (shortest, try these first):

go{brand}.com       try{brand}.com      get{brand}.com
my{brand}.com       the{brand}.com      hey{brand}.com
use{brand}.com      run{brand}.com      one{brand}.com

Tier 2 — Brand + Suffix (still short):

{brand}hq.com       {brand}hub.com      {brand}now.com
{brand}app.com      {brand}pro.com      {brand}lab.com
{brand}ai.com       {brand}co.com       {brand}go.com

Tier 3 — Prefix + Brand + Suffix (use only if tiers 1-2 don't yield enough):

go{brand}hq.com     try{brand}hub.com   get{brand}pro.com

Full Prefix List (36 options)

go, get, try, join, find, search, explore, reach, access, boost,
team, send, email, connect, launch, start, build, discover, meet,
use, hello, hey, my, the, top, best, run, open, live, grow,
with, via, one, all, new, pro

Full Suffix List (40 options)

hub, hq, online, today, direct, teams, projects, outreach, works,
signal, scope, flow, edge, radar, desk, global, core, base, systems,
engine, link, next, source, circle, stack, zone, path, spot, wave,
grid, point, shift, field, net, way, pulse, vault, peak, sync, lab

Filtering Rules

• Max SLD length: 40 characters (shorter is always better — aim for under 20)
• Banned substrings: mega, ultra, grp (look spammy)
• Awkward substring check: Screen for unintended words (e.g., "therapist" = "the+rapist", profanity, slurs). Run each candidate through a blocklist.
• Deduplicate globally: Never use the same domain for two different senders/clients

Recommended TLD

• .com — primary choice (~$10-14 on Dynadot). Best inbox trust, cleanest pattern-match for recipients.
• .co — secondary (~$8-30 depending on name). Looks professional, often available when .com is taken.
• Avoid .info, .xyz, .click, .top, .buzz, .loan — these hurt deliverability with recipients who pattern-match on TLD.

Example: Generating for brand "acme"

Tier 1: goacme.com, tryacme.com, getacme.com, myacme.com ...
Tier 2: acmehq.com, acmehub.com, acmepro.com, acmeflow.com ...
Tier 3: goacmehq.com, tryacmehub.com (only if needed)

For 1 brand keyword, tiers 1+2 produce ~76 candidates. Most brands need 10-30 domains.

Step 2: Check Domain Availability

Dynadot Search API (batch up to 100 per request)

GET https://api.dynadot.com/api3.json
  ?key=<DYNADOT_API_KEY>
  &command=search
  &show_price=1
  &currency=USD
  &domain0=goacme.com
  &domain1=tryacme.com
  &domain2=getacme.com
  ...up to &domain99=...

Response:

{
  "SearchResponse": {
    "SearchResults": [
      {"DomainName": "goacme.com", "Available": "yes", "Price": "2.99"},
      {"DomainName": "tryacme.com", "Available": "no"},
      ...
    ]
  }
}

Important:

• Max 100 domains per request
• Add 1 second pause between batches to avoid rate limiting
• Set a max price cap (recommended: $3.50 for .com)
• Filter out unavailable domains before proceeding

Step 3: Purchase Domains

Check Wallet Balance First

GET https://api.dynadot.com/api3.json
  ?key=<DYNADOT_API_KEY>
  &command=account_info

Calculate: number_of_domains × price_per_domain. Make sure your balance covers it.

Register Domains (one per API call)

GET https://api.dynadot.com/api3.json
  ?key=<DYNADOT_API_KEY>
  &command=register
  &domain=goacme.com
  &duration=1

Important:

• One domain per API call (Dynadot doesn't support batch registration)
• Add 0.5 second pause between registrations
• Always verify wallet balance before starting
• duration=1 = 1 year registration

Step 4: Switch Nameservers to Zapmail

After purchase, point each domain's nameservers to Zapmail's DNS.

Zapmail Nameservers

pns61.cloudns.net
pns62.cloudns.com
pns63.cloudns.net
pns64.cloudns.uk

Dynadot NS Switch API (batch up to 100 domains)

GET https://api.dynadot.com/api3.json
  ?key=<DYNADOT_API_KEY>
  &command=set_ns
  &domain=goacme.com,tryacme.com,getacme.com
  &ns0=pns61.cloudns.net
  &ns1=pns62.cloudns.com
  &ns2=pns63.cloudns.net
  &ns3=pns64.cloudns.uk

CRITICAL: Comma encoding bug. When building the URL in Python, default urllib.parse.urlencode() encodes commas as %2C, which breaks the batch request. Fix:

import urllib.parse
params = {
    "key": DYNADOT_API_KEY,
    "command": "set_ns",
    "domain": "goacme.com,tryacme.com,getacme.com",
    "ns0": "pns61.cloudns.net",
    "ns1": "pns62.cloudns.com",
    "ns2": "pns63.cloudns.net",
    "ns3": "pns64.cloudns.uk",
}
url = f"https://api.dynadot.com/api3.json?{urllib.parse.urlencode(params, safe=',')}"

Response:

{"SetNsResponse": {"ResponseCode": 0, "Status": "success"}}

After NS Switch: WAIT 15-20 Minutes

DNS propagation takes time. Don't proceed to Step 5 until at least 15 minutes have passed. 20 minutes is the safe default.

Step 5: Connect Domains on Zapmail

Zapmail Connect API

POST https://api.zapmail.ai/api/v2/domains/connect-domain
Header: x-auth-zapmail: <ZAPMAIL_API_KEY>
Content-Type: application/json

Body: {"domainNames": ["goacme.com", "tryacme.com", "getacme.com"]}

Important:

• Max 50 domains per request
• Add 3 second pause between batches
• Domains go through verification stages: CHECKING_BLACKLISTED_STATUS -> CHECKING_IF_DOMAIN_IS_REGISTERED -> assignable

After Connect: Wait for Domains to Become Assignable

Poll the assignable endpoint to know when you can create inboxes:

GET https://api.zapmail.ai/api/v2/domains/assignable?limit=100&page=1
Header: x-auth-zapmail: <ZAPMAIL_API_KEY>

Typical timeline:

• 10 minutes: ~8% assignable
• 20 minutes: ~50-80% assignable
• 30 minutes: ~99% assignable

Strategy: Poll every 5 minutes. Proceed to inbox creation when >95% of your domains are assignable. The stragglers can be retried later.

Step 6: Create Inboxes

Get Domain UUIDs

First, get the UUIDs for your assignable domains:

GET https://api.zapmail.ai/api/v2/domains/assignable?limit=100&page=1
Header: x-auth-zapmail: <ZAPMAIL_API_KEY>

Match your domain names against the response to get their UUIDs.

Create Mailboxes

POST https://api.zapmail.ai/api/v2/mailboxes
Header: x-auth-zapmail: <ZAPMAIL_API_KEY>
Content-Type: application/json

Body: {
  "<domain-uuid-1>": [
    {"firstName": "Sarah", "lastName": "Chen", "mailboxUsername": "sarah", "domainName": "goacme.com"},
    {"firstName": "Sarah", "lastName": "Chen", "mailboxUsername": "sarahchen", "domainName": "goacme.com"}
  ],
  "<domain-uuid-2>": [
    {"firstName": "Sarah", "lastName": "Chen", "mailboxUsername": "sarah", "domainName": "tryacme.com"},
    {"firstName": "Sarah", "lastName": "Chen", "mailboxUsername": "sarahchen", "domainName": "tryacme.com"}
  ]
}

Inbox Naming Convention

Create 2 inboxes per domain for sending variety:

• {firstname}@domain (e.g., sarah@goacme.com)
• {firstnamelastname}@domain (e.g., sarahchen@goacme.com)

Important Notes

• Max 25 domains per request
• Add 3 second pause between batches
• Response returns UUID strings, NOT mailbox objects
• If ANY mailbox in a batch already exists, the ENTIRE batch fails with 400. Handle this by retrying failed domains one at a time.

After Inbox Creation: WAIT 4-6 HOURS

Zapmail returns 200 immediately, but inboxes show "In Progress" status. Full provisioning takes 4-6 hours. Do NOT attempt export until inboxes are ACTIVE.

Step 7: Export to Email Sending Platform

Zapmail Export API

POST https://api.zapmail.ai/api/v2/exports/mailboxes
Header: x-auth-zapmail: <ZAPMAIL_API_KEY>
Content-Type: application/json

Body: {
  "apps": ["SMARTLEAD"],
  "ids": [],
  "excludeIds": [],
  "tagIds": [],
  "contains": "sarah",
  "status": "ACTIVE"
}

Supported Platforms

SMARTLEAD, INSTANTLY, REACHINBOX, REPLY_IO, QUICKMAIL, EMELIA, FIRSTQUADRANT, WARMY, SUPERAGI, LEMLIST, PIPL, LUELLA, MASTER_INBOX, SAILE, SNOV, EMAILBISON

Important

• Always filter by status: "ACTIVE" — exporting "In Progress" inboxes fails silently
• Use contains to filter by sender name if you have multiple senders
• Your sending platform account must be linked first via Zapmail's dashboard or API:

  POST https://api.zapmail.ai/api/v2/exports/accounts/third-party
  Body: {"email": "your-platform-login@example.com", "password": "your-platform-password", "app": "SMARTLEAD"}

Automation: Running End-to-End Unattended

For a fully automated run, chain the steps with appropriate waits:

# 1. Generate & check availability
available_domains = generate_and_check(brand="acme", tld="info", count=30)

# 2. Purchase
purchase_domains(available_domains)

# 3. NS switch
switch_nameservers(available_domains)

# 4. Wait for DNS propagation
time.sleep(20 * 60)  # 20 minutes

# 5. Connect on Zapmail
connect_domains(available_domains)

# 6. Poll until assignable (up to 30 min)
wait_until_assignable(available_domains, timeout_minutes=30, poll_interval=300)

# 7. Create inboxes
create_inboxes(available_domains, first_name="Sarah", last_name="Chen")

# 8. Wait for provisioning
time.sleep(6 * 3600)  # 6 hours

# 9. Export to sending platform
export_to_platform(contains="sarah", app="SMARTLEAD")

Tips for long runs:

• On macOS, use caffeinate -i to prevent sleep during the 6-hour wait
• Log each step's results to a file for debugging
• Send yourself a notification when complete:

  osascript -e 'display notification "All inboxes are live!" with title "Domain Setup Complete"'

Common Gotchas

1. Dynadot comma encoding — urllib.parse.urlencode() encodes commas as %2C, breaking batch NS requests. Always use safe=','.
2. Batch inbox failures — If even 1 mailbox in a Zapmail batch already exists, the entire batch returns 400. Retry failed domains individually.
3. Export requires ACTIVE status — Exporting "In Progress" mailboxes fails silently. Always wait the full 4-6 hours or poll for ACTIVE status.
4. DNS propagation varies — Most domains propagate in 15 min, but some take 30+. Poll the assignable endpoint rather than using a fixed sleep.
5. Dynadot IP whitelist — API calls will fail if your IP isn't whitelisted in Dynadot's API settings.
6. Zapmail rate limits — Add pauses between batches (3s for Zapmail, 1s for Dynadot search, 0.5s for Dynadot register). Going too fast gets you temporarily blocked.
7. Domain length matters — Shorter domains = better deliverability. Prioritize tier 1 (prefix+brand) over tier 3 (prefix+brand+suffix).

Quick Reference: API Endpoints

What to do next

Run /smartlead-inbox-manager to configure warmup + signatures + tags on your newly-created inboxes.

Then WAIT 2 WEEKS for warmup before sending real emails. This is the single most important rule — do not skip. Under-warmed inboxes land in spam, damaging your domain reputation permanently.

During the 2-week wait: build your list (/prospeo-full-export, /disco-like, etc.), write copy (/campaign-copywriting). You'll be ready to launch the moment warmup finishes.

Related skills

• /smartlead-inbox-manager — configure the inboxes you just provisioned
• /email-deliverability-audit — check auth records (SPF/DKIM/DMARC) after setup
• /cold-email-kickoff — the orchestrator that usually invokes this skill