Brand Indicators for Message Identification (BIMI) is an email authentication-related domain setting that allows email senders to display a brand or company logo alongside email messages when displayed in different email applications and webmail platforms. It helps to promote trust and security by requiring proper underpinnings of email authentication and a Yahoo study indicated that the logo display can increase chances that recipients will interact with your email messages.
The BIMI specification is overseen by a collaborative email industry group known as the AuthIndicators Working Group, composed of email senders, email receivers, email security and deliverability experts.
Which mailbox providers and webmail platforms will display BIMI logos? As of November 2024:
Supports BIMI: Apple (iOS and MacOS email clients), AU, Cloudmark, Fastmail, Google's Gmail, La Poste, Onet Poczta, GMX, Yahoo! Mail, Zoho Mail, Zone, and Zoner. (This also includes Pobox, AOL/Netscape, and Google for Business/Gsuite/Workspace mailboxes).
When implementing a BIMI logo, the domain’s DMARC implementation must be "at enforcement," meaning that published policy covering the domain and all subdomains must be at quarantine or reject. Consider this a carrot to entice senders to implement secure DMARC coverage for their domains, to help move the email ecosystem in the direction of better protection against phishing and spoofing, while offering up a chance to display a branded logo in a new spot, that many believe will help drive increased message engagement.
Apple's BIMI support is unique in that they not only provide BIMI logo support for recipients with Apple-hosted mailboxes (icloud.com, me.com, mac.com) but, in addition, Apple Mail on iOS will show BIMI logos for a recipient with a mailbox at any domain as long as that domain's host publishes proper email headers. Currently the only entity seemingly publishing these headers is Fastmail; but other providers could choose to implement this similarly. This means that Gmail could help drive BIMI logo support beyond the Gmail mobile application and if they are willing to publish the necessary email headers, Gmail users could benefit from BIMI logos even when using Apple's mail client. (This has yet to happen, unfortunately.)
Google and Apple require that a company publishing a BIMI record must purchase a VMC (Verified Mark Certificate) to implement BIMI. Meaning that if you self-publish a BIMI record without an appropriate VMC certificate in place, your BIMI logo will not display for Gmail and Apple users. To obtain a VMC incurs an extra cost and requires that you have a trademarked logo.
For email senders who do not have a trademarked logo, a new alternative (as of October 2024) is the CMC (Common Mark Certificate) that has a purchase and vetting process similar to that of VMC. A trademarked logo is not required. Currently, CMC is supported only by Google. If you implement BIMI via CMC, you do not get the “blue checkmark” verification displayed in the Gmail inbox – this is reserved for VMC only.
Brand Logo Display Alternatives
Apple offers an alternate sender logo mechanism by way of their Apple Business Connect program. This is free, but will drive logo display only in Apple’s ecosystem – nothing will display in other providers’ webmail or on Android devices. Like with BIMI, Apple requires that a domain’s DMARC policy setting be quarantine or reject. Learn more about Apple Business Connect here.
Apple continues to support BIMI as noted above.
Those who wish to "hack the process" and display a logo for Gmail subscribers (without having obtained a VMC) can implement a sender logo on a per-email basis for sending email addresses. It works fine today, but it's a loophole that Google could likely choose to close in the future. More information here.
Once upon a time, I may have suggested that senders consider implementing a Gravatar image as a potential sender brand logo. Like the “Google hack,” it’s a way to associate a profile picture (or brand logo) with an email address. However, support for Gravatar-driven logo display in email clients and mail readers is near nil. Don’t bother.
Brand Indicators for Message Identification (BIMI) is an email authentication-related domain setting that allows email senders to display a brand or company logo alongside email messages when displayed in different email applications and webmail platforms. It helps to promote trust and security by requiring proper underpinnings of email authentication and a Yahoo study indicated that the logo display can increase chances that recipients will interact with your email messages.
The BIMI specification is overseen by a collaborative email industry group known as the AuthIndicators Working Group, composed of email senders, email receivers, email security and deliverability experts.
Which mailbox providers and webmail platforms will display BIMI logos? As of November 2024:
- Supports BIMI: Apple (iOS and MacOS email clients), AU, Cloudmark, Fastmail, Google's Gmail, La Poste, Onet Poczta, GMX, Yahoo! Mail, Zoho Mail, Zone, and Zoner. (This also includes Pobox, AOL/Netscape, and Google for Business/Gsuite/Workspace mailboxes).
- Considering BIMI support: Atmail, BT, Comcast, Mail.com, Qualitia, Seznam.cz, and Yahoo Japan.
- Does not support BIMI: Microsoft.
Implementation ConsiderationsWhen implementing a BIMI logo, the domain’s DMARC implementation must be "at enforcement," meaning that published policy covering the domain and all subdomains must be at quarantine or reject. Consider this a carrot to entice senders to implement secure DMARC coverage for their domains, to help move the email ecosystem in the direction of better protection against phishing and spoofing, while offering up a chance to display a branded logo in a new spot, that many believe will help drive increased message engagement.
Apple's BIMI support is unique in that they not only provide BIMI logo support for recipients with Apple-hosted mailboxes (icloud.com, me.com, mac.com) but, in addition, Apple Mail on iOS will show BIMI logos for a recipient with a mailbox at any domain as long as that domain's host publishes proper email headers. Currently the only entity seemingly publishing these headers is Fastmail; but other providers could choose to implement this similarly. This means that Gmail could help drive BIMI logo support beyond the Gmail mobile application and if they are willing to publish the necessary email headers, Gmail users could benefit from BIMI logos even when using Apple's mail client. (This has yet to happen, unfortunately.)
Click here to learn more about Apple support of BIMI. Apple also publishes a BIMI support page.
Google and Apple require that a company publishing a BIMI record must purchase a VMC (Verified Mark Certificate) to implement BIMI. Meaning that if you self-publish a BIMI record without an appropriate VMC certificate in place, your BIMI logo will not display for Gmail and Apple users. To obtain a VMC incurs an extra cost and requires that you have a trademarked logo.
For email senders who do not have a trademarked logo, a new alternative (as of October 2024) is the CMC (Common Mark Certificate) that has a purchase and vetting process similar to that of VMC. A trademarked logo is not required. Currently, CMC is supported only by Google. If you implement BIMI via CMC, you do not get the “blue checkmark” verification displayed in the Gmail inbox – this is reserved for VMC only.
Brand Logo Display Alternatives
Apple offers an alternate sender logo mechanism by way of their Apple Business Connect program. This is free, but will drive logo display only in Apple’s ecosystem – nothing will display in other providers’ webmail or on Android devices. Like with BIMI, Apple requires that a domain’s DMARC policy setting be quarantine or reject. Learn more about Apple Business Connect here.
Apple continues to support BIMI as noted above.
Those who wish to "hack the process" and display a logo for Gmail subscribers (without having obtained a VMC) can implement a sender logo on a per-email basis for sending email addresses. It works fine today, but it's a loophole that Google could likely choose to close in the future. More information here.
Once upon a time, I may have suggested that senders consider implementing a Gravatar image as a potential sender brand logo. Like the “Google hack,” it’s a way to associate a profile picture (or brand logo) with an email address. However, support for Gravatar-driven logo display in email clients and mail readers is near nil. Don’t bother.
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