Learn how to connect your email address to lemwarm so you can start warming it up safely and improve sender reputation over time.
By the end of this tutorial, you’ll know how to connect a supported primary inbox to lemwarm, choose the right provider, and avoid common setup mistakes like using an alias or SMTP relay.
Why this matters
lemwarm helps improve the deliverability of your email address by building sender reputation gradually. This makes it more likely that your emails land in the inbox instead of spam.
To work properly, lemwarm needs access to a real inbox with sending and receiving capabilities. That’s why choosing the correct email account during setup is important.
Before you start
You should have access to the inbox you want to warm up.
You should know which provider hosts that inbox: Google/Gmail, Microsoft/Outlook, or another provider with SMTP/IMAP access.
You must connect a primary email address, not an alias.
Important: lemwarm works only with a primary email address, not an alias.
An email alias has no inbox and is not a real email account. It is only a forwarding address, so lemwarm cannot track sent emails correctly when forwarding rules and custom labels are involved.
Also keep in mind that an alias usually shares the same underlying mailbox and domain reputation as the main account. Warming up the primary inbox may help the alias indirectly, but using an alias does not spread risk. If one gets flagged for poor sending behavior, the other can be affected too.
If you want to send more emails safely, create separate workspaces for each email address instead.
Phase 1: Open your sending settings
From your lemwarm account, click your profile menu in the lower-left corner and select Settings. This is where you manage the inboxes connected to your workspace.
Phase 2: Start connecting your email address
In the settings panel, open Sending settings, expand the Email section if needed, and click Connect email address. This opens the flow for adding a new inbox to your workspace.
Phase 3: Choose your email provider
Select the provider you use to log in to your mailbox:
Google / Gmail for Google Workspace or Gmail inboxes
Microsoft / Outlook for Outlook or Microsoft 365 inboxes
Other email provider (SMTP/IMAP) for supported custom mailboxes
Choosing the correct provider ensures lemwarm can connect to the inbox properly and warm it up correctly.
Follow the authentication steps for your provider and approve access when prompted.
Once connected, confirm that the inbox appears in your sending settings and is active.
What kind of email address can you connect?
You should connect a real mailbox that can both send and receive emails.
Supported setup types include:
Google Workspace / Gmail inboxes
Microsoft / Outlook inboxes
Other supported inbox providers with direct SMTP and IMAP access
Unsupported setup types include:
Email aliases
SMTP relays
Forwarding-only addresses
Practical example
Let’s say your team uses [email protected] as the main outreach inbox and [email protected] as an alias that forwards to John’s mailbox.
In this case, you should connect [email protected] to lemwarm, not [email protected]. The alias does not have its own inbox, so lemwarm cannot warm it directly. However, improving the reputation of the primary inbox may still have a positive effect on emails sent from the same domain.
Troubleshooting and common pitfalls
Issue: I’m trying to connect an alias
Root cause: Aliases are forwarding addresses, not real inboxes.
Fix:
Connect the primary mailbox instead.
Make sure the address has its own inbox and login credentials.
If you need more sending capacity, create separate workspaces for separate real inboxes.
Issue: My provider is not connecting through SMTP/IMAP
Root cause: The provider may be unsupported, or the mailbox may not have direct SMTP/IMAP access enabled.
Fix:
Verify that the mailbox is a real inbox, not a relay or forwarding setup.
Use Google/Gmail or Microsoft/Outlook when possible for the simplest connection flow.
Check with your mail provider that both SMTP and IMAP are available.
Issue: I want to warm up multiple addresses safely
Root cause: Users sometimes rely on aliases instead of real separate inboxes.
Fix:
Use one real inbox per sending identity.
Create separate workspaces for each email address if needed.
Avoid assuming aliases isolate reputation risk—they do not.
Frequently asked questions
Does lemwarm boost my IP reputation?
No. lemwarm is designed to improve the deliverability of your email address, not your IP reputation. It focuses on building your sender reputation over time so your emails are more likely to reach the inbox.
Will lemwarm improve my entire domain reputation?
Not directly. lemwarm improves the reputation of the connected email addresses on that domain.
If you follow best practices and keep lemwarm running during and after your campaigns, the connected inboxes can benefit significantly. However, other users on the same domain can still affect overall domain reputation if they send poor-quality email.
Tip: If you want more control over deliverability, consider using a dedicated domain for outreach. This helps isolate outreach reputation from your main business domain.
Can I improve an alias’s deliverability?
No, not directly. lemwarm can only warm up a primary email address.
Because an alias has no standalone inbox and works as a forwarding address, it cannot be tracked correctly by the warm-up system. Warming the primary inbox may still help the alias somewhat if they share the same domain, but the alias itself cannot be optimized independently.
Can I connect an SMTP relay to lemwarm?
No. lemwarm does not support SMTP relays. It requires a direct connection to a single inbox with both SMTP and IMAP access.
Unsupported providers include:
SendGrid
Mailgun
Sendinblue
Mailjet
O2switch
Amazon SES
Postmark
Cloudmark
Hostgator
If you use one of these services, you’ll need to switch to a supported inbox provider before connecting to lemwarm.