Summary
Displaying your brand's sender logo in email inboxes like Gmail and Yahoo Mail significantly enhances brand recognition and recipient trust. The most established method to achieve this is through the Brand Indicators for Message Identification (BIMI) standard. BIMI ties a brand's verified logo to its authenticated email, ensuring a consistent and secure visual identity for recipients. Implementing BIMI requires a strong foundation in email authentication, including SPF, DKIM, and, crucially, an enforced DMARC policy. Additionally, obtaining a Verified Mark Certificate (VMC) for your logo is a key step, validating its ownership and authenticity before it can be displayed.
Key findings
- BIMI is the Primary Standard: Brand Indicators for Message Identification (BIMI) is the leading industry standard for displaying verified sender logos in major email clients, including Gmail and Yahoo Mail.
- Foundational Authentication Required: Successful BIMI implementation is built upon robust email authentication protocols, specifically requiring DMARC (with an enforced policy of 'p=quarantine' or 'p=reject'), SPF, and DKIM.
- VMC is Crucial for Verification: A Verified Mark Certificate (VMC) is a mandatory component for BIMI, serving to authenticate and digitally sign your brand logo, ensuring it is legitimate and owned by your organization.
- Widespread Mailbox Support: Both Gmail and Yahoo Mail actively support BIMI. Yahoo Mail was an early pilot for the standard, and Google has publicly announced its support, emphasizing BIMI's role in trust and brand recognition.
- Volume and Placement Factors: While BIMI is the standard, some observations suggest that Yahoo Mail's logo display can also be influenced by factors such as email volume and consistent inbox placement rates, with logos occasionally appearing without explicit BIMI setup due to high performance.
Key considerations
- DMARC Enforcement: For BIMI to function correctly and display your sender logo, ensure your DMARC policy is set to 'p=quarantine' or 'p=reject', as 'p=none' will prevent logo visibility.
- Obtain a VMC: Acquire a Verified Mark Certificate (VMC) for your brand logo from a trusted certificate authority. This certificate verifies ownership and legitimacy, often requiring your logo to be trademarked first.
- Logo Preparation: Your trademarked logo must be converted to an SVG Tiny 1.2 format, which is a specific requirement for BIMI implementation.
- DNS Configuration: Publish a BIMI TXT record in your Domain Name System (DNS) that points to your SVG logo file and its associated Verified Mark Certificate.
- Maintain Deliverability: While not a direct BIMI requirement, maintaining a consistently high inbox placement rate can influence logo display, especially in platforms like Yahoo Mail.
- Domain Consistency: Consider ensuring consistency between your 'From email' domain address and your website domain, as this factor has been noted to potentially influence Yahoo Mail's logo display.
What email marketers say
10 marketer opinions
Displaying your brand's sender logo in major inboxes like Gmail and Yahoo Mail significantly boosts brand recognition and recipient trust. While the Brand Indicators for Message Identification (BIMI) standard is the primary and most reliable method for achieving this, it hinges on strong email authentication including SPF, DKIM, and crucially, an enforced DMARC policy. Additionally, obtaining a Verified Mark Certificate (VMC) for your trademarked logo is essential for its authentication. Notably, Yahoo Mail may also display logos based on factors like email volume and consistent inbox placement rates, sometimes even without explicit BIMI setup, though BIMI remains the most consistent path for all supported clients.
Key opinions
- BIMI is the Primary Standard: The Brand Indicators for Message Identification (BIMI) standard is the most widely recognized and recommended method for displaying verified sender logos in email clients such as Gmail and Yahoo Mail.
- Authentication is Foundational: Successful logo display via BIMI relies heavily on robust email authentication, specifically requiring SPF, DKIM, and an enforced DMARC policy (p=quarantine or p=reject).
- VMC is Key for Verification: A Verified Mark Certificate (VMC) is a mandatory component of BIMI, serving to authenticate and digitally sign your brand logo, ensuring its legitimacy and ownership before display.
- Yahoo Mail's Specific Factors: Beyond BIMI, Yahoo Mail's logo display can be influenced by email volume, inbox placement rates, and consistency between the 'From email' domain and the website domain, with some logos appearing without explicit BIMI setup if these factors are strong.
- BIMI Not Always Exclusive: While BIMI is the primary method, some instances suggest that logos might appear in Gmail and Yahoo Mail through other means, as one expert noted a different method for displaying brand icons also worked for both platforms.
- DMARC Policy is Critical: A DMARC policy set to 'p=none' will prevent sender logos from appearing in Yahoo Mail and Gmail, even if other BIMI DNS records are correctly configured.
Key considerations
- Strict DMARC Policy: It is critical to set your DMARC policy to 'p=quarantine' or 'p=reject' for BIMI to function correctly; a 'p=none' policy will prevent logo display in major inboxes like Gmail and Yahoo Mail.
- Acquire a Verified Mark Certificate: Obtain a Verified Mark Certificate (VMC) from a certified authority for your trademarked logo. This certificate is essential for verifying your brand's identity and logo ownership within the BIMI framework.
- Prepare Logo in SVG Format: Your trademarked logo must be converted into the SVG Tiny 1.2 format, which is a specific technical requirement for BIMI implementation.
- Configure DNS Records: Beyond SPF and DKIM, you must publish a DMARC record with an enforced policy and a BIMI TXT record in your DNS, pointing to your SVG logo file and its VMC.
- Maintain Deliverability and Volume: Especially for Yahoo Mail, maintaining a high inbox placement rate and consistent email volume can influence whether your logo is displayed, potentially even leading to display without explicit BIMI setup in some cases.
- Ensure Domain Consistency: For Yahoo Mail in particular, it is advisable to ensure consistency between your 'From email' domain address and your website's domain, as this factor may contribute to logo visibility.
Marketer view
Marketer from Email Geeks explains that BIMI SVG does not currently show up in Yahoo Mail for them, suggesting it might be a volume threshold issue.
30 Nov 2023 - Email Geeks
Marketer view
Marketer from Email Geeks shares that Yahoo Mail logo display is influenced by volume, inbox placement rate, and emphasizes consistency between the “From email” domain address and the website domain. They also note their company's BIMI logo appeared without explicit setup, suggesting a possible automatic activation based on other factors like achieving a minimum 80% inbox placement rate.
3 Feb 2024 - Email Geeks
What the experts say
3 expert opinions
To ensure your sender logo appears in major inboxes such as Yahoo Mail and Gmail, implementing Brand Indicators for Message Identification (BIMI) is essential. This industry standard links a brand's verified logo to authenticated email, providing a visual cue of trustworthiness. A prerequisite for BIMI is robust email authentication, including SPF, DKIM, and a DMARC policy enforced at 'quarantine' or 'reject' levels. Brands must also publish a BIMI record in their DNS, which includes a validated SVG logo and is ideally supported by a Verified Mark Certificate (VMC) to confirm ownership and authenticity.
Key opinions
- BIMI's Universal Adoption: Both Yahoo Mail and Gmail have fully embraced BIMI (Brand Indicators for Message Identification) as the standard for displaying sender logos, making it the primary method for brands to achieve this visibility.
- Authentication Prerequisite: For logos to appear via BIMI, emails must be authenticated using DMARC, SPF, and DKIM, with DMARC specifically requiring an enforced policy of 'p=quarantine' or 'p=reject' for platforms like Gmail.
- VMC for Credibility: A Verified Mark Certificate (VMC) is a critical component for BIMI, particularly highlighted for Gmail, as it assures the authenticity and validated ownership of the displayed brand logo.
- DNS Record Requirement: Publishing a valid BIMI DNS record is necessary, which includes pointing to the SVG format of your logo and, optionally or mandatorily depending on the mailbox provider, your VMC.
Key considerations
- Enforce DMARC Policy: To enable logo display through BIMI in Gmail and Yahoo Mail, ensure your DMARC policy is set to 'p=quarantine' or 'p=reject,' as a 'p=none' policy will prevent visibility.
- Obtain Verified Mark Certificate: Secure a Verified Mark Certificate (VMC) for your trademarked logo. This certificate is crucial for verifying brand identity and ownership, especially for platforms like Gmail.
- Prepare SVG Logo: Convert your brand logo into the SVG Tiny 1.2 format, as this is the required image type for inclusion in your BIMI DNS record.
- Publish BIMI DNS Record: Create and publish a BIMI TXT record in your DNS, correctly referencing your SVG logo and its associated VMC, to link your logo with your authenticated email.
- Maintain Core Authentication: Ensure consistent and correct implementation of SPF and DKIM for all outgoing mail, as these are foundational authentication requirements for BIMI to function.
Expert view
Expert from Spam Resource explains that Yahoo Mail now supports BIMI (Brand Indicators for Message Identification), allowing brands to display their logos. To implement this, senders must authenticate emails with DMARC, SPF, and DKIM, and publish a BIMI record in their DNS, including a validated SVG logo and a VMC (Verified Mark Certificate).
6 Nov 2023 - Spam Resource
Expert view
Expert from Spam Resource shares that Gmail has made BIMI (Brand Indicators for Message Identification) generally available for displaying sender logos. For a logo to appear, senders must authenticate their email with DMARC (with a policy of p=quarantine or p=reject), SPF, and DKIM, and publish a valid BIMI DNS record that points to their logo and optionally a Verified Mark Certificate (VMC).
2 Mar 2025 - Spam Resource
What the documentation says
8 technical articles
Displaying a verified sender logo in email inboxes such as Gmail and Yahoo Mail is a powerful way to build brand trust and recognition. The primary standard facilitating this is Brand Indicators for Message Identification (BIMI). BIMI securely links your brand's authenticated email to its official logo. Its successful implementation absolutely requires a robust foundation of email authentication, including SPF, DKIM, and critically, an enforced DMARC policy. Additionally, obtaining a Verified Mark Certificate (VMC) for your logo is an essential step, validating its ownership and legitimacy through a trusted authority.
Key findings
- BIMI is the Definitive Standard: Brand Indicators for Message Identification (BIMI) is consistently cited as the primary, most reliable method for displaying verified sender logos in major email clients like Gmail and Yahoo Mail.
- Core Authentication is Mandatory: The foundation for BIMI lies in strong email authentication protocols; SPF, DKIM, and an enforced DMARC policy (p=quarantine or p=reject) are prerequisites for logo visibility.
- VMC Validates Logo Ownership: A Verified Mark Certificate (VMC) is a mandatory component for BIMI, issued by a trusted certificate authority, to digitally verify the ownership and legitimacy of the brand logo before it can be displayed.
- Trademark Requirement for VMC: To acquire a VMC, your brand logo must typically be a registered trademark, undergoing a thorough validation process to ensure authenticity.
- Gmail & Yahoo Mail Endorsement: Both Google and Yahoo Mail explicitly support and endorse BIMI as the mechanism for displaying verified sender logos, highlighting its role in enhancing trust and brand recognition.
Key considerations
- Implement Enforced DMARC: A DMARC policy set to 'p=quarantine' or 'p=reject' is fundamental; a 'p=none' policy will prevent your sender logo from appearing in supporting mailboxes.
- Secure a Verified Mark Certificate (VMC): Obtain a VMC for your trademarked logo from an accredited certificate authority to authenticate your brand's identity and logo ownership.
- Trademark Your Logo: Ensure your brand logo is legally trademarked, as this is a prerequisite for obtaining a Verified Mark Certificate (VMC).
- Prepare Logo in SVG Format: Convert your trademarked logo to the specific SVG Tiny 1.2 format, which is required for BIMI implementation and inclusion in your DNS record.
- Publish BIMI DNS Record: Create and correctly publish a BIMI TXT record in your Domain Name System (DNS), linking to your SVG logo file and its associated Verified Mark Certificate.
Technical article
Documentation from BIMI Group explains that Brand Indicators for Message Identification (BIMI) is the primary standard for displaying sender logos in participating mailboxes like Gmail and Yahoo Mail. It requires robust email authentication (SPF, DKIM, and an enforced DMARC policy) and a Verified Mark Certificate (VMC) for the logo.
11 Mar 2022 - BIMI Group
Technical article
Documentation from Google Workspace Admin Help explains that Gmail supports BIMI, allowing organizations to display their verified brand logos next to the sender's name. Key requirements include having SPF, DKIM, and an enforced DMARC policy in place, along with obtaining a Verified Mark Certificate (VMC) for the logo.
28 Nov 2021 - Google Workspace Admin Help
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