Take a look at our What is BIMI? article as well for a brief overview on BIMI.

Do we need to do the verification again for re-issuing the certificate?

Entrust will verify your company details every year, but will only contact you if they detect any changes or anomalies.

Where are the images used in the BIMI company logos sourced?

It is a TinySVG format image hosted on a server and then published on a TXT record on your DNS, similar to the DMARC TXT record.

Where do we upload the logo to show up in the email?

You can upload it to any public-facing website with SSL. You will then publish that URL in your DNS as a TXT record, similar to DMARC.

How come some people already have their photo or their logo on Gmail in the little circle on the left. Is this the same thing as BIMI?

They are not the same thing. Those people likely created a Google Account with that address and uploaded a profile picture to their Google profile.

When will BIMI be rolled out beyond Gmail?

Currently, Fastmail and Yahoo also support BIMI. Other providers have expressed interest, but have no ETA on supporting it.

Are there any restrictions on the VMC certificate provider?

Google has only selected two providers, Entrust and Digicert.

Are there alternative options for sole traders or SMBs who might not have the ability or resources to trademark a logo?

You can try the following workaround: create a Google account and upload a profile picture to that account. However, there are limitations with this approach - it only works with Google and it may not be consistent, depending on Google's ever-changing algorithms.

Is BIMI going to be a ratified internet standard or is it going to be only for a few vendors e.g. Google?

There is currently an IETF draft, but not an internet standard yet. We’re looking forward to seeing what happens in the future.

Do I have to be reporting to Red Sift to be able to get BIMI-certified by you?

We’d love for you to check out our DMARC platform as we can help you get to p=reject, but if you’re already at DMARC enforcement, we can also work with you to generate, host your BIMI certificate and walk you through the verification process with our partner, Entrust. We've worked with several brands who are not reporting to us but decided to go through the process with us.

At what stage of the DMARC journey do you need be at to start to implementing BIMI?

You need to be at least in p=quarantine; pct=100. You can also be at any percentage in p=reject

To have a trademarked logo does our company name also need to be trademarked?

No, you just need the logo you will use to be trademarked. You can also use a wordmark if your logo does not have any design changes. Contact our team to see if it qualifies.

Is this only for B2C email deployment. What about B2B?

BIMI works for both B2C and B2B email deployment. It will show your trademarked logo next to any email you send providing the email is sent from a DMARC compliant and BIMI-enabled domain.

Can this be attached to CRM-generated emails that may be sent from a different IP?

Yes! BIMI will show your logo for any email from a BIMI-enabled and DMARC compliant domain.

What would be the approximate time it would take to get BIMI in place if starting with no DMARC and no trademarked logo?

DMARC compliance with our team takes an average of 5-8 weeks, depending on the number of sources we have to configure and the speed at which you can implement the needed records. A trademark registration can take anywhere from 3-12 months, depending on your country.

Will the DMARC implementation hold back the formal verification?

No, the VMC verification happens parallel to and separately from the DMARC implementation. We recommend that customers take care of both processes at the same time - usually, it is the Marketing department that obtains the VMC, and the IT department that handles the DMARC project.

Does the logo have to be a registered trademark?

Yes, the list below are the current supported trademark jurisdictions. You do not need to be registered in all of them, only one is enough.

Here is the current list of countries and regions that are supported. Additional countries and regions will be added in the future, and we will update this list from time to time.

We have run into problems with DMARC when someone forwards on a calendar invite. In this situation would a logo be attached?

No because calendar invite forwarding breaks DMARC; hence it would not be considered a BIMI compliant email.

Is there a limit on how long your Verified Mark Certificate is valid for?

Currently they are valid for one year.

Do I need to send a high volume of email to be eligible for BIMI?

No, any sender, regardless of volume can be eligible for BIMI if they have a trademarked logo and DMARC compliant domain.

What happens with subdomains under BIMI?

If you have BIMI at the root level, your subdomains will be covered as well. You can also apply BIMI only to a subdomain if you do not want to show it on the root domain. If you want to protect different subdomains without protecting the root, you will need a VMC per subdomain.

My trademark logo is slightly different (position or color) than what is trademarked, is that ok?

If the submitted mark is substantially identical to the registered mark but has some minor variations (size/aspect ratio, background color, etc.) the Entrust verification team will request a signed letter from the applicant indicating that the submitted mark is within the scope of the trademark registration.

Are word-marks allowed?

Yes, provided the logo does not have any designs that alter the word. Please contact our team to make sure your wordmark can be used with the desired logo.

We do not have a trademark on our logo, but rather a service mark. Are service marks allowed?

Yes, service marks are allowed

If you have a question we have not answered, we'll do our best to get you an answer. Email us at [email protected]

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