LinkPro – Link Building & Outreach Module

This guide explains how to connect your email account to Uprankly using SMTP + IMAP so you can send campaign emails and automatically detect replies.

SMTP is used for sending emails. IMAP is used for receiving — it allows Uprankly to check your inbox for replies and automatically stop follow-ups when someone responds.

Both are required for full campaign functionality.

Before You Start

Make sure you have the following ready:

A business email address on your own domain (e.g., outreach@yourdomain.com)
Your email provider's SMTP and IMAP server details (host, port)
An App Password if your provider requires one (most do when 2FA is enabled)
SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records configured on your sending domain

Important: Do not use transactional email relays like Brevo, SendGrid, Mailgun, or Amazon SES. These services rewrite email headers and do not provide IMAP access, which means threading and reply detection will not work.

Recommended Email Providers

The following providers are fully compatible with Uprankly:

Zoho Mail — SMTP: smtp.zoho.com (port 465 or 587) / IMAP: imap.zoho.com (port 993)
Hostinger Business Email — SMTP: smtp.hostinger.com (port 587) / IMAP: imap.hostinger.com (port 993)
Fastmail — SMTP: smtp.fastmail.com (port 465 or 587) / IMAP: imap.fastmail.com (port 993)
Namecheap Private Email — SMTP: mail.privateemail.com (port 465 or 587) / IMAP: mail.privateemail.com (port 993)
IONOS / 1&1 Mail — SMTP: smtp.ionos.com (port 587) / IMAP: imap.ionos.com (port 993)
Custom or self-hosted mail servers (Postfix, Exim, etc.) — Fully reliable

Note: If you are using Google Workspace, connect your account using the Google OAuth option instead of SMTP. Uprankly blocks Google Workspace accounts from being added via SMTP to ensure the best experience.

Step-by-Step: Connect Your SMTP + IMAP Account

Follow these steps to connect your email account in Uprankly.

Step 1: Navigate to Email Accounts

Sign in to your Uprankly account. From the left-side menu, go to Link Building Pro and then select Configuration > Email Accounts.

Click the Connect Email Account button, then choose the SMTP / IMAP option.

Step 2: Generate an App Password (if required)

Most email providers require an App Password when you have two-factor authentication (2FA) enabled. This is a special password used only for third-party apps like Uprankly.

To generate an App Password:

Log in to your email provider's security settings
Look for App Passwords or Application-specific passwords
Create a new App Password and copy it
Save it somewhere safe — you will need it in the next steps

If your provider does not require an App Password, you can use your regular login password.

Click Yes! App has been created to continue.

Step 3: Enter Your Email Address

Enter the email address you want to use for sending campaign emails. This should be a business email on your own domain (e.g., outreach@yourdomain.com).

Click Next to continue.

Step 4: Configure SMTP Settings (Outgoing Mail)

Enter your SMTP server details. These are used for sending emails from your account.

SMTP Username — Usually your full email address
SMTP Password — Your App Password or account password
SMTP Server — Your provider's SMTP host (e.g., smtp.zoho.com)
SMTP Port — Usually 587 (TLS) or 465 (SSL)

Step 5: Configure IMAP Settings (Incoming Mail)

Enter your IMAP server details. These are used by Uprankly to check your inbox for replies.

IMAP Username — Usually the same as your SMTP username
IMAP Password — Usually the same as your SMTP password (auto-filled for convenience)
IMAP Server — Your provider's IMAP host (e.g., imap.zoho.com)
IMAP Port — Usually 993 (SSL)

Note: IMAP is required for reply detection. Without IMAP, Uprankly cannot detect when a prospect replies, and follow-up emails will continue to be sent even after a reply.

Step 6: Connect the Account

After filling in both SMTP and IMAP details, click Connect Account.

Uprankly will verify both connections. If either test fails, double-check your server details, port numbers, and password.

Once verified, your email account will appear in the Email Accounts list and is ready to use in campaigns.

Setting Up a Tracking Domain (for Open Tracking)

To track when recipients open your emails, you need to set up a tracking domain. This is a custom subdomain on your sending domain that serves the tracking pixel.

Step 1: Go to Configuration > Tracking Domains

Step 2: Add a new tracking domain (e.g., track.yourdomain.com)

Step 3: Add a CNAME record in your DNS settings pointing to the tracking target shown in Uprankly

Step 4: Wait for SSL verification to complete

Step 5: Assign the tracking domain to your email account

Without a tracking domain, open tracking will be disabled and you will not see open counts in your campaign reports.

How Reply Detection Works

When you connect an SMTP + IMAP account, Uprankly automatically monitors your inbox for replies.

Here is how it works:

Every few minutes, Uprankly checks your IMAP inbox for new messages
For each new message, it reads the email headers to determine if it is a reply to one of your campaign emails
If a match is found, the reply is recorded and all pending follow-ups for that prospect are automatically canceled
The campaign's reply count is updated in real time

This process runs automatically in the background. You do not need to take any action after connecting your account.

Troubleshooting

Connection test fails:

Verify that your SMTP and IMAP server addresses are correct
Check that you are using the correct port (587 or 465 for SMTP, 993 for IMAP)
Make sure you are using an App Password if your provider requires one
Confirm that your provider allows third-party app access

Emails are sent but opens are not tracked:

Check that a tracking domain is assigned to your email account
Verify that the tracking domain status shows as verified in Uprankly
Check your DNS settings to make sure the CNAME record is correct

Replies are not detected:

Confirm that your IMAP credentials are correct and the account is active
Check that the email was sent through Uprankly (replies to manually sent emails are not tracked)
Allow a few minutes for the system to pick up new replies

Follow-ups keep sending after a reply:

This usually means the reply was not matched to the original email. Check that your email provider does not rewrite the Message-ID header
Providers like Brevo, SendGrid, and Mailgun rewrite headers and are not compatible