BIMI

Also known as: Brand Indicators for Message Identification

A standard that shows your business logo next to your emails in the inbox — but only once your email is properly protected against impersonation.

What it is

BIMI (Brand Indicators for Message Identification) lets your logo appear next to your emails in supporting inboxes like Gmail and Apple Mail, instead of a blank circle or a stranger’s initials. You publish a small record pointing to your logo, and participating mail providers display it on messages confirmed to be genuinely from you.

The catch — and it’s the important part — is that BIMI only works once your email is already protected. Providers will only show your logo if you have a strong, enforcing DMARC policy in place first.

Why it matters to your business

Two things. First, presence: a familiar logo beside your name in a crowded inbox makes your emails easier to spot and trust, which can lift opens and reduce the chance a customer mistakes you for a scammer.

Second — and more useful — BIMI is a reward for doing email security properly. Because it requires an enforcing DMARC policy, the work of qualifying for BIMI is the same work that stops criminals impersonating your domain. The logo is the visible payoff for protection you should have anyway.

How to tell / what to do

The foundation comes first: get DMARC to an enforcing policy (our free checker shows whether yours is). Only then is BIMI worth adding — it involves publishing a logo file and a DNS record, and some providers also ask for a verified-logo certificate. It’s an optional finishing touch, valuable mainly because it confirms your email protection is already solid.