Brand Indicators for Message Identification (BIMI)
BIMI, short for Brand Indicators for Message Identification, is an email standard that lets companies display their verified logo alongside messages in supported inboxes. This helps people instantly recognise messages from trusted brands.
BIMI builds on existing email authentication protocols like DMARC, SPF, and DKIM to confirm that a message is actually from who it says it’s from. Email providers like Gmail and Yahoo can show the brand’s official logo next to the message, often in the avatar or sender icon when everything checks out.
BIMI was developed to fight email spoofing and phishing, which are common tactics bad actors use to trick recipients into clicking dangerous links or sharing personal information. By giving users a clear visual signal of authenticity, BIMI helps build trust and reinforce brand consistency, where customer engagement often starts: the inbox.
Setting up BIMI usually involves uploading a secure logo file (typically in SVG format), adding a BIMI record to the DNS, and obtaining a Verified Mark Certificate (VMC). This certificate verifies the logo’s ownership and confirms the sender is a legitimate brand. Marketing, IT, and email security teams typically collaborate to implement and manage BIMI.
Major email providers like Gmail, Yahoo, AOL, and Fastmail support it. To the end user, BIMI shows up as a branded logo in the inbox. Behind the scenes, it’s part of a domain’s email security setup, often managed through martech platforms that assist with deliverability and compliance.