SMTP Setup and Configuration
Benecaster sends all emails — welcome emails, token resets, episode notifications, broadcasts — through WordPress’s wp_mail() function. This is the same mechanism WordPress uses for its own admin notifications and password resets. Benecaster does not manage its own SMTP connection; it relies entirely on whatever mail setup your WordPress site has.
Why Configure SMTP
By default, WordPress sends email via PHP’s built-in mail() function, which calls your server’s local mail agent. On shared hosting, this often results in emails being blocked outright, silently dropped, or delivered to spam — the server’s IP address is typically not on any reputable sender reputation list.
Configuring an SMTP plugin routes email through a real mail relay (Gmail, SendGrid, Mailgun, Postmark, or similar) that you control, with authenticated credentials. Inbox delivery rates are dramatically better.
Recommended SMTP plugins:
- WP Mail SMTP — most widely supported; free tier covers most use cases; Pro adds detailed delivery logs
- Fluent SMTP — fully free, supports all major providers
- Easy WP SMTP — lightweight alternative
All three work with Benecaster without any additional configuration. Once installed and configured, Benecaster emails route through your SMTP provider automatically.
Per-Show from Name and from Address
Each show has its own configurable From name and From address:
- From name defaults to the show title (e.g., “Crypto Curious Podcast”)
- From address defaults to your WordPress
admin_email - Both are set at Shows → [Show] → Settings → Emails
These are email headers stamped on each message when it is queued — they do not require separate SMTP connections. All shows share the same SMTP configuration. Your subscriber sees “Crypto Curious Podcast <hello@cryptopodcast.com>” in their inbox; your SMTP credentials are never exposed or changed per show.
Multiple Shows on Different Domains
If your shows send From addresses on different domains — for example, one show sends from hello@cryptopodcast.com and another from hello@techreport.fm — each domain needs to be set up with your SMTP provider and have SPF and DKIM records configured.
If both shows send From addresses within the same domain (the most common setup), no additional configuration is needed. The SMTP connection authenticates once, and the per-show From headers are accepted without restriction.
Sending Rate
The Emails Per Hour setting at Settings → Email → Sending rate controls how many bulk emails Benecaster dispatches per hour. This applies to all shows collectively — broadcasts, episode notifications, and migration sequences all draw from the same budget.
Set this to a value your SMTP provider allows. Most providers publish their per-hour sending limits in their account documentation. Conservative values (under 500) are recommended for shared hosting or starter-tier accounts with providers like Mailgun or SendGrid.
Transactional emails bypass this limit entirely. Welcome emails, token reset emails, and tier-change notifications are sent immediately, regardless of the sending rate setting and regardless of how deep the broadcast queue is. A subscriber who signs up while a broadcast is in progress receives their welcome email right away.
Testing Your Setup
After configuring your SMTP plugin, use its built-in test send to confirm delivery. Most SMTP plugins have a “Send a test email” button in their settings — send one to yourself and confirm it arrives in your inbox, not spam.
To test a Benecaster-specific email, trigger a token reset for one of your own test subscriber accounts — this sends a real transactional email through the configured SMTP connection.
