Email deliverability is all about getting an email through spam filters and to a recipient’s inbox successfully. Several factors influence email marketing deliverability and understanding those can help you ensure the success of a long-planned campaign.
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Email Delivery vs. Email Deliverability
When it comes to emails, delivery and deliverability are key milestones. While both terms sound similar, they are distinct from one another.
Email delivery refers to whether an email was successfully sent to a recipient’s server.
Email deliverability is about whether the email landed in the intended inbox, rather than being filtered into spam or junk folders.
Achieving high deliverability with email facilitates better audience engagement. It also helps keep leads progressing through the sales funnel.
Why Is Email Deliverability So Important?
Email deliverability is crucial because even the most compelling marketing campaigns are ineffective if your emails never reach an inbox. A good email deliverability rate typically is between 95% and 98%.
High deliverability rates ensure better engagement, protects your sender reputation, and maximizes ROI. Poor deliverability can lead to lost opportunities and damaged relationships with your audience.
How Do I Monitor Marketing Email Deliverability?
You can monitor your email deliverability by tracking key metrics such as:
- Bounce Rates: Monitor hard and soft bounces to identify delivery issues.
- Open Rates: A drop in open rates might signal deliverability problems.
- Spam Complaints: Keep tabs on complaints to address content or list issues.
- Email Testing Tools: Mail-Tester, Sender Score, and similar tools can help you check your emails’ likelihood of landing in inboxes.
What Affects Email Deliverability Rates?
If your email marketing deliverability rates are low, there are a number of steps in the process to review. One of the first things to go over is your email content. Poorly written emails with spam-like language and excessive images can trigger filters to hold your message back.
After reviewing and validating your email content, check your protocols. Proper authentication protocols (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) are critical for inbox placement. Also review what your email practices have been like. What are your complaint rates?
The next thing to turn your attention to is the list you are using. You will want to pull from one list, that has been carefully curated and is properly segmented. Poor segmentation reduces the perceived relevance of the email list by the mail program. This can increase the chances of you receiving spam complaints.
Timing is also important. How often are you sending emails? Is there a regular cadence or are you sending things randomly? Sudden increases or changes can harm your sender reputation and affect deliverability rates.
An email marketing agency can help your team avoid making these common missteps.
Do You Have An Email Deliverability Process?
Process is important. It supports success by clearly laying out what needs to happen and when. With email campaigns, where seemingly small issues can impact deliverability rates, following the right steps is vital for success.
The first step in your process is to authenticate your domain. This is when you would set up SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records to establish credibility with email providers. With a domain in place you can load a clean email list. Group your list based on demographics, behavior, or interests (and make sure to use double opt-ins).
While that is being built your content team can begin creating the actual email. The text should be professional and in the voice of your brand. No matter how great of an announcement you are making or offer you are sharing, avoid spammy language, excessive caps, and exclamation points.
When it comes time to actually build the email, ensure it’s mobile-friendly and has both HTML and plain text versions.
Don’t just build and send. Test your email using respected email testing tools. This will help you spot any adjustments that need to be made before it’s too late.
Hitting “Send” is not the end of the process. Follow what happens to your email and not just from the engagement side. Track bounce rates, open rates, and complaints to identify and resolve issues for future sends.
Ways to Improve Email Deliverability
Despite a team’s best intentions, there are common email marketing mistakes that everyone seems to make. Understanding what can go wrong can help you avoid the pitfalls.
That Email List is Dirty
Avoid buying or renting email lists. They could be clogged with invalid and unengaged subscribers.
Bad Design is a Red Flag
Follow industry best practices for design. That means avoiding the use of all caps, excessive images, or spam trigger words. Email systems will immediately pick up on these elements and quarantine your email.
Opt-In Is Not Optional
When people get unwanted emails they get annoyed. When they get them over and over they get angry. That makes them more likely to generate a bad opinion of your brand and potentially log a complaint. These can harm your sender reputation causing future emails to be flagged.
A double opt-in process can confirm subscriber interest and reduce complaints.
Testing 1, 2, 3, 4
Carpenters say to measure twice and cut once. Successful email deliverability relies on that same concept. Don’t send anything until it has been tested for deliverability, rendering, and spam trigger.
Reputation
In business, reputation is everything. The same goes for email deliverability. Monitor your sender reputation by keeping track of your IP and domain reputation.
Compliance
Stay updated on regulations and relevant laws. For example, have you included clear links and a physical address to comply with anti-spam laws? Not being compliant can lead to severe fines and other consequences.
Email Deliverability Test Tools
There are several tools can help you test and improve email deliverability
- Mail-Tester.com: Analyzes your email’s spam score and highlights potential issues.
- Mailtrap.io: Simulates email sending to test deliverability without affecting your reputation.
- Spamcheck: Identifies spammy elements in your emails.
- MxToolBox: Provides insights into your email server setup and blacklist status.
- Sender Score: Evaluates the reputation of your sending domain.
- Talos: Offers detailed data on your sender reputation.
- BarracudaCentral: Monitors email blacklists and spam-related issues.
Conclusion
Email deliverability is a critical aspect of any successful email marketing strategy. By understanding what affects deliverability, following best practices, and leveraging the right tools, businesses can ensure their emails reach the intended inboxes. This drives better engagement and results.
At the same time, staying proactive and adhering to anti-spam regulations will protect your sender reputation and improve long-term success. If you’re ready to talk about your email goals, reach out to our team.
