Table of Contents
- What is Email Deliverability?
- Why Your Emails End Up in Spam
- Tools for Monitoring Email Deliverability
- FAQs
- Conclusion
What is Email Deliverability?
Email deliverability is the ability of an email to successfully land in a recipient’s inbox rather than their spam folder. Good deliverability ensures higher open rates, improved engagement, and a more effective email marketing strategy.
Why Your Emails End Up in Spam
Several factors can cause your emails to be flagged as spam:
- Poor sender reputation – Too many spam complaints, high bounce rates, or appearing on blacklists.
- Unauthenticated emails – Missing SPF, DKIM, or DMARC records.
- Spammy content – Overuse of promotional phrases like “free,” “act now,” or “limited-time offer.”
- Low engagement rates – Emails that are often ignored, deleted, or marked as spam by recipients.
- Bad email hygiene – Sending emails to outdated, inactive, or purchased email lists.
Best Practices to Improve Email Deliverability
Authenticate Your Email
To improve trust and avoid spam filters, implement these authentication protocols:
- SPF (Sender Policy Framework): Defines authorized mail servers.
- DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail): Ensures email integrity and sender authenticity.
- DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting & Conformance): Specifies handling policies for unauthenticated messages.
Example SPF Record:
v=spf1 include:_spf.yourprovider.com ~all
Example DMARC Record:
v=DMARC1; p=reject; rua=mailto:[email protected]
Learn more about SPF, DKIM, and DMARC here.
Maintain Good Sender Reputation
- Send only relevant and valuable content to engaged subscribers.
- Regularly clean your email list to remove inactive users.
- Keep bounce rates under 2% and complaints below 0.1%.
Optimize Email Content
- Avoid clickbait or misleading subject lines.
- Minimize spam-trigger words like “make money,” “free gift,” or “buy now.”
- Use a balanced text-to-image ratio (recommended: ~60% text, ~40% images).
Keep Your Email List Clean
- Remove inactive or unresponsive subscribers.
- Use double opt-in to ensure high-quality contacts.
Monitor Engagement Metrics
- Track open rates, click rates, and spam complaints to adjust your strategy.
- If engagement is dropping, revise content strategy or re-engage dormant users.
Tools for Monitoring Email Deliverability
Use these tools to check your email health:
- GlockApps – Tests inbox placement and spam risks.
- Mailtester – Checks SPF, DKIM, and blacklists.
- MxToolBox – Monitors domain reputation and DNS settings.
- Google Postmaster Tools – Provides Gmail-specific sender insights.
FAQs
How often should I check my email deliverability?
At least once a month, ideally weekly for consistent results.
Is it safe to buy email lists?
No, purchased lists harm sender reputation and deliverability rates.
How soon will deliverability improve after making changes?
Minor improvements may appear within weeks, with major changes taking 1-3 months.
Conclusion
Email deliverability is crucial for a successful email marketing campaign. By authenticating your emails, maintaining a strong sender reputation, optimizing content, and monitoring engagement, you can ensure that your emails consistently reach the inbox and drive results.