It\u2019s a common misconception to assume that because you have an optin list (or even double optin list) that all of your subscribers want everything you\u2019re sending them, or that that they have given you PERMISSION for all of the emails that you\u2019re sending them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
First off, the ISPs have no way of knowing whether or not your list is purchased, single opt-in, double opt-in or if you\u2019ve used some other list collection method.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They have certain data points they can look at including things like:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- Engagement rates<\/li>
- Complaint rates<\/li>
- Spam Traps<\/li>
- List Quality<\/li>
- Etc.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
Naturally, a double optin list, is going to have fewer complaints, fewer bad addresses, etc. And it would, theoretically, have higher engagement rates (assuming that you are conducting frequent re-engagement campaigns).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But, if you\u2019re abusing the relationship by sending email they didn\u2019t ask for (i.e. they signed up for your weekly newsletter and you send them 3 offers a day for products and services), then they will unsubscribe or, worse, click the spam button in their email client, letting the ISPs know that you\u2019re sending unwanted mail! (EVEN IF they opted in).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The lesson here is that just because they opted in ONCE, doesn\u2019t mean that your messages are bound for the inbox. You\u2019ll want to keep a close eye on unsubscribes, complaints, and engagement and run re-engagement campaigns frequently to keep people interested in what you have to say.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Myth #2: My email is not spam. I tested my content with Spam Assassin (in my email software) and it came back as zero.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Most email clients that you use to send your emails from will have some tool that will allow you to \u201ccheck for spam\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
These tools look for specific words or phrases, like \u201cfree\u201d for example. Generally a single word or phrase, assuming you\u2019re not marketing Viagra products ;-), is not going to make or break your individual email.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You might be asking, \u201cWhy even use these if they don\u2019t really give you an indicator as to whether or not the ISPs will determine if my message is spam?\u201d The simple answer is because it\u2019s the first line of defense, and it\u2019s a tool you have access to. Additionally, many individual servers use tools like SpamAssassin to block incoming \u201cspam\u201d from their servers. In other words, if you have a subscriber with an address of subscriber@xyz.com, there\u2019s a good chance their server is protected with SpamAssassin, so if your message has a high SpamAssassin score, then your emails won\u2019t get through to that subscriber, or others using SpamAssassin or similar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
These tools should be used as a warning as a first line of defense, with the goal being to get the message as close to \u201czero\u201d as possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Having said that, just because you have a \u201c0\u201d likelihood of being flagged as spam by SpamAssassin doesn\u2019t mean that the ISPs will not flag your emails as spam. The ISP filters are much more sophisticated and catch a whole lot more than individual keywords, so just because the keyword tester in your email software has a low spam score, doesn\u2019t guarantee delivery to the inbox.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
ISPs look at overall message content, similar content that\u2019s been sent to their subscribers and how their subscribers interact (or don\u2019t interact) with the messages, domains in the email, etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The best way to test is to set up test email accounts with the major ISPs and test yourself and modify the overall content until the message inboxes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Myth #3: I have a high Sender Score. My emails should be hitting the inbox.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSender Score\u201d is a single reporting tool that you can use to determine how good or bad your email program is (or if you\u2019re using a shared IP address, the overall quality of the other senders you\u2019re sharing your reputation with).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/heathertankersley.com\/emaildelivered\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/Email-Deliverability-Myths-Copy.png\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nWhile it serves as a good \u201cguide\u201d to the overall health of your email program, it is simply a snapshot of your program at the moment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Think of this like a credit score. It fluctuates all the time. We\u2019ve even seen Sender Scores go up and down significantly in a matter of just a few hours depending on activity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some ISPs will use this information to make delivery decisions. Others will report data to them. And still other don\u2019t have anything to do with the score you find here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The ISPs will generally have their own metrics that they\u2019re looking at. For example, you may have a high complaint rate with one ISP, but still have a high score. So, you need to be constantly watching your program and making changes as necessary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Myth #4: XYZ ESP says they have relationships with the ISPs.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
This is a relatively short one!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There\u2019s not \u201cbat phone\u201d into the ISPs! Each ISP has their own method of contact, and a process for escalating problems. Some have an email address that you send information to while others have long forms that you must fill out all sorts of information in order for them to look into your email program and consider making any changes such as removing rate limiting, removing you from blacklists, and so on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some ESPs are easier to work with others and it is just a matter of staying on top of things.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Myth #5: I have 99% deliverability. That means my emails are hitting the inbox<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
This one is a bit of a gray area! The \u201ctechnical\u201d definition of \u201cemail deliverability rate” is the percentage of emails that were delivered. In other words, if you sent 100,000 emails and 98,000 were not REJECTED, you have a 98% deliverability rate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But that\u2019s not really the metric that matters to the marketer, advertiser, or publisher.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In theory, you could have 100% deliverability WITH 100% of your emails going to the spam folder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The metric that you\u2019re really wanting is inbox deliverability. The problem with this is that there\u2019s no REAL way to provide this information. Sure, you can use seed lists to get a general idea as to whether or not there\u2019s an underlying problem, but you\u2019re really only seeing how many emails make it to the inboxes of the seed addresses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This doesn\u2019t take into account engagement with your own subscriber, or lack thereof. It doesn\u2019t take into account list composition. You may have 75% of your subscribers using Gmail, but the seed list may have only 18% of their subscribers with Gmail. So, take these seed lists with a grain of salt and pay careful attention to your open rates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This is the one metric that you can really use to determine whether or not your subscribers are getting your emails. It\u2019s also a good way to see if there is an issue with a particular ISP. In other words, if you see a drop in opens from Hotmail, then you may have a problem with Hotmail that you need to diagnose and address.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This is why it is so important for you to be monitoring your message content, keeping an eye on your reputation (i.e. complaints, bad addresses, etc.), and why it\u2019s critical to manage your subscribers effectively by removing unengaged users, offering manage subscription options, and so on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Set up internal seed lists for monitoring your own messages and pay close attention to open rates by ISP.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Myth #6: I don\u2019t have control over my own email deliverability<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
The truth of the matter is\u2026 you have much more control over your deliverability than you might think.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Your content plays a HUGE role in deliverability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Gone are the days where a high IP reputation meant you were destined to the inbox.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
While IP reputation still plays a significant role, there are other factors which are equally, if not more, important. These include overall message content, sending domains, domains in the emails, destination URLs, from addresses\/domains, and more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Assuming that there\u2019s not a specific problem with the IP address or the sending (return path) domain, it generally points to a problem with content.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Myth #7: Gmail is killing my email marketing and deliverability.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Every year, there\u2019s something (often Gmail-related) that causes email marketers, publishers, and advertisers to panic for a short while. Then, they realize there\u2019s nothing we can do about it and learn to adapt!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
All of the ISPs go through changes fairly regularly. They change displays (i.e. Gmail Tabs).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They add features to make it easier to clean up unwanted mail (Microsoft Clean Sweep).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At the end of the day, ISPs are always changing to (1) combat spammers that figure out how to get through the filters, and (2) make THEIR user experience better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The ISPs sole goal is to their subscribers and to make sure they\u2019re getting the email they want, and NOT getting the email they don\u2019t want.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Inevitably this is not a perfect science and things are always evolving.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When ISPs make changes, simply:<\/p>\n\n\n\n