The Ultimate Guide to Email Deliverability: How to Check, Identify, and Fix Deliverability Issues

Email marketing is a powerful tool for businesses to engage with their customers and drive sales. However, getting your emails into your subscribers’ inboxes can be a challenge. Email deliverability is the percentage of emails that actually make it to your subscribers’ inboxes. A low deliverability rate can damage your reputation and hurt your email marketing efforts.

In this guide, we will cover everything you need to know about email deliverability, including how to check your email deliverability, identify common issues, and fix them to improve your email marketing campaigns.

How to Check Email Deliverability

Before we dive into how to improve your email deliverability, you need to know how to check it. There are several tools available to check email deliverability, including:

1. Mail-Tester
2. GlockApps
3. SenderScore.org

These tools work by simulating an email send from your server to your email subscribers. They then report on any issues that may prevent your email from reaching your subscribers’ inboxes. These are the three main tools for checking the reputation of a domain that I use in my work. Sometimes, I also use Google postmaster tools.

Some common issues these tools report on include:

1. Email Authentication: This includes SPF, DKIM, and DMARC authentication. These protocols verify that an email is sent from a trusted source and not a spammer.
2. IP Reputation: Your email server’s IP address can impact email deliverability. If your IP address has been used to send spam, it may be blacklisted by ISPs, preventing your emails from reaching subscribers’ inboxes. We’ll talk about IP in more detail next.
3. Content Issues: Emails with certain keywords or phrases, such as “Free Viagra” or “Make Money Fast,” may trigger spam filters and prevent your email from reaching subscribers’ inboxes.
4. Spam Traps: ISPs use spam traps to identify spammers. If your email list includes email addresses that are no longer in use or have never been used, these may be flagged as spam traps.

By using these tools to check your email deliverability, you can identify any issues that may be preventing your emails from reaching subscribers’ inboxes.

Common Email Deliverability Issues and How to Fix Them

Now that you know how to check your email deliverability, let’s take a look at some common issues that can impact email deliverability and how to fix them.

Email Authentication Issues

Email authentication is critical to email deliverability. Without authentication, your emails are more likely to be flagged as spam. The three most important email authentication protocols are SPF, DKIM, and DMARC.

SPF (Sender Policy Framework) is a protocol that verifies that an email was sent from an authorized server. DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail) adds a digital signature to your email that verifies it was not tampered with during transmission. DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting, and Conformance) adds an extra layer of protection to your email authentication by allowing you to set policies for how your emails should be handled if they fail authentication checks.

To fix email authentication issues:

1. Set up SPF, DKIM, and DMARC for your email domain.
2. Monitor your email authentication status regularly.
3. Use a tool like DMARC Analyzer to monitor your email authentication status and receive alerts if there are any issues.

IP Reputation Issues

Your email server’s IP address can impact email deliverability. If your IP address has been used to send spam, it may be blacklisted by ISPs, preventing your emails from reaching subscribers’ inboxes. To fix IP reputation issues:

1. Check your IP address against blacklists using a tool like MX Toolbox.
2. If your IP address is blacklisted, contact the blacklist provider to request removal.
3. Use a dedicated IP address for your email campaigns to prevent other senders from impacting your IP reputation.
4. Monitor your IP reputation regularly using a tool like SenderScore.org.

It’s true that not all email services offer a dedicated IP address option. However, having a dedicated IP address can significantly improve your email deliverability and prevent other senders from impacting your IP reputation. Therefore, it’s recommended to choose an email service that provides a dedicated IP address option.

Here are some examples of email services that offer a dedicated IP address option:

1. Sendinblue – offers dedicated IP addresses for their premium plans.
2. Mailchimp – offers dedicated IP addresses for their Pro plans.
3. Campaign Monitor – offers dedicated IP addresses for their Unlimited plans.
4. Constant Contact – offers dedicated IP addresses for their Email Plus plans.

On the other hand, here are some examples of email services that don’t offer a dedicated IP address option:

If you’re currently using an email service that doesn’t offer a dedicated IP address option, you may consider switching to a service that does offer it to improve your email deliverability. However, keep in mind that having a dedicated IP address doesn’t guarantee good email deliverability. You still need to follow best practices for email authentication, email content, and email list hygiene to ensure your emails reach your subscribers’ inboxes.

Content Issues

Certain keywords or phrases in your email content can trigger spam filters and prevent your email from reaching subscribers’ inboxes. To fix content issues:

1. Use a tool like SpamAssassin to check your email content for spam triggers.
2. Avoid using spam trigger keywords and phrases, such as “Free,” “Urgent,” and “Act now.”
3. Use a clear and concise subject line and avoid using ALL CAPS or excessive punctuation.

Email List Hygiene Issues

Email list hygiene is critical to email deliverability. If your email list includes invalid email addresses or spam traps, it can impact your email deliverability. To fix email list hygiene issues:

1. Remove invalid email addresses from your email list regularly.
2. Use a double opt-in process to ensure that subscribers are providing a valid email address.
3. Use a tool like NeverBounce to verify email addresses and remove invalid email addresses from your list.
4. Monitor your email list for spam traps and remove them from your list.

Conclusion

Email deliverability is critical to the success of your email marketing campaigns. By checking your email deliverability regularly and identifying and fixing common issues, you can improve your email deliverability and ensure that your emails are reaching subscribers’ inboxes. Remember to focus on email authentication, IP reputation, email content, and email list hygiene to improve your email deliverability.