Email deliverability is the measure of an email's ability to successfully arrive in a recipient's inbox. It goes beyond simple delivery rates to consider inbox placement—whether an email lands in the primary inbox, a promotions tab, or the spam folder. This is ultimately determined by factors like sender reputation, authentication, and recipient engagement, which internet service providers use to gauge an email's legitimacy.
A variety of factors influence whether your emails reach the inbox. These elements range from technical configurations that prove your identity to the quality of your contact list and how your audience interacts with your messages. Internet Service Providers (ISPs) analyze these signals to determine if you're a trustworthy sender.
Improving email deliverability requires a proactive approach combining technical diligence with thoughtful audience management. By implementing key strategies, you can significantly boost your sender reputation and ensure your messages consistently reach the inbox. These practices signal to ISPs that you are a legitimate sender.
While often used interchangeably, email deliverability and delivery represent two distinct stages of an email's journey to the recipient.
Navigating the path to the inbox is fraught with potential pitfalls that can derail even the most well-crafted campaigns. Senders often grapple with technical rejections and recipient-driven issues that damage their reputation. These challenges can prevent messages from being seen by their intended audience.
Various tools help you monitor your sender reputation and diagnose issues. Many email service platforms offer built-in analytics to track delivery, bounce, and open rates. Third-party services can also check your domain against blacklists and validate your authentication setup.
Beyond software, numerous online resources provide guidance on deliverability best practices. Educational blogs and in-depth guides offer actionable tips for improving list hygiene and engagement. These materials help you stay current with evolving ISP standards and maintain a strong sender score.
How does sender reputation affect deliverability?
Sender reputation is your domain's credit score for ISPs. A high score, earned through positive engagement and authentication, tells providers you're trustworthy, leading to better inbox placement. A low score often sends your emails directly to spam.
Why do my emails land in the promotions tab?
Major email clients like Gmail automatically categorize incoming mail. If your email's content, links, or sender history suggest a commercial or marketing purpose, it will likely be filtered into the promotions tab to keep the primary inbox clear.
Can I fix my deliverability after being blacklisted?
Yes, recovery is possible. You must first identify and fix the root cause, like poor list hygiene or spam complaints. Then, you can request delisting from the blacklist operator. Rebuilding your sender reputation requires consistent adherence to best practices.
A cold email is an initial outreach sent to a potential customer with whom you've had no prior contact, aiming to introduce your business.
A use case is a detailed description of how a user interacts with a system to achieve a specific goal, outlining the steps from start to finish.
Click-through rate (CTR) is a metric that measures the percentage of people who click on a specific link, ad, or call-to-action.
Audience targeting is the process of segmenting consumers into specific groups to deliver more personalized and relevant marketing messages.
Internal signals are data points from your own systems, like website visits or product usage, that indicate a customer's buying intent.
A RESTful API is a web service interface that uses HTTP requests to access and use data, adhering to the constraints of REST architecture.
Dynamic territories are fluid sales assignments that adjust based on real-time data, ensuring reps can focus on the highest-value accounts.
Learn about brand loyalty, including how to build brand loyalty, benefits of brand loyalty, measuring brand loyalty, & strategies for increasing loyalty.
Retargeting marketing is a digital advertising strategy that targets users who have previously interacted with your website or brand online.
Targeted marketing focuses on specific consumer groups whose needs align with your product, allowing for more personalized and effective messaging.
Data hygiene is the practice of ensuring your customer data is clean, accurate, and up-to-date by removing duplicates and correcting errors.
Video prospecting is the sales technique of sending personalized videos to potential customers to grab their attention and secure more meetings.
A field sales representative, or outside sales rep, travels to meet prospects in person, selling products or services directly within their territory.
Serviceable Available Market (SAM) is the segment of the total market that your business can realistically serve within its geographical reach.
The awareness stage is the first step in the buyer's journey, where a potential customer realizes they have a problem or an opportunity to explore.
“End of Quarter” (EOQ) refers to the final weeks of a business quarter when sales teams rush to meet quotas, often leading to a flurry of deals.
A draw on commission is an advance payment a salesperson receives against future earnings, which is later repaid from earned commissions.
A Call for Proposal (CFP) is a document that solicits proposals, often through a bidding process, for a specific project or service.
Learn about B2B marketing analytics, including key components of B2B marketing analytics, & getting started with B2B marketing analytics.
A value chain is the series of business activities required to create and deliver a product or service, from conception to the final customer.
Ramp-up time is the period a new hire takes to get fully up to speed and become a productive member of your go-to-market team.
Social proof is a psychological phenomenon where people assume the actions of others reflect correct behavior for a given situation.
Average Customer Life is the average time someone remains a customer. It's a key metric for predicting revenue and measuring customer loyalty.
The FAB technique is a sales framework connecting product features to advantages and then to the specific benefits for the customer.
Dynamic segments are self-updating lists that group contacts based on real-time data, ensuring your outreach is always timely and relevant.
Lightning Components is a UI framework for building dynamic web apps for mobile and desktop devices on the Salesforce Lightning Platform.
Channel partners are third-party firms that help market and sell a company's products or services, acting as an indirect sales force.
Multi-channel marketing uses various platforms—like email, social media, and direct mail—to engage with customers wherever they are.
Direct sales involves selling products directly to consumers in a non-retail setting, such as at home, online, or person-to-person.
Text message marketing is a strategy where businesses send promotional messages, offers, and updates to customers via SMS or MMS.
Opportunity management is the process of tracking potential sales from first contact to a closed deal, helping teams prioritize and win more.
Average Order Value (AOV) tracks the average dollar amount spent each time a customer places an order on your website or mobile app.
Account-Based Selling is a B2B strategy where sales and marketing treat high-value accounts as markets of one, using personalized outreach.
Funnel analysis is a method for understanding the steps users take to complete a goal, revealing where they drop off in the conversion process.
A sales forecast is a projection of future sales revenue. It's a crucial tool for businesses to make informed decisions and allocate resources.
Lead Velocity Rate (LVR) is the growth rate of your qualified leads, measured month-over-month. It's a key indicator of future revenue.
Warm outreach is contacting prospects with whom you have a pre-existing connection, like a mutual contact, making your message more personal and effective.
An Applicant Tracking System (ATS) is a software application that manages your entire hiring and recruitment process from a single dashboard.
A complex sale features a long sales cycle, multiple stakeholders, and a high-value transaction, demanding a strategic, consultative approach.
A sales coach is a mentor who trains and guides sales reps to enhance their skills, boost performance, and ultimately close more deals effectively.
An email cadence is a scheduled sequence of emails sent to prospects over a specific period to nurture leads and drive engagement.
Renewal rate is the percentage of customers who renew their subscriptions or contracts at the end of their service period.
Digital contracts are legally binding agreements created, signed, and stored electronically, offering a faster, more secure alternative to paper.
Salesforce Object Query Language (SOQL) is a query language used to search your organization's Salesforce data for specific information.
Prospecting is the process of identifying potential customers, or prospects, to build a sales pipeline and generate new business opportunities.
Account-Based Sales Development (ABSD) is a focused strategy where SDRs target key stakeholders within specific, high-value accounts.
Interactive Voice Response (IVR) is an automated phone system that uses voice and keypad inputs to interact with callers and route their calls.
Escalations are the process of moving a customer issue or sales opportunity to a more senior or specialized team member for resolution.
Lookalike audiences are groups of potential customers who share similar characteristics and behaviors with your existing, high-value customers.
Learn about B2B sales process, including key components of B2B sales processes, & crafting an effective B2B sales strategy.
A persona map visually outlines a target customer, detailing their goals, behaviors, and pain points to help your team build genuine empathy.
Average Selling Price (ASP) is the average price at which a particular product or service is sold across different markets and channels.
Freemium is a business model offering a product's basic features for free, while charging for advanced or supplemental features.
Customer journey mapping is the process of creating a visual story of your customers' interactions with your brand across all touchpoints.
Learn about bulk API, including how it works, the advantages of using it, common use cases, and tips for optimizing it.
The 80/20 rule, or Pareto Principle, posits that 80% of results come from just 20% of the effort. It's a key concept for prioritization.
Buying criteria are the specific requirements and standards a customer uses to evaluate products or services before making a decision.
A drip campaign is a series of automated messages sent to prospects or customers over time to nurture leads and drive engagement.
The buying cycle is the journey a customer takes from first realizing they have a need to making the final purchase decision.
Learn about B2B leads, including identifying quality B2B leads, generating B2B leads effectively, & B2B leads vs. B2C leads: understanding the differences.
Drupal is a free, open-source content management system (CMS) for building websites and applications. It's known for its robust flexibility.
Programmatic advertising uses AI and real-time bidding to automate the buying and selling of digital ad space, targeting specific audiences.
Learn about B2B data platform, including key benefits of B2B data platforms, choosing the right B2B data platform, challenges in implementing B2B data platforms.
A touchpoint is any time a potential or existing customer comes in contact with your brand, from seeing an ad to receiving an email.
A warm email is a message sent to a prospect with whom you have a pre-existing connection, like a mutual contact or a prior interaction.
Social selling is the art of using social media to find, connect with, build relationships with, and nurture sales prospects.
Account-Based Sales (ABS) is a focused B2B strategy where sales and marketing teams treat high-value accounts as individual markets of one.
Inside sales is a remote sales process where reps sell products or services via phone, email, and other digital tools instead of in person.
Learn about B2B data solutions, including unlocking the power of B2B data, & key components of effective B2B data solutions.
Customer Retention Rate (CRR) is the metric that measures the percentage of customers a company has kept over a specific period of time.
Demand forecasting is the process of predicting future customer demand for a product or service based on historical data and market trends.
LinkedIn Sales Navigator is a premium tool helping sales teams find and engage with the right leads and accounts on the LinkedIn network.
Product recommendations are a marketing strategy that uses customer data to suggest relevant products, boosting sales and customer engagement.
Sales engagement is the sum of all interactions between a seller and a prospect, aimed at building a relationship and moving a deal forward.
Cold calling is a sales technique where reps contact potential customers who have had no prior interaction with their company or product.
A follow-up is a communication sent after an initial interaction to continue the conversation, provide more value, or prompt a response.
Shipping solutions are services or software that streamline the logistics of getting products to customers, from label printing to final delivery.
Sales objections are reasons or concerns raised by a potential customer as to why they are hesitant or unwilling to make a purchase.
Sales Operations KPIs are measurable metrics that track the efficiency and effectiveness of a sales team's operational processes.
Objection handling is the process of responding to a prospect's concerns or hesitations about a product or service to move a deal forward.
Learn about buyer intent data, including sourcing and interpreting buyer intent data, & key metrics in buyer intent analysis.
End of Day (EOD) refers to the close of business hours. It's a common deadline for tasks and reports to be completed before the workday ends.
A Data Management Platform (DMP) is a software that collects and organizes audience data from various sources for targeted marketing efforts.
No Cold Calls is a sales strategy that replaces unsolicited calls with warm outreach to prospects who have already demonstrated interest.
A Marketing Qualified Opportunity (MQO) is a lead vetted by marketing as a genuine sales opportunity, ready for direct sales follow-up.
Sales Performance Management (SPM) is a suite of tools and processes that help businesses monitor, analyze, and boost sales team performance.
Upselling is a sales tactic encouraging customers to purchase a higher-end version of a product or related add-ons to boost revenue.
Learn about brag book, including crafting your outstanding brag book, essential components of a brag book, & brag book vs. resume: unveiling the differences.
White labeling is when a company puts its own branding on a product or service that was actually produced by a different company.
A Product Qualified Lead (PQL) is a user who has experienced a product's value, signaling a strong potential to convert to a paid customer.
Feature flags let you remotely control features in your app without new code. This enables safe testing, gradual rollouts, and quick rollbacks.
An on-premise CRM is a system hosted on a company's own servers, offering complete control over data, security, and system maintenance.
A weighted pipeline forecasts sales revenue by assigning a closing probability to each deal based on its stage in the sales funnel.
Persona-based marketing uses fictional customer profiles, or personas, to create targeted messaging for specific audience segments.
A freemium model offers a product's basic features for free, enticing users to upgrade to a paid version for more advanced capabilities.
CRM hygiene involves regularly cleaning and updating your customer data to ensure your CRM system remains a powerful and reliable tool.
Lead generation tactics are the strategies and methods used to attract potential customers and convert them into leads for your sales team.
A Request for Information (RFI) is a formal process for gathering information from potential suppliers before issuing a more detailed proposal.
Account-Based Everything (ABE) is a strategy aligning sales, marketing, and success teams to focus on a specific set of high-value accounts.
Time on site, or session duration, is a key web metric that tracks the total time a visitor spends on your website during a single visit.