Getting your emails into the inbox, not the spam folder, is key to successful communication and marketing. Email deliverability depends on factors like your sender reputation, message content, domain settings, and how recipients interact with your emails. This guide offers tips and best practices to improve deliverability.
Email services such as Gmail, Yahoo, and Exchange use various signals to decide whether your email is spam. These include:
Below are a few tips to help you improve your email deliverability.
Use double opt-in lists
The difference between double and single opt-in is that with double opt-in (also called confirmed opt-in), people get a confirmation email after entering and submitting their form with their email address. They do not get subscribed until they click the confirmation link they receive in their email. The following are the advantages of using double-opt-in lists:
Note: You cannot use purchased or rented lists in Vtiger CRM to send emails, as it is against the CAN-SPAM ACT.
Remove subscribers who haven’t opened or clicked in six months
If people do not open or click on your emails, removing them from your list might hurt, but it will help improve the deliverability rates for the people you keep.
Send emails at the right frequency
Too many emails can reduce your subscriber list. Firing fewer emails can kill your revenue. So, what do you do to maximize deliverability? Find the right frequency by testing thoroughly.
To learn more about this, click here.
Authenticate your emails with SPF, DKIM, and DMARC
Email authentication protocols such as Sender Policy Framework (SPF) and DomainKeys Identified Mail (DKIM) help Internet Service Providers ensure that the email is from the company claiming to have sent it.
Authentication helps address the problems of email spoofing and phishing, ultimately leading to a reduction in the percentage of legitimate emails mistaken for spam.
Vtiger CRM supports SPF and DKIM authentication. To learn more about email authentication, click here.
Avoid using the same From and To addresses
Emails are marked as spam if both the sender’s and recipient’s email addresses are the same.
Avoid using free or personal email addresses
Instead of using your free or personal email address, such as your Gmail or Yahoo address, use your company domain-specific email address to send emails.
Personalize your email content
Avoid copying content from other applications
When you paste content directly from other applications, such as Microsoft Word or PowerPoint, unnecessary characters are automatically added. Instead of creating templates outside and copying them, you can build them directly in Vtiger CRM.
Avoid sending graphics or images alone
Include text in your emails
It is a good practice to use text content along with HTML in your emails to prevent them from landing in spam. Besides, it covers you when the recipient cannot view HTML content.
Include a physical address in your email
Physical address means the mailing or postal address of your business. You can put it at the end of your emails; that is the footer.
Including a physical address in your emails demonstrates that your business is legitimate. Thus, it prevents your emails from landing in the spam folder.
To learn more about including a physical address, click here.
Avoid large attachments
In general, attachments with file types such as .jpg, .gif, .png, and .pdf are safe to send. Certain executable attachments, such as .exe, .zip, .swf, etc., must be avoided.
Pay attention to your links in emails
Spam filters check the URLs in the email. Linking to a domain that has a poor reputation leads to penalization.
Additionally, you must avoid linking to URLs that contain folders with 1-2 characters (such as domain.com/e/something/ or domain.com/es/) because some spam filters block such URLs. Also, avoid including links that utilize link shortening services, as this may cause delivery issues.
Don’t hide the unsubscribe link
Include unsubscribe links in your emails to improve deliverability rates. If the unsubscribe link is unavailable or mislocated, there is a chance that emails will be marked as spam.
Remind users to whitelist your domain
When your recipient authorizes your domain, your email will not land in the spam folder.
Analyze your email performance frequently by checking your spam score. To learn about the spam score, click here.