How to Improve Your Email Deliverability

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Email marketers may not face the challenges of ever-changing search algorithms and ranking factors, but that doesn't guarantee that every email sent is actually received. There's a significant chance that your marketing emails, as well as your transactional emails, might not reach the intended recipient.

Before we explore the details of email deliverability, let's clarify what it means. Simply put, it refers to understanding how effectively your marketing or transactional emails reach a recipient's inbox, which is often referred to as inbox deliverability.
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8 effective strategies to improve email deliverability

Here are 8 effective tactics for enhancing your email deliverability, helping ensure that your messages reach recipients' inboxes instead of being filtered as spam. Below is a more detailed explanation of each tactic:

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1.Warm up your recipients

The reputation of your IP address plays a crucial role in email deliverability. If your IP has a bad reputation, there's a higher chance that your emails will land in spam folders. To establish a good reputation, it's essential to "warm up" your email account. This means sending emails in small batches and gradually increasing the volume as recipients start engaging with your messages. This approach helps internet service providers (ISPs) build trust in your IP, which in turn lowers the chances of your emails being flagged. It's also vital to match your email frequency with industry standards and to send messages only when you have something valuable to share, ensuring you don't overwhelm recipients with excessive emails.

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2.Use double opt-in confirmation

A double opt-in process involves having recipients verify their email addresses by clicking a link in a follow-up email after they subscribe. This additional step guarantees that the email addresses on your list are accurate and that the subscribers truly wish to receive your emails. 

It minimizes the risk of adding fake or incorrectly entered addresses, which can lead to a higher bounce rate and harm your sender reputation. Moreover, double opt-in confirmations contribute to creating a more engaged list of recipients who are genuinely interested in your content, enhancing both engagement and deliverability.

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3.Make opting out easy

Making it easy for subscribers to opt out of emails is not only a best practice but also a legal requirement under laws like the CAN-SPAM Act. A straightforward and clear unsubscribe process helps keep your email list current by removing those who are no longer interested, which in turn reduces the chances of them marking your emails as spam. Ideally, a one-click unsubscribe option allows users to opt out without any hassle. Additionally, offering choices regarding the frequency of emails or the option to rejoin later can significantly improve the subscriber experience. 

When your list is made up of genuinely interested recipients, engagement rates tend to rise, leading to better deliverability.

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4.Be consistent with sender names

When subscribers receive emails from sender names that are inconsistent or unfamiliar, they might not recognize who it's from and are more inclined to ignore or delete those messages. Keeping a consistent sender name—whether it’s your company’s brand name or a personal name linked to the company—helps foster trust and recognition. Ideally, the sender should be a real person who is genuinely involved in the email communication, rather than a made-up identity. Adding a personal touch, like “Ana from Parlo,” can make recipients more inclined to open your emails.

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5.Set subscriber expectations

When subscribers initially sign up, it's essential to inform them about the type of content they can anticipate and the frequency of your communications. Establishing clear expectations in a welcome email series helps avoid confusion and fosters trust. Recipients are more inclined to engage with emails when they understand what to expect and how often to expect it. 

After setting these expectations, it's vital to adhere to them—deliver the promised content and stick to the agreed-upon schedule. Consistently meeting these expectations leads to higher engagement and boosts your email deliverability.

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6.Segment your email list

Instead of sending out generic email blasts to your entire list, segmenting your audience enables you to deliver more relevant and personalized content. You can segment based on factors such as past purchases, geographic location, or levels of engagement. Emails tailored to specific needs or interests are more likely to be opened and acted upon, which enhances your open rates and engagement metrics. This, in turn, indicates to ISPs that your emails are valuable, boosting your overall deliverability. Additionally, segmentation helps you avoid sending irrelevant content, which could result in unsubscribes or spam complaints.

7.Clean your email list regularly

Having an email list filled with inactive or unverified addresses can negatively impact your deliverability. If recipients aren't engaging with your emails, they are less likely to receive future messages, and even worse, your emails might get marked as spam. 

Regularly cleaning your list means removing subscribers who haven’t opened your emails in a while and verifying that the email addresses are still valid. Email addresses often change, especially when users switch jobs or companies. By eliminating inactive or invalid addresses, you enhance your sender reputation, ensuring that your emails reach active and interested subscribers.

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8. Avoid spammy titles

If you have a genuine mailing list and engaging content, there's no need to resort to clickbait-like phrases to encourage people to open your emails.

Spam filters often evaluate the topics and content of your messages. Therefore, even with a solid reputation, complete authentication, and an actively engaged audience, sending just one email with a sensational subject line like “you won’t believe your eyes” could result in it not being delivered. Focus on authentic content to avoid harming your email deliverability.

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Summary

Focusing on email deliverability is beneficial because it positively influences engagement rates. When engagement is low, deliverability suffers, but when deliverability is high, engagement often follows suit. Therefore, it's important to monitor your deliverability and apply these best practices to ensure your emails reach your audience's inboxes and create a meaningful impact. At Parlo, we’re dedicated to simplifying email marketing, making it both affordable and impactful, so you can focus on what truly matters — growing your business. Sign up to the free trial & try out this easy-to-use email marketing tool.