Common mistakes that will harm your deliverability

Hi Guys, Matt here - the Chief Revenue Officer of Mailyser!

Today I'm going to walk you through the most common pitfalls when sending out email campaigns, which may lead to having low deliverability.

As you may have seen in our website, I was previously the CEO & Co-Founder of Kickdynamic, an email personalisation platform that we sold to Litmus in 2021. I’ve had over 15 of experience working with brands to generate more revenue from their email marketing campaigns. So below, I've compiled a guide on sidestepping common mistakes that could negatively impact your email deliverability. Here's what you need to know:

1. Ineffective Subscriber Management

Firstly, the way you handle subscriber sign-ups plays a crucial role. Two key mistakes here include:

• Lack of Double Opt-In: While not always a legal requirement, employing a double opt-in strategy is highly recommended. It significantly lowers the chance of bouncing emails later on.
• Unclear Subscription Expectations: Ensure your sign-up form is clear about what subscribers are signing up for. The initial email should reiterate this to avoid any confusion.
  

Failing to manage these aspects well can lead to dissatisfaction and a higher chance of subscribers disengaging or marking emails as spam.

2. Missing Proper Email Authentication

The process of sending emails without properly setting up the correct authentication can have serious negative consequences. This authentication process encompasses a variety of elements, ranging from the correct sending IP and from address, to the more complex aspects such as Sender Policy Framework (SPF) and Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting, and Conformance (DMARC) records. Having the correct authentication established is of paramount importance because it aids in verifying the legitimacy and authenticity of your emails. This, in turn, builds trust with your recipients and increases the chances of your emails being successfully delivered, rather than being flagged as spam or phishing attempts.

3. Utilising Spammy or misleading Subject Lines

It is of utmost importance to avoid subject lines that could potentially appear as spam. This is a critical consideration not only for those who have been engaging in email marketing for a long time but also for those who are just beginning to explore this field. Your subject line should be designed in a way that it accurately represents the content of your email, without leading the reader astray. An effective strategy could be to incorporate your brand name in the subject line. This can significantly contribute to the recognition and recall of your brand, especially during the initial stages after a user has made the decision to subscribe to your mailing list. This way, you can ensure that your emails not only reach your intended audience but also make a positive impact.

4. Inconsistent or low Email Frequency

Maintaining a regular and fairly frequent sending schedule improves deliverability. Erratic emailing can signal spam to ISPs, adversely affecting your deliverability. This is a fairly overlook mistake that people make, especially sending less frequently. If you have something to that is useful and your subscribers want it - it is is ok to send frequently. Once a week or more.

5. Emailing Outdated Lists

Sending to an old list increases the risk of having a high bounce rate, which can damage your sender reputation. This is due to the likelihood that some email addresses on that list no longer exist. Every campaign you send will inevitably have some hard bounces, but when you send to old lists, the number of hard bounces in that send is very high, so hard bounce rate can increase to a dangerous level. Anything over 20% is a cause for concern.

If a list hasn't been engaged with in over six months, think twice before emailing them.

6. Neglecting Deliverability and Reputation Monitoring

Finally, continuously monitoring your sender reputation and deliverability rates is essential. Utilizing tools to ensure your setup is correct and your content isn't inadvertently increasing spam risk is vital for maintaining good standing with ISPs.

By avoiding these common mistakes, you can significantly improve the effectiveness of your email marketing efforts and ensure your messages reach their intended inboxes.

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Book a time with Me, Alex or Pepe using our calendly link here if you want to learn more about deliverability, Mailyser, new SPAM regulations, partnerships or have a chat in general!