Here's a closer look at each of the behaviors and tools that are part of a good remediation plan and help ensure deliverability success. 1. Verification of the email address Few brands use an email address verification service to verify that new addresses they add to their list are properly formatted, don't contain common domain name typos, etc. Having bad email addresses on your list leads to high bounce rates, which can get you flagged as a spammer by inbox providers. So you can consider email address verification as a way to build a clean email list. 2. Authentication Brands should use all three authentication methods available to them — Sender Policy Framework (SPF), DomainKeys Identified Mail (DKIM), and Domain-based Message Authentication,
Reporting & Conformance (DMARC) — because they each do something different. SPF and DKIM help identify the sender and the domains that can send email on behalf of that sender, and DMARC tells inbox providers what to do with emails that fail SPF and DKIM checks. Over 58% of brands use SPF while 58% and 44.4% use DKIM and DMARC respectively. email authentication tables Of the brands that have been blocked in the past year, 76.6% use the SPF Image Masking Service (compared to 62.6% of brands that have not been blocked recently); 76.6% use DKIM (vs. 65.0%); and 61.7% use DMARC (vs. 48.3%). 3. Encryption Encryption in transit doesn't (yet) have a direct effect on deliverability, but unencrypted emails are marked with an unlocked red padlock in Gmail, so it's a trust factor. This is certainly why encryption is popular among recently blocked brands, as well as its alignment with authentication.
Recently blocked brands are 78.4% more likely than other brands to encrypt their emails (29.8% vs. 16.7%). On average, however, only 16.5% of brands use email encryption. encryption table 4. Test the anti-spam filters Tools like Litmus Spam Testing allow marketers to see how spam filters will react to their emails before sending them to their list. This allows them to make adjustments and deal with any warnings or red flags that are raised. On average, 63.1% of brands test spam filters. spam filter test chart More than 65.4% of brands that were recently blocked sometimes, often, or always use spam filter tests, compared to 55.6% of brands that weren't recently blocked. Plus, those who run their emails through pre-send spam filter tests see a 39% higher return on investment (ROI)! 4 envelopes of different colors Go to the inbox, not the junk folder Litmus Spam Testing analyzes your emails against over 25 tests, identifies issues that may be preventing you from reaching the inbox, and provides practical advice on how to fix them. To learn