Can I monitor email reputation for B2B G-Suite domains using Google Postmaster Tools?
Summary
What email marketers say9Marketer opinions
Email marketer from Postmark Blog suggests focusing on sending highly relevant, valuable content and maintaining a clean email list to improve deliverability and sender reputation. They stress that positive engagement is key for B2B G Suite recipients.
Email marketer from EmailonAcid Blog states that while Google Postmaster Tools can provide insights into deliverability to Gmail addresses (including some G Suite accounts), dedicated reputation monitoring tools or services might be needed for a comprehensive view of reputation across various B2B domains.
Email marketer from Reddit explains that for B2B, you're often better off looking at dedicated sender reputation platforms because Google's tools are heavily skewed towards Gmail addresses. They mention Return Path (Validity) as an example.
Email marketer from Email Marketing Forum emphasizes the importance of permission-based email marketing, and actively managing the list to ensure recipients still want your emails. They suggest that Google Postmaster Tools will only provide a limited view of B2B reputation, as it focuses on Gmail and GSuite, but that list management is most important.
Email marketer from Validity states they offer services that provide in-depth sender reputation monitoring across a wide range of email providers, including G Suite. These services offer metrics and reporting to manage and improve sender reputation.
Email marketer from Mailjet Blog suggests using a combination of methods including monitoring bounce rates, feedback loops (if available), and sender authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) to manage and understand email reputation when sending to B2B G Suite domains. They do not directly address Postmaster Tools' capabilities for G Suite, implying other methods are necessary.
Email marketer from Litmus Blog suggests monitoring blocklists and maintaining a clean email list as crucial for maintaining a good sender reputation with B2B clients using G Suite and other services. They highlight the importance of proactive reputation management.
Email marketer from GlockApps Blog recommends using third-party tools like GlockApps to monitor deliverability and sender reputation for various email providers, including G Suite. They emphasize that these tools offer insights beyond what Google Postmaster Tools provides.
Email marketer from Email Geeks shares that none of the major B2B providers shares any data regarding reputation, FBLs, etc. So you can only measure Open/click rates and check bounce responses you received.
What the experts say4Expert opinions
Expert from Spam Resource explains that while Google Postmaster Tools provides some insights, it's limited to Gmail/G Suite users. For comprehensive B2B reputation monitoring, you need to look at third-party services that cover a wider range of domains and ISPs.
Expert from Email Geeks shares that Cloudmark has partnered with eDataSource (sparkpost) and you can see cloudmark reputation data in their interface. And Validity has also partnered with someone (possibly cloudmark) to provide some info.
Expert from Email Geeks explains that Google Postmaster Tools data is only for mail coming into @gmail.com addresses and does not cover G Suite domains. Google does not own the reputation data for their paying customers and therefore it was not theirs to share. However, the reputation page reflects both the GSuite and the gmail reputation. Every other piece of data is based solely on @gmail.com (so FBL, authentication, etc)
Expert from Word to the Wise answers that while Google Postmaster Tools (GPT) is an essential tool, relying solely on it for B2B reputation assessment has limitations, especially for G Suite domains. Exploring supplementary resources, such as commercial seed list monitoring tools, is advantageous for gaining comprehensive insights.
What the documentation says5Technical articles
Documentation from DMARC.org explains that implementing DMARC policies is crucial for establishing sender legitimacy and improving deliverability rates, especially for B2B communications. It provides instructions for setting up and monitoring DMARC reports, which can give insight into potential authentication issues.
Documentation from SparkPost explains that using a third-party service such as theirs enables you to gain insights and manage your sender reputation across a broader range of domains than just Gmail or G Suite. They highlight metrics like engagement, spam complaints, and block lists as important for B2B reputation monitoring.
Documentation from Microsoft details the Sender Reputation Data (SNDS) program, which is similar to Google Postmaster Tools but focuses on Microsoft email services (Outlook, Hotmail, etc.). This helps monitor reputation when sending to Microsoft-based B2B domains but is not applicable to G Suite.
Documentation from RFC-Editor explains implementing SPF records correctly is crucial for establishing sender legitimacy and improving deliverability rates, especially for B2B communications. It provides instructions for setting up SPF records, which can give insight into potential authentication issues and reduce spam.
Documentation from Google Workspace Admin Help explains that Google Postmaster Tools provides data regarding your sending reputation to Gmail users. This data is applicable for both standard Gmail accounts (@gmail.com) and Google Workspace accounts. However, some reports such as the spam rate and feedback loop are specific to @gmail.com users only.