How accurate is SNDS and Google Postmaster Tools reputation data?

Email marketer from Email Geeks shares that Google reputation definitely trails when you are improving, but it can tank mighty fast!

Email marketer from Stack Overflow explains that SNDS is useful, but it doesn't reflect the complete picture of your sending reputation. Other factors beyond what SNDS reports influence deliverability. They suggest using SNDS as one data point and combining it with other reputation metrics to gain a well-rounded overview.

Email marketer from Email Geeks mentions that SNDS may lie, and that SNDS reputation system is not what is in use to govern inbox placement at Microsoft OLC mailboxes.

Email marketer from Reddit shares that SNDS colors should not be taken at face value. User mentions that data is not always real-time, and suggest correlating it with other monitoring tools. Also, the user suggest to actively monitor your blocklist status through tools like MXToolbox.

Email marketer from Litmus explains that SNDS and Postmaster Tools are valuable tools, but they only provide a limited view of your email performance. To get a more accurate picture of your email deliverability, it's important to combine the data from these tools with other metrics, such as your email open rates, click-through rates, and unsubscribe rates.

Email marketer from Mailjet responds that both SNDS and Google Postmaster Tools are valuable for monitoring email deliverability but should be used with a degree of skepticism. They suggest comparing data with your own sending metrics and subscriber feedback to get a comprehensive view of your deliverability performance. Don't rely solely on these tools for decision-making.

Email marketer from Gmass shares that while Google Postmaster Tools is invaluable, it's essential not to take its data as absolute truth. It reflects trends, not individual experiences. He says look for patterns over time rather than fixating on a single day's metrics. Investigate further to confirm if what the tool indicates is affecting actual inbox placement.

Expert from Email Geeks suspects that SNDS is based on a 15-year-old version of their reputation engine and hasn’t been updated in the same way that their actual spam filters have been updated over the years.

Expert from Spam Resource notes that data in Google Postmaster Tools can be delayed. Suggesting that this delay can be problematic when you need to quickly diagnose an issue.

Expert from Email Geeks explains that Gmail reputation is a trailing indicator that can trail by days or weeks.

Expert from Email Geeks shares that SNDS always lies and is a totally separate reputation system, not what is actually in use to govern inbox placement at Microsoft OLC mailboxes.

Expert from Email Geeks explains that Gmail reputation can slowly degrade when you’re kinda sloppy, not paying much attention, not really putting in the effort to follow best practices, and over months you start seeing things get worse in terms of delivery, but your reputation is still high.

Expert from Word to the Wise explains that reputation data should be considered alongside other signals, and may not reflect the experiences of individual recipients. To get an accurate picture of your sender reputation you should combine data from these tools with other metrics from your email program.

Documentation from AWS explains that many ISPs and email providers, such as Gmail, maintain internal reputation systems. These systems track the reputation of IP addresses and domains that send email. These reputation systems often influence the placement of the messages that you send. It is important to maintain a good sending reputation with each ISP, as well as to monitor your reputation and troubleshoot deliverability issues.

Documentation from Google explains that Google Postmaster Tools provides aggregate data on your email sending reputation, spam rates, and other deliverability metrics for Gmail users. They state the data is intended to help senders diagnose deliverability issues. However, Google notes the data reflects aggregate trends and may not capture the experience of every individual user. They advise using the data as a guide to identify potential problems and further investigate specific deliverability concerns.

Documentation from Microsoft explains that SNDS (Smart Network Data Services) provides data about your sending IP addresses as seen by Microsoft's email infrastructure. It is intended to provide insights into spam complaints, trap hits, and other metrics that influence deliverability to Microsoft inboxes. They caution that SNDS data should be used as one input among many, and correlation with other data sources is necessary for accurate analysis.

Documentation from DigitalOcean explains that to avoid email spam filters, you can use tools like Sender Policy Framework (SPF), DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail), and DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting & Conformance) in order to prove your email's legitimacy.

Documentation from SparkPost explains that data from sender reputation tools like SNDS and Google Postmaster Tools offer insights but require careful interpretation. It emphasizes that deliverability is multifaceted, and a single metric shouldn't dictate your entire email strategy. Combine the tool’s findings with your data to make data driven decisions.

Documentation from Validity explains that Reputation monitoring tools such as SNDS and Postmaster Tools are a great resource, however they only paint a partial picture of your sending health and user engagement with your messaging. They suggest combining this with your own internal data and 3rd party reputation to get a clear picture.