How to remediate spam blocks from wp.pl without upgrading to a paid delivery service?

Summary

Remediating spam blocks from wp.pl without upgrading to a paid delivery service involves a multi-faceted approach focusing on sender authentication, reputation management, list hygiene, and content optimization. Implement SPF, DKIM, and DMARC for authentication; monitor sender reputation using Google Postmaster Tools; maintain a clean email list and warm up your IP address. Optimize email content, avoid spam trigger words and URL shorteners. Utilize feedback loops, ensure a valid rDNS record, and consider that wp.pl may have lower thresholds for non-Polish IPs. Correct WordPress SMTP settings, set a proper Return-Path header, and confirm DKIM validation. Identify and address the root cause of spam blocks before requesting delisting, and be aware that getting into premium channels of the ISP could help. Regularly monitor IP and domain reputation using reputation monitoring services.

Key findings

  • Authentication is Key: Proper implementation of SPF, DKIM, and DMARC is crucial for proving sender identity.
  • Reputation Matters: Monitor your sender, IP, and domain reputations to identify and address issues proactively.
  • List Hygiene is Critical: Regularly clean your email lists to remove inactive subscribers and reduce bounce rates.
  • Content Optimization Counts: Optimize email content, avoiding spam trigger words and URL shorteners, to improve engagement.
  • Address Root Causes: Identifying and addressing the underlying causes of spam blocks is essential for long-term remediation.
  • Feedback Loops are Valuable: Utilizing feedback loops (FBLs) to identify and remove subscribers who mark emails as spam can significantly improve sender reputation.

Key considerations

  • Geographic Thresholds: Consider that wp.pl may have lower sending thresholds for non-Polish IP addresses.
  • Implementation Complexity: Implementing authentication protocols like SPF, DKIM, and DMARC requires technical expertise.
  • Proactive Monitoring: Regularly monitor your sending infrastructure and reputation to identify and address issues before they escalate.
  • Root Cause Investigation: Thoroughly investigate sending practices, list hygiene, and content to identify the root cause of spam blocks.
  • Premium Delivery Service: Consider engaging with wp.pl to explore if you are hitting thresholds, but remember it may not solve the spam issues.

What email marketers say
12Marketer opinions

Remediating spam blocks from wp.pl without paying for premium delivery involves addressing the root causes of deliverability issues and optimizing email sending practices. Key strategies include ensuring proper email authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), maintaining a clean email list by removing inactive subscribers, warming up your IP address to establish a positive sender reputation, and using a dedicated IP address for more control. Furthermore, it's important to configure WordPress to send emails via SMTP, set a proper Return-Path header, A/B test email content for higher engagement, avoid spam trigger words, and use a separate subdomain to protect your main domain's reputation. Checking DKIM validation and understanding that wp.pl may have lower thresholds for non-Polish IPs are also important factors. While premium delivery may offer assistance, these steps aim to improve deliverability organically.

Key opinions

  • Email Authentication: Properly configuring SPF, DKIM, and DMARC is essential for proving sender identity and improving deliverability to wp.pl.
  • List Hygiene: Regularly cleaning your email list and removing inactive subscribers reduces bounce rates and spam complaints.
  • IP Reputation: Warming up your IP and potentially using a dedicated IP address helps establish a positive sender reputation.
  • Content Optimization: A/B testing content and avoiding spam trigger words are important for engagement and avoiding spam filters.
  • WordPress Configuration: Using SMTP with a plugin like WP Mail SMTP ensures reliable email sending from WordPress sites.
  • DCC Corpus: wp.pl utilizes the DCC corpus so ensure your email isnt similar to those.

Key considerations

  • Root Cause Analysis: Identify the specific reasons for the spam blocks. This may involve checking content, sending practices, and list hygiene.
  • IP Location: Non-Polish IPs may have lower sending thresholds. Send emails from within Poland if possible.
  • Premium Channels: While not a guaranteed solution, being in wp.pl's premium channels might provide assistance with troubleshooting.
  • Thresholds: Sales referral might mean you reached a sending threshold not a spam indicator.
  • DKIM Validation: Test DKIM to ensure that the email setup is valid.
Marketer view

Marketer from Email Geeks shares that wp.pl was a big provider of data to the DCC corpus, so running emails through that to see if it lights up is recommended. DCC is a fuzzy pattern matching service that uses a distributed network to identify emails similar to known bad emails.

May 2024 - Email Geeks
Marketer view

Email marketer from Litmus shares A/B testing your email content and subject lines can improve engagement. Higher engagement rates signal to email providers that your emails are valuable, reducing the chance of being marked as spam.

May 2024 - Litmus
Marketer view

Email marketer from Neil Patel's Blog shares that cleaning your email list regularly is crucial. Removing inactive subscribers reduces your bounce rate and improves your sender reputation, which can help avoid spam blocks.

December 2024 - Neil Patel's Blog
Marketer view

Email marketer from GMass says to avoid using spam trigger words in your email content. Words like 'free,' 'guarantee,' or excessive use of exclamation points can trigger spam filters.

February 2025 - GMass
Marketer view

Email marketer from Mailchimp shares that using a dedicated IP address can improve deliverability. This gives you more control over your sending reputation, as it's not shared with other senders.

August 2024 - Mailchimp
Marketer view

Email marketer from webmasters.stackexchange.com says to confirm that your DKIM record actually validates. Use a third-party DKIM validator to ensure that your DKIM signature is correctly set up and verifiable.

March 2023 - Webmasters.stackexchange.com
Marketer view

Email marketer from Reddit user u/email_expert answers that ensuring your WordPress site is sending emails correctly using SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) with a plugin like WP Mail SMTP can greatly improve deliverability. This avoids using the default PHP mail function, which is often flagged as spam.

February 2023 - Reddit
Marketer view

Marketer from Email Geeks explains that the solution to spam blocks depends on the cause and to consider that non-Polish IPs have lower thresholds than in country ones. If sales are mentioned, it likely means a threshold has been reached rather than a specific spam indicator.

October 2023 - Email Geeks
Marketer view

Marketer from Email Geeks shares that when troubleshooting PL ISPs, the most common reply is to pay for delivery. This won't solve the spam issues, but being in their premium channels might get your problem looked at.

April 2023 - Email Geeks
Marketer view

Email marketer from Stackoverflow user user123 answers that setting a proper `Return-Path` header in your email can improve deliverability. This header specifies where bounce messages should be sent, and can help email providers verify the sender's identity.

December 2022 - Stackoverflow
Marketer view

Email marketer from DigitalOcean advises that using a separate subdomain for sending marketing emails can help protect your main domain's reputation. If the subdomain's reputation is damaged, it won't affect your core business operations.

September 2021 - DigitalOcean
Marketer view

Email marketer from Sendinblue recommends warming up your IP address. Gradually increasing your sending volume over time helps establish a positive sending reputation with email providers.

September 2022 - Sendinblue

What the experts say
3Expert opinions

Remediating spam blocks, especially without upgrading to a paid service, requires a strategic approach focused on understanding and addressing the root causes of deliverability issues. Identifying the cause of the block is paramount, and you must investigate sending practices, list hygiene, and content to find potential problems. Using feedback loops (FBLs) to proactively identify and remove subscribers who mark your messages as spam is essential. Continuously monitoring your IP and domain reputation also allows for early detection and resolution of issues that could impact deliverability.

Key opinions

  • Identify the cause: Identifying the root cause of spam blocks, by checking sending practices, list hygiene, and content is key.
  • Utilize Feedback Loops: Using feedback loops (FBLs) helps identify and remove subscribers marking messages as spam, improving sender reputation.
  • Monitor Reputation: Continuous monitoring of IP and domain reputation allows for early detection of deliverability issues.

Key considerations

  • Delisting Requests: Address the root cause before requesting delisting, as many blocks are temporary and self-resolve once the issue is fixed.
  • Proactive Management: Employing FBLs and reputation monitoring enables proactive management of deliverability issues before they escalate.
Expert view

Expert from Word to the Wise Team explains that using feedback loops (FBLs) to identify and remove subscribers who mark your messages as spam is essential for maintaining a good sending reputation and reducing spam complaints. This helps to proactively address deliverability issues.

May 2024 - Word to the Wise
Expert view

Expert from Spam Resource explains that identifying the cause of the block is paramount. Check your sending practices, list hygiene, and content. Once identified, address the root cause before requesting delisting. Many blocks are temporary and self-resolve once the offending activity ceases.

July 2022 - Spam Resource
Expert view

Expert from Word to the Wise Team explains that monitoring your IP and domain reputation is important. Using reputation monitoring services can provide insights into how your sending infrastructure is viewed by ISPs and blocklist providers, allowing you to address issues before they significantly impact deliverability.

March 2025 - Word to the Wise

What the documentation says
5Technical articles

To remediate spam blocks from wp.pl without upgrading to a paid service, it's critical to implement strong email authentication measures (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), monitor your sender reputation using tools like Google Postmaster Tools, avoid URL shorteners, ensure a valid reverse DNS (rDNS) record for your sending IP address, and utilize feedback loops (FBLs) where possible. These practices help prove your legitimacy, identify and address issues proactively, and improve your overall sender reputation.

Key findings

  • Email Authentication: SPF, DKIM, and DMARC are essential for proving sender identity and reducing the likelihood of being flagged as spam.
  • Sender Reputation Monitoring: Tools like Google Postmaster Tools provide insights into how email providers view your sending reputation.
  • URL Shorteners: Avoiding URL shorteners helps prevent your emails from being flagged as suspicious.
  • Reverse DNS: A valid rDNS record is critical for verifying the authenticity of your sending IP address.
  • Feedback Loops: Feedback loops (FBLs) provide valuable data on spam complaints, allowing you to remove problematic subscribers.

Key considerations

  • Proactive Monitoring: Regularly monitor your sender reputation to identify and address potential issues before they escalate.
  • Implementation Complexity: Implementing SPF, DKIM, and DMARC can be technically challenging, so ensure proper setup and validation.
  • FBL Availability: Signing up for FBLs depends on the email provider's support for the feature.
Technical article

Documentation from Google explains that monitoring your sender reputation using Google Postmaster Tools can provide insights into why your emails are being blocked. If your reputation is low, it indicates that Google (and potentially other providers like wp.pl) view your emails as spammy.

April 2024 - Google
Technical article

Documentation from RFC explains that ensuring your sending IP address has a valid reverse DNS (rDNS) record is critical. An rDNS record maps an IP address back to a domain name, which helps email providers verify the sender's authenticity.

May 2024 - RFC
Technical article

Documentation from Mailjet explains that you should authenticate your email with SPF, DKIM, and DMARC. These are standard email authentication methods that help prove to email providers like wp.pl that you are who you say you are, reducing the likelihood of being flagged as spam.

September 2022 - Mailjet
Technical article

Documentation from SparkPost suggests signing up for feedback loops (FBLs) with email providers like wp.pl if possible. FBLs provide data on when users mark your emails as spam, allowing you to remove those users from your list and improve your sending practices.

July 2023 - SparkPost
Technical article

Documentation from Microsoft explains that avoiding URL shorteners can help. Spam filters often flag emails containing shortened URLs as suspicious, so using full URLs can improve deliverability.

May 2023 - Microsoft