How to troubleshoot and resolve Yahoo TSS04 delivery errors for shared IP pools?
Summary
What email marketers say11Marketer opinions
Email marketer from email.geeks.chat advises monitoring which customers increased sends to Yahoo around when the TSS04 errors started. Look for new subscriber uploads or changes in sending behavior. Monitoring software is crucial to drill into the data to find customers that need removing from the network. Once identified, halting the problematic customer's sends should stop the TSS04 errors.
Email marketer from mailsender.org suggests checking for any sudden spikes in sending volume. Also advises that a sender needs to ensure the recipient list is clean, permission-based, and well-segmented. They suggest that improving list hygiene and engagement metrics may reduce TSS04 issues.
Email marketer from Email Geeks shares their experience of resolving TSS04 errors after pushing back to Yahoo for clarity on the cause, despite following best practices. Yahoo indicated the issue was not on their end and advised to contact them immediately if it happens again. Paying close attention to deferrals from Yahoo and engaging with them quickly is crucial.
Email marketer from StackOverflow comments that when on a shared IP pool, implement throttling to control the rate at which emails are sent. Gradual ramp-up of sending volume after detecting issues and monitoring sending speed are also recommended. This prevents overwhelming Yahoo's servers and triggering rate limits.
Email marketer from Email Geeks advises to identify customers who increased sends to Yahoo around the time TSS04 errors started. Look for new subscriber uploads or changes in sending behavior. Monitoring software is crucial to drill into the data. Once identified, halting the problematic customer's sends should stop the TSS04 errors. TSS04s warrant a deep dive into data to uncover customers that should be removed from the network.
Marketer from Email Geeks shares advice to pause sending when facing Yahoo TSS04 errors and clear the queue. Continuing to retry sends when they are being temporarily deferred worsens the problem. The recommendation is to significantly reduce volume and send only to highly engaged subscribers, hoping for a chance from Yahoo. Declining open rates might indicate increased delivery to spam folders, potentially triggering the error.
Email marketer from Email Geeks shares their experience of resolving TSS04 errors after pushing back to Yahoo for clarity on the cause, despite following best practices. Yahoo indicated the issue was not on their end and advised to contact them immediately if it happens again. Paying close attention to deferrals from Yahoo and engaging with them quickly is crucial.
Email marketer from Email Geeks suggests that if some emails are delivered in small batches but not in larger batches, the sending speed might be too high. Slowing down the throttle allows Yahoo's system to assess user engagement and determine whether to allow more emails.
Email marketer from Email Geeks shares advice to pause sending when facing Yahoo TSS04 errors and clear the queue. Continuing to retry sends when they are being temporarily deferred worsens the problem. The recommendation is to significantly reduce volume and send only to highly engaged subscribers, hoping for a chance from Yahoo. Declining open rates might indicate increased delivery to spam folders, potentially triggering the error.
Email marketer from Quora comments that you can check your IP's reputation using online tools such as Talos Intelligence. If there are any reputation issues, then the solution is to make sure that the email list is clean, that there are not too many bounces, that users are not marking emails as spam, and that there is a low unsubscribe rate.
Email marketer from SendGrid Support recommends segmenting email lists based on engagement and only sending to active users. It also advises monitoring feedback loops and unsubscribes to remove disengaged recipients. Improving the quality of email content and optimizing subject lines can also improve deliverability.
What the experts say2Expert opinions
Expert from Word to the Wise, Laura Atkins, explains that TSS04 errors are often vague and require investigation into recent sending practices. She recommends reviewing complaint rates, spam trap hits, and changes in engagement levels across the shared IP pool. Identifying problematic senders or campaigns is crucial.
Expert from Spam Resource explains that maintaining a strong sender reputation is critical for avoiding TSS04 errors. This includes ensuring proper authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), keeping complaint rates low, and actively managing your subscriber list to remove inactive or disengaged recipients. Consistent monitoring of sender reputation metrics is essential.
What the documentation says5Technical articles
Documentation from Microsoft states that to improve email deliverability, you must authenticate your email. Email authentication methods, such as DKIM and SPF, help verify that you own the domain from which the email was sent. It also recommends that you send emails with a consistent sending frequency, as well as ensure that you maintain a low complaint rate.
Documentation from SparkPost states that a sender's reputation is primarily influenced by bounce rates, complaint rates, and spam trap hits. Monitoring these metrics is essential for understanding the health of your sending reputation and identifying potential issues that could trigger delivery errors like TSS04.
Documentation from Yahoo Help Central states that TSS04 errors typically indicate a temporary issue and recommends waiting 24 hours. If the issue persists, they suggest contacting Yahoo's postmaster team with detailed information about the sending practices, IP addresses, and the specific error messages received.
Documentation from Google explains that bounces are caused by issues delivering a message and there are two types: Soft bounces that are temporary issues and hard bounces that are permanent. Hard bounces are the most important as they usually mean the destination email address is invalid. They recommend suppressing them immediately.
Documentation from SMTP2GO Support explains that Yahoo uses TSS04 as a temporary block due to suspected spam-like activity. Recommends checking bounce logs for patterns, verifying sender reputation using tools like Sender Score, and ensuring proper authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) are correctly configured. Gradual ramp-up of sending volume is also suggested.