Is IP warming necessary for low volume email senders with a dedicated IP?
Summary
What email marketers say11Marketer opinions
Email marketer from Campaign Monitor shares that warming up your IP is especially important when switching to a dedicated IP address, even if you send a relatively low volume of emails. Sending providers are watching for sudden surges of traffic. Gradual and strategic IP warming is key.
Email marketer from Litmus answers that skipping the IP warm-up process leads to more emails landing in the spam folder, a damaged sender reputation, and possibly being blocked altogether by ISPs. Warmed IPs are more trusted, even with lower volumes.
Email marketer from Gmass explains that IP warming is essential, regardless of volume. A slow and steady approach prevents your emails from being flagged as spam. This builds trust with ISPs and improves deliverability.
Marketer from Email Geeks explains that IP warming may not be necessary for low volume senders or those on a shared IP. For a dedicated IP and a volume of around 100k a month, if unsure about list quality, suggests sending 20K/day to monitor complaint and bounce rates.
Marketer from Email Geeks shares that factors influencing IP warming include the previous reputation of the IP address (checking for blocklist listings), the sending reputation of your own domain, and the reputation of the ESP. Also depends on the receivers you are sending to.
Email marketer from Email on Acid responds that even with low volume, warming the IP helps show mailbox providers that you’re a legitimate sender and not a spammer. Gradually increasing sends helps build trust.
Email marketer from Mailjet explains that IP warming is less critical for low-volume senders, especially those with a good sending reputation. However, they still recommend gradually increasing volume to establish trust with ISPs.
Email marketer from SendGrid answers that while low-volume senders might not need as aggressive an IP warming strategy, it's still recommended to monitor deliverability metrics and adjust sending patterns accordingly, especially when using a new dedicated IP.
Email marketer from an Email Marketing Forum responds that the main advantage of IP warming, even with low volumes, is establishing a consistent sending pattern. This helps ISPs learn your sending habits and recognize you as a legitimate sender, especially important when starting with a dedicated IP.
Email marketer from Reddit explains that if you're sending to a small, highly engaged list with a clean reputation, IP warming might be less critical. However, cautions against skipping it entirely, suggesting a slow ramp-up as a safety measure.
Email marketer from GlockApps shares that even with a low sending volume on a dedicated IP, a warm-up strategy can reduce deliverability issues by establishing sender reputation. They advise that consistent and gradual increases in volume are more important than the total volume itself.
What the experts say3Expert opinions
Expert from Spam Resource explains that even with low volumes, IP warming is crucial for a dedicated IP. This helps establish a positive sending reputation and trust with ISPs, especially since a sudden increase in volume can trigger spam filters.
Expert from Email Geeks answers that at low volumes, IP warming tends to handle itself. However, the specifics of volume per send and cadence are crucial. At a low volume for a dedicated IP, it's a bit risky.
Expert from Word to the Wise (Laura Atkins) shares that IP warming helps establish your sending patterns with ISPs, allowing them to learn and trust your mail stream. It is a key step to build sender reputation, irrespective of volume.
What the documentation says4Technical articles
Documentation from Microsoft shares that new IPs have no sending reputation, so you need to "warm up" the IP by gradually increasing volume to prove your legitimacy. Low volumes don't negate the need, but can make the process quicker.
Documentation from Google Postmaster Tools shares that sender reputation is crucial, even for low-volume senders. Consistent sending habits and engagement metrics contribute to building a positive reputation over time, which is what IP warming aims to achieve.
Documentation from Mailchimp responds that sender authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) is crucial for a new IP to show that you are a legitimate sender and helps to protect your sending reputation. IP warming without proper authentication can be ineffective.
Documentation from SparkPost shares that even with a dedicated IP and low volume, IP warming is a crucial step. Start with a small volume of highly engaged users and gradually increase sends to build a positive reputation.