What are the best email hygiene tools to integrate with signup forms to prevent IP blocklisting?
Summary
What email marketers say12Marketer opinions
Email marketer from ZeroBounce shares that email verification tools integrated into signup forms can identify and remove invalid, abuse, and spam trap email addresses in real-time, improving sender reputation and preventing IP addresses from being added to blocklists.
Email marketer from Hunter.io responds by pointing out that using email verification tools during signup helps filter out disposable email addresses (DEA) and invalid email formats, contributing to a cleaner email list and reducing the likelihood of triggering spam filters and IP blocklisting.
Email marketer from Email Hippo shares that integrating typo detection into signup forms can help users correct common email address mistakes in real-time. This reduces the number of invalid email addresses in your database, improving email deliverability and preventing IP blocklisting caused by high bounce rates.
Email marketer from Reddit explains that implementing double opt-in requires users to confirm their email address before being added to the list. This ensures that the email address is valid and that the user actually wants to receive emails, reducing the risk of spam complaints and IP blocklisting. Confirmed opt-in is key.
Email marketer from Email Marketing Forum responds by explaining that placing honeypots (hidden form fields) on signup forms can detect and filter out bots. Bots often fill out all form fields, including hidden ones, allowing you to identify and prevent them from submitting invalid email addresses that can harm your IP reputation.
Email marketer from NeverBounce explains that using real-time email verification can identify disposable email addresses (DEA) at signup, preventing them from entering your database. DEAs are often used for spamming and can significantly damage your sender reputation, leading to IP blocklisting if left unchecked.
Email marketer from Mailjet explains that implementing email validation at the signup form can prevent invalid or misspelled email addresses from entering your database, improving overall email quality and reducing bounce rates, which in turn prevents IP blocklisting.
Email marketer from Email Geeks suggests AlfredKnows for private validation and threat detection using their BlackBox database.
Email marketer from Email Geeks recommends AlfredKnows for identifying threats on email lists before spending money.
Email marketer from Kickbox explains that implementing syntax verification on signup forms ensures that email addresses conform to the correct format (e.g., name@domain.com). This prevents invalid email addresses from entering your list, which in turn reduces bounce rates and protects your sender reputation.
Email marketer from Email Marketing Forum advises that it is important to monitor soft bounces. They are often ignored, but can give advanced warning of deliverability issues. You can use that information to remove emails from you lists before they become hard bounces.
Email marketer from Email Geeks advises against building your own email validation solution and suggests using reputable email validation services via API such as EmailHippo and Kickbox. He also suggests implementing noCaptcha on the sign-up form and using Confirmed Opt-In.
What the experts say3Expert opinions
Expert from Spam Resource explains that some email validation tools run in real-time as someone is typing their email address, alerting them if they've made an obvious mistake.
Expert from Spam Resource explains that a best practice for signup forms is to include a checkbox at the bottom that isn't already checked. This is to ensure that people read and agree with your data policies. You should make sure it explains your data policy clearly. This can also act as implicit consent to your emails.
Expert from Word to the Wise responds by recommending protection for signup forms by using CAPTCHAs or similar measures. This can help prevent bots from filling out and submitting false data.
What the documentation says5Technical articles
Documentation from RFC Editor explains that implementing proper SMTP requirements including syntax checks on email addresses during signup helps ensure that only valid email formats are accepted, preventing malformed addresses that can lead to bounces and negatively impact IP reputation. This is a foundational element for avoiding IP blocklisting.
Documentation from Microsoft explains that using SPF will ensure that only authorized servers can send emails on behalf of your domain. This prevents spammers from spoofing your email address, which can protect your IP reputation and prevent blocklisting.
Documentation from DMARC responds that configuring a DMARC policy allows senders to indicate that their emails are protected by SPF and DKIM, and tells receivers what to do if neither of those authentication methods passes – such as quarantine or reject the message. This assists in protecting the sender and receiver from fraudulent and phishing emails, and improves deliverability.
Documentation from Google Support shares that using CAPTCHA on signup forms helps prevent bots and automated scripts from creating fake accounts and submitting invalid email addresses, which can lead to increased bounce rates and spam complaints. Implementing CAPTCHA protects your IP reputation.
Documentation from DKIM shares that using DKIM ensures that your emails are digitally signed. Email providers can then confirm the email was sent by your organization, and not an imposter. This ensures trust, leading to improved deliverability and thus protecting your IPs reputation.