What are the best email verification services and strategies for deliverability, especially for higher education CRMs?

Summary

Improving email deliverability, especially for higher education CRMs, requires a comprehensive approach encompassing permission, authentication, list hygiene, content relevance, and technical best practices. Obtaining explicit consent and avoiding unwanted emails is paramount. Email verification services help identify invalid addresses, but are not a standalone solution. Implementing SPF, DKIM, and DMARC authenticates emails and prevents spoofing. Maintaining clean email lists through segmentation and engagement monitoring, combined with personalized, targeted content, enhances relevance and engagement. IP warming gradually builds a positive sender reputation. Tailored strategies are crucial for higher education due to strict email rules and diverse audiences (students, faculty, alumni). A multi-layered approach to email hygiene and design testing across devices are essential.

Key findings

  • Permission: Obtaining explicit permission is crucial, especially for educational mailing lists.
  • Email Verification: Reputable email verification services help remove invalid and risky addresses.
  • Authentication: SPF, DKIM, and DMARC are essential for authenticating emails and preventing spoofing.
  • List Hygiene: Maintaining clean and segmented email lists is vital for a healthy sender reputation.
  • Personalization: Targeted and personalized content improves engagement.
  • Higher Education Strategies: Tailored strategies are necessary for reaching diverse audiences in higher education.
  • IP Warming: Gradual IP warming builds sender reputation.
  • Multi-Layered Hygiene: Email verification alone isn't enough; use multi-layered approach.

Key considerations

  • Compliance: Ensure compliance with privacy regulations and obtain explicit consent.
  • Real-Time Verification: Consider integrating real-time email verification into your CRM.
  • Feedback Loops: Implement feedback loops to monitor and address deliverability issues.
  • Targeted Content: Develop highly targeted and personalized content for different audience segments.
  • Authentication Configuration: Correctly configure SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records.
  • Continuous Monitoring: Continuously monitor sender reputation and engagement metrics.
  • Design Testing: Always test your email across multiple devices.
  • ISP Rules: Follow specific guidelines from ISPs to avoid domain blocks.

What email marketers say
10Marketer opinions

Improving email deliverability, particularly for higher education CRMs, involves a multifaceted approach. Key strategies include using reputable email verification services to remove invalid addresses, maintaining clean email lists through segmentation and engagement monitoring, and personalizing content to enhance relevance. Building and maintaining a positive sender reputation by monitoring sender scores and adhering to best practices for sending bulk emails is crucial. Specifically for higher education, tailored strategies such as understanding audience preferences (students, faculty, alumni), proper email design testing across devices, and compliance with privacy regulations are essential for effective outreach.

Key opinions

  • Email Verification: Using email verification services is critical for removing invalid, risky, and low-quality addresses.
  • List Maintenance: Maintaining clean email lists through segmentation and engagement monitoring improves deliverability.
  • Personalization: Personalizing email content enhances relevance and engagement.
  • Sender Reputation: Monitoring and maintaining a positive sender reputation is vital.
  • Targeted Content: Focusing on highly targeted content improves engagement.
  • Educational Institutions: Tailored strategies are needed for reaching students, faculty, and alumni.
  • IP Warming: Gradually increasing email volume builds a positive IP reputation.
  • Design Testing: Testing email designs ensures consistency and avoids rendering issues.

Key considerations

  • Real-time Verification: Consider integrating real-time email verification into your CRM.
  • Feedback Loops: Implement feedback loops to address deliverability issues promptly.
  • Privacy Compliance: Ensure compliance with privacy regulations when sending emails.
  • Domain Alignment: Check to make sure that your domain is aligned with email sending policies.
Marketer view

Email marketer from Mailjet Blog advises that audience segmentation is key to sending relevant and engaging emails that improve deliverability. Segmenting lists based on demographics, behavior, and engagement levels allows for personalized messaging, increasing open rates and reducing unsubscribes. This also helps avoid sending irrelevant content, lowering the chances of recipients marking emails as spam, especially in sensitive sectors like higher education.

August 2023 - Mailjet Blog
Marketer view

Email marketer from SendGrid Blog suggests a strategic approach to gradually increasing the volume of emails sent from a new IP address to build a positive reputation with ISPs. Warm-up involves monitoring email performance closely, adjusting sending volumes based on feedback and engagement, and targeting highly engaged recipients first to establish a positive track record. This reduces the risk of being flagged as spam, enhancing overall deliverability.

February 2024 - SendGrid Blog
Marketer view

Email marketer from Litmus Blog stresses the necessity of testing email designs across various devices and clients to ensure consistency and avoid rendering issues that can hurt engagement. Using Litmus for preview testing helps identify layout, font, and image problems before sending, improving the overall user experience and the sender's reputation. Proper rendering across platforms reduces the likelihood of messages being marked as spam.

March 2022 - Litmus Blog
Marketer view

Email marketer from Validity Blog discusses that monitoring and maintaining a positive sender reputation is vital for email deliverability. They advise using tools like Return Path to track your sender score, identify potential issues, and take corrective actions to improve your reputation with ISPs.

October 2023 - Validity Blog
Marketer view

Email marketer from ZeroBounce Blog explains that maintaining a clean email list, segmenting your audience, personalizing email content, and monitoring your sender reputation are crucial strategies for improving email deliverability. They also recommend implementing feedback loops and engaging with inactive subscribers.

June 2024 - ZeroBounce Blog
Marketer view

Email marketer from Reddit shares that focusing on highly targeted content and personalized messaging can significantly improve engagement and reduce the likelihood of being marked as spam, especially when reaching out to recipients within the higher education sector.

April 2023 - Reddit
Marketer view

Email marketer from Email Hippo Blog recommends tailored strategies to reach students, faculty, and alumni effectively. He suggests that understanding specific audience preferences, segmenting email lists based on interests and engagement levels, and using personalized messaging relevant to each group are key for improving engagement. He also recommends that institutions must respect privacy and comply with regulations.

March 2022 - Email Hippo Blog
Marketer view

Email marketer from Hunter.io Blog shares that using tools like Hunter.io to find and verify email addresses associated with specific domains (like educational institutions) can help ensure you are contacting valid and relevant recipients. They emphasize the importance of verifying the addresses before sending bulk emails.

September 2023 - Hunter.io Blog
Marketer view

Email marketer from Stack Overflow shares that utilizing email validation libraries in your CRM can help identify invalid email addresses early on. They recommend several libraries that can be integrated into your systems to validate email formats and domains, which reduces bounce rates.

July 2022 - Stack Overflow
Marketer view

Email marketer from NeverBounce Blog shares that using a reputable email verification service helps remove invalid, risky, and low-quality email addresses from your list, improving sender reputation and deliverability. They emphasize the importance of real-time verification and integration with your CRM.

July 2023 - NeverBounce Blog

What the experts say
6Expert opinions

Addressing email deliverability issues, especially within higher education, requires a focus on permission and consent. While email verification services can help identify invalid addresses, they cannot solve the problems caused by sending unwanted email. Domain-wide blocks and high unsubscription rates indicate issues with email consent and content relevance. Educational institutions have strict email rules, requiring tailored strategies. A multi-layered approach to email hygiene, including verification, suppression lists, and engagement monitoring, is essential.

Key opinions

  • Permission is Key: The biggest challenge in educational mailing lists is obtaining explicit permission from recipients.
  • Unwanted Email: Deliverability problems often stem from sending unwanted email, not technical issues.
  • Verification Limitations: Email verification services alone are not a complete solution and require other strategies.
  • Educational Rules: Educational institutions have stringent email policies, requiring specific strategies.

Key considerations

  • Obtain Consent: Focus on obtaining explicit consent from recipients before sending emails.
  • Valuable Content: Provide valuable and relevant content to maintain engagement and avoid being marked as spam.
  • Multi-Layered Hygiene: Implement a multi-layered approach to email hygiene, including verification and suppression lists.
  • Tailored Strategies: Develop tailored strategies to address the specific challenges of deliverability to educational institutions.
Expert view

Expert from Email Geeks explains that recipient domain-wide blocks and high unsubscription rates are indicators of sending unwanted emails. Email verification services can help identify invalid addresses, but they cannot solve the problems caused by sending unwanted email.

April 2023 - Email Geeks
Expert view

Expert from Email Geeks refers to a previous discussion about email verification services, indicating that it contains helpful information relevant to the original question: <https://emailgeeks.slack.com/archives/C0Y3T12Q0/p1720703906836259>

November 2022 - Email Geeks
Expert view

Expert from Spam Resource answers that deliverability problems often stem from sending unwanted email, not technical issues. He advises focusing on obtaining explicit consent and providing valuable content to recipients.

April 2022 - Spam Resource
Expert view

Expert from Email Geeks shares that educational institutions often have strict email rules, which are difficult to change. Strategies are needed to address deliverability challenges specific to this sector.

November 2021 - Email Geeks
Expert view

Expert from Word to the Wise explains that the challenge for educational mailing lists is getting permission. If you don't have permission to send, then it doesn't matter how good your email program is.

April 2022 - Word to the Wise
Expert view

Expert from Word to the Wise explains that even the best email verification services aren't perfect, and you'll still see spam traps and bounces. It's essential to use a multi-layered approach to email hygiene, including verification, suppression lists, and engagement monitoring.

May 2022 - Word to the Wise

What the documentation says
5Technical articles

Improving email deliverability relies heavily on authentication and list hygiene. Setting up SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records authenticates emails, preventing spoofing and assuring email providers of legitimacy. Following best practices for bulk emails, such as segmentation, personalization, and easy unsubscribe options, also improves deliverability. Regular list cleaning, removing inactive subscribers and invalid addresses, is crucial for maintaining a healthy sender reputation. Proper implementation of SPF, including correct record syntax and alignment with email sending policies, is also necessary.

Key findings

  • Email Authentication: SPF, DKIM, and DMARC are essential for authenticating emails and preventing spoofing.
  • Bulk Email Best Practices: Segmentation, personalization, and easy unsubscribe options improve bulk email deliverability.
  • List Cleaning: Regularly cleaning email lists is crucial for a healthy sender reputation.
  • Proper SPF Implementation: Correct SPF record syntax and alignment with email sending policies are required.

Key considerations

  • Authentication Setup: Ensure SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records are correctly configured for your domain.
  • List Segmentation: Segment your email lists to send more relevant and personalized content.
  • Unsubscribe Options: Provide clear and easy-to-use unsubscribe options in your emails.
  • Bounce Rate Monitoring: Monitor bounce rates and spam complaints to identify and address deliverability issues.
Technical article

Documentation from Google explains that setting up SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records is essential for authenticating your emails and preventing spoofing. This helps improve deliverability by assuring email providers that your emails are legitimate.

February 2025 - Google Workspace Admin Help
Technical article

Documentation from Mailchimp explains that regularly cleaning your email list by removing inactive subscribers and invalid addresses is crucial for maintaining a healthy sender reputation and improving deliverability. They recommend using Mailchimp's built-in tools for list cleaning and segmentation.

June 2021 - Mailchimp Resource
Technical article

Documentation from Microsoft shares that following best practices for sending bulk emails, such as segmenting lists, personalizing content, and providing easy unsubscribe options, can improve deliverability. They also recommend monitoring bounce rates and spam complaints to identify and address issues promptly.

February 2025 - Microsoft 365 documentation
Technical article

Documentation from RFC details that Sender Policy Framework (SPF) allows domain owners to specify which mail servers are authorized to send email on their behalf. SPF records prevent email spoofing, improving deliverability by ensuring that only legitimate servers can send emails using the domain. Properly implementing SPF involves publishing the correct record syntax and ensuring alignment with email sending policies.

January 2022 - RFC
Technical article

Documentation from SparkPost explains how Sender Policy Framework (SPF), DomainKeys Identified Mail (DKIM), and Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting & Conformance (DMARC) enhance email security and help prevent spoofing. Proper configuration of these protocols improves credibility with ISPs, significantly boosting deliverability. The guide also covers domain alignment, which ensures that the domain used in SPF and DKIM matches the one in the From address, further strengthening authentication.

October 2022 - SparkPost Documentation