What are the best practices for warming up new email domains with Yahoo and Microsoft?

Summary

Warming up new email domains with Yahoo and Microsoft involves a multifaceted approach centered on establishing a positive sender reputation. Key strategies include gradually increasing sending volume, starting with the most engaged recipients, and maintaining a consistent sending schedule. Proper domain authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) is crucial for verifying email legitimacy. Actively manage your email list and monitor your sender reputation with tools like Google Postmaster Tools, Microsoft SNDS and Yahoo Postmaster. Tailor your warmup plan based on historic data and be ready to make manual adjustments to mail queues. It's also beneficial to reach out to Yahoo and Microsoft postmasters to inform them of your plan. Testing email content for spam triggers and using seed lists to monitor inbox placement are also recommended.

Key findings

  • Gradual Volume Increase: Gradually increase sending volume to avoid triggering spam filters and build a positive sender reputation.
  • Engaged Recipients: Start by sending emails to your most engaged subscribers to generate positive engagement signals.
  • Consistent Sending: Maintain a regular sending schedule to build trust with mailbox providers.
  • Domain Authentication: Implement SPF, DKIM, and DMARC to verify the legitimacy of your emails and prevent spoofing.
  • Reputation Monitoring: Actively monitor your sender reputation with tools like Google Postmaster Tools, Microsoft SNDS and Yahoo Postmaster.
  • List Management: Regularly remove inactive subscribers to maintain a high engagement rate.

Key considerations

  • Customized Warmup: Warming plans should be customized to your historic traffic, sending reputation, and volumes; there is no generic all-purpose plan.
  • Content Relevance: Ensure email content is highly engaging and relevant to encourage positive interactions.
  • Contact Postmasters: Consider reaching out to Yahoo and Microsoft postmasters to inform them of your warmup plan (if appropriate).
  • Monitor Inbox Placement: Use seed lists to monitor inbox placement at Yahoo and Microsoft.
  • Spam Triggers: Test your email content for spam triggers before sending.
  • Manual adjustments: Be ready to make manual adjustments to mail queues

What email marketers say
11Marketer opinions

Warming up new email domains with Yahoo and Microsoft requires a strategic approach focused on building a positive sender reputation. Key practices include gradually increasing sending volume, starting with highly engaged recipients, and maintaining a consistent sending schedule. Engaging content, proper domain authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), and proactive monitoring of sender reputation and inbox placement are also crucial. Communication with postmasters, where appropriate, can further aid the process.

Key opinions

  • Gradual Volume Increase: Gradually increase sending volume to avoid triggering spam filters. Start small and scale up over several weeks.
  • Engaged Recipients First: Begin by sending emails to your most engaged subscribers to generate positive engagement signals.
  • Consistent Sending: Maintain a regular sending schedule to build trust with mailbox providers. Avoid sporadic sending patterns.
  • Authentication is Critical: Properly authenticate your domain with SPF, DKIM, and DMARC to verify the legitimacy of your emails.
  • Monitor Inbox Placement: Use seed lists and tools to monitor inbox placement at Yahoo and Microsoft.

Key considerations

  • Domain vs. IP Warmup: Understand the difference between domain and IP warming, and that dedicated IPs need domain warming too.
  • Content Relevance: Ensure your email content is highly engaging and relevant to encourage positive interactions.
  • Communicate with Postmasters: If appropriate, reach out to Yahoo and Microsoft postmasters to inform them of your warmup plan.
  • Monitor Reputation: Actively monitor your sender reputation with Yahoo and Microsoft using provided tools.
  • Test for Spam Triggers: Test your email content for spam triggers before sending to avoid being flagged.
Marketer view

Email marketer from Lemlist recommends testing your email content for spam triggers before sending emails. This will help ensure that emails are not flagged as spam and will improve sender reputation during the warmup phase.

February 2022 - Lemlist
Marketer view

Marketer from Email Geeks explains that dedicated IPs can't be warmed without the associated domain. Warming plans for IP and/or domains are customized to the historic traffic, sending reputation, and volumes. There is no generic all-purpose warming plan.

December 2023 - Email Geeks
Marketer view

Email marketer from EmailGeeks Forum suggests using seed lists and tools to monitor inbox placement at Yahoo and Microsoft during the warmup process, ensuring emails are landing in the inbox and not the spam folder.

March 2022 - EmailGeeks Forum
Marketer view

Email marketer from Mailjet explains that warming up a domain involves gradually increasing sending volume to build a positive reputation with mailbox providers like Yahoo and Microsoft. Start with small batches to engaged users and gradually increase the volume over several weeks.

April 2021 - Mailjet
Marketer view

Email marketer from Hunter.io underlines that it is vital to authenticate your sending domain before starting the warmup process. This involves setting up SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records to verify the legitimacy of your emails and improve deliverability.

April 2024 - Hunter.io
Marketer view

Email marketer from Gmass says the email content you send during the warmup phase should be highly engaging and relevant to your audience to encourage positive interactions and build a good sender reputation.

December 2021 - Gmass
Marketer view

Email marketer from Reddit shares their experience, saying that they started with 50 emails per day for the first week, then doubled it each week, while closely monitoring bounce rates and spam complaints.

December 2022 - Reddit
Marketer view

Email marketer from Iterable highlights that consistency is key during domain warmup. Maintain a regular sending schedule to build trust with mailbox providers and avoid sudden spikes in volume that can trigger spam filters.

December 2021 - Iterable
Marketer view

Email marketer from SendGrid shares that a domain warmup strategy should include segmenting your email list and sending to your most engaged recipients first. Monitor your sender reputation using tools like Google Postmaster Tools to track deliverability and spam complaints.

August 2024 - SendGrid
Marketer view

Marketer from Email Geeks explains that if the content is expected and wanted then reach out to the Yahoo! and Microsoft postmasters and tell them the complete plan in advance, and to ignore Google as their ML will work it out. If you have a second channel to your recipients (e.g., social media) then tell them to look in the spam folder, mark as not spam, add new From to address books, etc. Forget about specific throttling etc. unless the postmasters advise you to do so, and to watch the mail queues and manage accordingly.

September 2021 - Email Geeks
Marketer view

Email marketer from Woodpecker.co recommends a phased domain warming approach. Start with a small volume of emails to your most engaged contacts and gradually increase the volume over several weeks. Monitor deliverability metrics closely and adjust your strategy as needed.

April 2021 - Woodpecker.co

What the experts say
4Expert opinions

Warming up new email domains effectively involves crucial strategies for establishing a strong sending reputation with ISPs like Yahoo and Microsoft. The process emphasizes a gradual ramp-up of email volume to prevent triggering spam filters, alongside a focus on engaging your most active subscribers to generate positive engagement signals. Regular monitoring of your sender reputation using tools like Microsoft SNDS and Yahoo Postmaster, as well as maintaining consistent sending frequency, are vital for identifying and addressing any deliverability issues during this process.

Key opinions

  • Gradual Ramp-Up: Gradual increases in email volume are essential to avoid triggering spam filters with Yahoo and Microsoft.
  • Engaged Subscribers: Targeting most engaged subscribers initially generates positive engagement signals, boosting sender reputation.
  • Reputation Monitoring: Actively monitor sender reputation using tools like Microsoft SNDS and Yahoo Postmaster for deliverability insights.
  • Consistent Frequency: Maintaining a consistent sending frequency helps avoid negative impacts on sender reputation.

Key considerations

  • Sudden Volume: Avoid sudden increases in email volume as they can trigger spam filters.
  • List Segmentation: Segment your email list to target engaged subscribers during the initial IP warming phases.
  • Deliverability Issues: Address any deliverability issues promptly based on insights from monitoring sender reputation.
  • Sporadic Sending: Avoid sporadic sending patterns that can negatively affect your sender reputation.
Expert view

Expert from Spam Resource explains the importance of segmenting your email list and targeting your most engaged subscribers during the initial phases of IP warming. This helps to generate positive engagement signals, which improves your sender reputation with mailbox providers.

June 2022 - Spam Resource
Expert view

Expert from Word to the Wise recommends actively monitoring your sender reputation with Yahoo and Microsoft using tools like Microsoft SNDS and Yahoo Postmaster. Tracking metrics like spam complaint rates and bounce rates can help you identify and address any deliverability issues during the warmup process.

May 2021 - Word to the Wise
Expert view

Expert from Word to the Wise explains to maintain a consistent sending frequency during IP warming. Avoid sending large volumes of emails sporadically, as this can negatively impact your sender reputation and trigger spam filters. Instead, establish a regular sending schedule and gradually increase the volume over time.

December 2023 - Word to the Wise
Expert view

Expert from Spam Resource emphasizes that IP warming is crucial for establishing a good sending reputation with ISPs like Yahoo and Microsoft. A sudden increase in email volume from a new IP address can trigger spam filters, so gradually increasing the volume is essential.

June 2021 - Spam Resource

What the documentation says
5Technical articles

Effective domain warmup practices, as outlined in various documentation sources, hinge on authentication, list management, and continuous monitoring. Properly configuring SPF, DKIM, and DMARC is crucial for verifying email legitimacy and preventing spoofing. Actively managing your email list by removing inactive subscribers improves engagement and sender reputation. DMARC implementation further protects against spoofing and phishing. Segmenting sending by engagement level, starting with the most engaged, is also recommended. Finally, tools like Google Postmaster Tools provide valuable insights for monitoring performance and identifying areas for improvement.

Key findings

  • Authentication: SPF, DKIM, and DMARC are essential for verifying email legitimacy and improving deliverability.
  • List Management: Regularly remove inactive subscribers to maintain a high engagement rate.
  • DMARC Implementation: DMARC helps protect against email spoofing and phishing attacks.
  • Segmented Sending: Start sending to your most engaged subscribers and gradually introduce less engaged segments.
  • Performance Monitoring: Use tools like Google Postmaster Tools to monitor your sender reputation and deliverability.

Key considerations

  • Authentication Complexity: Implementing SPF, DKIM, and DMARC requires technical expertise.
  • List Hygiene: Maintaining an active email list requires ongoing effort.
  • DMARC Configuration: Properly configuring DMARC is crucial to avoid unintended consequences.
  • Engagement Segmentation: Accurately segmenting subscribers by engagement level is important for effective warmup.
  • Data Interpretation: Understanding and acting on the data provided by monitoring tools is essential for improving deliverability.
Technical article

Documentation from Microsoft explains that to improve deliverability, ensure your sending domain is properly authenticated with SPF, DKIM, and DMARC. These authentication methods help verify the legitimacy of your emails and prevent spoofing.

March 2023 - Microsoft
Technical article

Documentation from DMARC.org emphasizes the importance of implementing DMARC to protect your domain from email spoofing and phishing attacks. DMARC allows you to specify how mailbox providers should handle emails that fail authentication checks.

June 2021 - DMARC.org
Technical article

Documentation from Google Postmaster Tools explains that this tool provides valuable insights into your sender reputation, spam rates, and deliverability issues. Use it to monitor your domain's performance and identify areas for improvement during the warmup process.

July 2024 - Google Postmaster Tools
Technical article

Documentation from SparkPost states to segment sending by engagement level, start with the most engaged recipients, and gradually introduce less engaged segments as reputation improves.

March 2025 - SparkPost
Technical article

Documentation from Yahoo shares that it is important to actively manage your email list by removing inactive subscribers and those who have unsubscribed. This helps maintain a high engagement rate and improves your sender reputation.

November 2022 - Yahoo