What percentage of domains in signup lists are bad, and what are the best practices for ensuring data cleanliness?
Summary
What email marketers say14Marketer opinions
Email marketer from ZeroBounce Blog shares that common errors in email lists include typos, role-based addresses, and disposable emails and that these should be removed.
Email marketer from Validity Blog suggests using services that identify and remove spamtrap addresses from email lists to maintain a clean sender reputation.
Email marketer from HubSpot Blog suggests incentivizing subscribers to provide accurate information during signup, such as offering a discount or exclusive content.
Email marketer from Kickbox Blog suggests using real-time email verification during signup to prevent invalid or risky email addresses from entering your database.
Email marketer from LinkedIn advocates for multi-step signup process which involve confirming the email address before activating the account can help in email validation
Marketer from Email Geeks finds it amazing that address validation tools are readily available and free, yet many people don't bother using them to catch typos and other errors.
Email marketer from an Email Marketing Forum advises being vigilant about address harvesting, as these emails are often invalid or spamtrap addresses.
Email marketer from Email Hippo Blog advises regularly cleaning email lists to remove inactive or unengaged subscribers, as data decays over time.
Marketer from Email Geeks shares observations that indicate automated submission of addresses at domains with MXes on 250ok's trap network. They suspect shady people trying to game mailboxpark payouts.
Email marketer from Reddit shares that common email validation techniques involve checking for syntax errors, disposable domains, and performing MX record lookups, also encouraging periodic list cleaning.
Marketer from Email Geeks suggests double opt-in as a solution for data cleanliness.
Email marketer from Litmus Blog recommends using confirmed opt-in (double opt-in) to ensure subscribers actively consent to receiving emails, reducing the risk of invalid addresses.
Email marketer from NeverBounce Blog recommends cleaning your email lists regularly using batch email verification services to identify and remove invalid or risky addresses.
Email marketer from TowerData Blog shares that email validation catches typos, syntax errors, and disposable email addresses in signup lists.
What the experts say5Expert opinions
Expert from Word to the Wise explains that bad email addresses can include those purchased from third parties, harvested from websites, or automatically generated, emphasizing the importance of permission-based lists.
Expert from Email Geeks explains that double opt-in has its own problems. Some use typo domains as spam traps that also feed the links into their virus engine, that then follows every link including the confirmation link.
Expert from Email Geeks shares that when doing data work for a large brand, they found that 5% of 8400 domains from the client's list were 'bad domains' according to their tools. They also mention this isn’t unusual and likely a common occurrence.
Expert from Spam Resource explains that focusing on data quality through careful list hygiene, including identifying and suppressing complainers and non-responders, is essential for protecting sender reputation.
Expert from Word to the Wise shares the importance of regular list cleaning, including removing inactive subscribers, to improve deliverability and engagement metrics.
What the documentation says4Technical articles
Documentation from Mailgun explains that email verification involves syntax checks, domain checks, mailbox existence checks, and real-time bounce prevention to ensure data cleanliness.
Documentation from RFC Editor details the formal specification for email address syntax, which can be used to validate the format of email addresses during signup.
Documentation from AWS explains how to use Amazon SES (Simple Email Service) to validate email addresses and monitor bounce rates, helping to maintain a clean sending reputation.
Documentation from MXToolbox details how to use DNS records (MX, A, etc.) to validate the existence and validity of email domains.