What to do when a customer says they aren't receiving marketing emails even after safelisting?
Summary
What email marketers say12Marketer opinions
Email marketer from Sendinblue advises checking the recipient's email server logs to see if the emails are being accepted. This can help identify if the emails are being blocked at the server level, despite safelisting.
Email marketer from Reddit suggests asking the customer to provide an alternate email address (e.g., a Gmail or Yahoo address) to see if emails are received there. This can help determine if the issue is specific to their domain or email provider.
Marketer from Email Geeks suggests asking the customer if they had created any custom rule recently on their email client and to check if the email is moved to a different folder than inbox.
Marketer from Email Geeks shares their process for troubleshooting email delivery issues, explaining they check if the email was accepted by the receiving server, either at the sending point or the inbound server. They suggest checking the logs to see if the 'from' address is found and what is being done with the email.
Email marketer from Neil Patel Blog suggests that the first step is to ensure the recipient has checked their spam or junk folder. Sometimes, even after safelisting, emails can still end up there due to overly aggressive spam filters.
Email marketer from Gmass shares that using a dedicated IP address can help improve sender reputation and deliverability. A shared IP address might be affected by the sending practices of other users.
Marketer from Email Geeks suggests retrieving the SMTP reply resulting from the submissions and sending it to the receiver's admin so they can trace the message, assuming it has been accepted.
Email marketer from Email Marketing Forum responds that even with safelisting, the content of your emails could be triggering spam filters. Avoid using spam trigger words, excessive capitalization, or suspicious links in your emails.
Email marketer from Mailjet recommends confirming that the customer's email address is correct and hasn't been mistyped in your system. A simple typo can prevent emails from being delivered.
Email marketer from StackExchange shares ensuring that SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records are properly configured for your domain. These authentication methods help verify that your emails are legitimate and can improve deliverability, even with safelisting.
Email marketer from Litmus mentions that while not directly related to delivery, rendering issues might make emails unreadable, leading the customer to believe they aren't receiving them correctly. Test your emails across different email clients and devices.
Email marketer from Email on Acid shares that asking the recipient to add your 'From' address to their address book can help bypass spam filters, as many email clients prioritize emails from known contacts.
What the experts say4Expert opinions
Expert from Spam Resource explains that even with safelisting, high complaint rates can override that. Monitor feedback loops and address complaints promptly to maintain a positive sender reputation.
Expert from Email Geeks states that the only fix is to get the SMTP transaction logs to see if the recipient domain is accepting from Pardot. If they are accepting, they have taken responsibility and it is no longer your problem.
Expert from Word to the Wise emphasizes the importance of good list hygiene. Even if someone safelists you, if they're on an old, unengaged part of your list, it still hurts your overall reputation and deliverability.
Expert from Email Geeks emphasizes the importance of getting the actual transaction logs to determine where the email delivery failure is happening. They suggest doing a special send to the customer to create a smaller set of logs for easier searching and contacting deliverability support for actual log messages. If the email is accepted, provide timestamps and message ID to recipient domain.
What the documentation says4Technical articles
Documentation from Google Postmaster Tools explains that poor sender reputation can cause emails to be filtered even if the recipient has safelisted the sender. Monitor your sender reputation using tools like Google Postmaster Tools to identify and address any issues.
Documentation from RFC explains to Check SMTP error codes to understand why the email was not delivered. Look for specific error codes in bounce-back messages to diagnose the reason for failure (e.g., mailbox full, domain not found).
Documentation from AWS explains to verify you haven't exceeded your sending limits. If you're using a service like AWS SES, ensure you haven't hit your sending limits, which could prevent emails from being delivered.
Documentation from Microsoft details that Exchange Online Protection (EOP) may still filter emails based on various factors, even if the sender is on a safelist. Review EOP settings and policies to ensure they are not overly restrictive.