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Why do deliverability experts receive poorly targeted cold outreach emails?

8 Marketer opinions4 Expert opinions3 Technical articles2 Resources

Summary

Deliverability experts receive poorly targeted cold emails due to a combination of factors: inadequate research, poor data quality (outdated or inaccurate information), and the use of automated marketing technologies without proper validation. Many cold email campaigns are generic, lack personalization, and rely on purchased or scraped lists that are not segmented. Some companies prioritize quantity over quality, sending mass emails without regard to relevance. Additionally, the misconception of what a deliverability expert does, with some believing they only help bypass filters, contributes to the problem. Reaching the inbox, even with irrelevant content, is sometimes seen as a success. Poor segmentation, failing to maintain email lists, and a general lack of audience understanding further exacerbate the issue, negatively impacting sender reputation and deliverability rates.

Key findings

  • Inadequate Research: Cold emailers often fail to conduct sufficient research on their target audience, relying on broad assumptions.
  • Poor Data Quality: Outdated or inaccurate data leads to irrelevant outreach.
  • Lack of Personalization: Generic, unpersonalized emails are sent due to a failure to research individual roles and projects.
  • Automated Campaigns: Fully automated campaigns send emails indiscriminately based on job titles without verification.
  • Quantity Over Quality: Prioritizing a large recipient pool over message relevance leads to poor targeting.
  • Poor Segmentation: Improper audience segmentation contributes to sending irrelevant content.
  • Misunderstanding of Role: Some senders target individuals believing they only help bypass filters, showing a misunderstanding of the deliverability expert's role.
  • Scraped Lists: Using unverified, scraped email addresses leads to inaccurate targeting.
  • Failing to Maintain Email Lists: Failing to maintain clean, up-to-date email lists results in poor targeting.

Key considerations

  • Improve Research: Conduct thorough research on the target audience to understand their needs and interests.
  • Data Validation: Implement data validation and hygiene practices to ensure accuracy and relevance.
  • Personalization: Personalize outreach by researching individual recipients and tailoring messaging accordingly.
  • Targeting Strategy: Develop a targeted approach based on accurate data and a clear understanding of the recipient's role and responsibilities.
  • Manual Checks: Consider manual review of target lists to avoid irrelevant outreach.
  • Data Segmentation: Segment audiences effectively based on relevant criteria to ensure content relevance.
  • Update Email Lists: Regularly clean and update email lists to remove outdated or inaccurate data.
  • Automation Best Practices: Use automation tools responsibly with proper data validation and manual oversight.
  • Define Success: Redefine success metrics beyond simply reaching the inbox; focus on relevance and engagement.

What email marketers say
8Marketer opinions

Deliverability experts often receive poorly targeted cold outreach emails due to several interconnected factors. These include a reliance on inadequate research, outdated or inaccurate data, and the use of generic or unsegmented email lists. Many cold email campaigns lack personalization and are fully automated, with senders neglecting to verify the relevance of their outreach. Furthermore, some companies prioritize reaching a large number of recipients over ensuring message relevance, and may utilize lead generation services that add anyone matching a target keyword, irrespective of their actual role or interest. The use of scraped email addresses without proper verification further exacerbates the problem.

Key opinions

  • Poor Research: Inadequate research on recipient needs and interests is a primary cause of poor targeting.
  • Outdated Data: Reliance on outdated or inaccurate data leads to irrelevant outreach.
  • Generic Lists: Purchasing generic, unsegmented email lists results in mismatched targeting.
  • Lack of Personalization: Generic, unpersonalized emails are sent due to a failure to research individual roles and projects.
  • Scraped Data: Using unverified, scraped email addresses results in inaccurate targeting.
  • Automated Campaigns: Fully automated campaigns send emails indiscriminately based on job titles without verification.
  • Quantity over Quality: Prioritizing a large recipient pool over message relevance leads to poor targeting.
  • Keyword-Based Lead Gen: Lead generation services add individuals based on keywords, regardless of their actual relevance.

Key considerations

  • Data Accuracy: Invest in accurate and up-to-date data sources to improve targeting.
  • Audience Segmentation: Segment email lists based on specific industry, role, and interest.
  • Personalization: Personalize outreach by researching individual recipients and tailoring messaging accordingly.
  • Campaign Verification: Verify the relevance of cold email campaigns by manually reviewing target recipients.
  • Lead Gen Evaluation: Evaluate lead generation services to ensure they provide highly targeted leads.
  • Quality over Quantity Focus: Prioritize the quality and relevance of outreach over simply reaching a large number of recipients.
Marketer view

Email marketer from Email Geeks shares that it's common for people selling via cold outreach to have terrible targeting.

January 2025 - Email Geeks
Marketer view

Email marketer from Neil Patel's Blog explains that poor targeting in cold emails stems from inadequate research on the recipient's needs and interests, often due to relying on outdated or inaccurate data.

August 2022 - Neil Patel's Blog
Marketer view

Email marketer from LinkedIn answers that some cold email campaigns are fully automated and the senders never check who they are sending to as the system will just send to anyone with a specific job title.

December 2021 - LinkedIn
Marketer view

Email marketer from Woodpecker Blog answers that lack of personalization, because of bad data, causes people in deliverability to get generic emails which is due to not researching the individual's specific responsibilities or current projects.

February 2023 - Woodpecker Blog
Marketer view

Email marketer from Reply.io Blog answers that using scraped email addresses without verification often leads to poor targeting. This is because the scraped data might be outdated or inaccurate, resulting in sending irrelevant cold emails to deliverability experts.

March 2025 - Reply.io Blog
Marketer view

Email marketer from HubSpot Blog shares that a common mistake is purchasing generic email lists without segmenting them based on industry or role, leading to irrelevant outreach to deliverability experts.

January 2024 - HubSpot Blog
Marketer view

Email marketer from Reddit shares that some services offer lead generation where they will add anyone with the target keyword to your list regardless of their job title or actual interest. This often leads to deliverability experts ending up on your list.

June 2023 - Reddit
Marketer view

Email marketer from SuperOffice shares that some companies may prioritize reaching a large number of recipients over ensuring the relevance of their message, this approach can lead to deliverability experts receiving irrelevant cold emails.

November 2022 - SuperOffice Blog

What the experts say
4Expert opinions

Deliverability experts receive poorly targeted cold outreach emails for several reasons. Some cold emailers lack thorough audience research, relying on broad assumptions and outdated data. The increasing use of automated marketing technologies without proper data validation and hygiene also contributes. Additionally, some senders might target those claiming to be in deliverability, even if their focus is on bypassing filters. The fact that the email reaches the inbox and elicits a response, despite poor targeting, can be seen as a perverse measure of success.

Key opinions

  • Inadequate Research: Cold emailers often fail to conduct sufficient research on their target audience.
  • Data Quality: Reliance on outdated or inaccurate data leads to poor targeting.
  • Automation without Validation: Automated marketing technologies are used without proper data validation and hygiene.
  • Misidentification of Role: Some senders target individuals who claim to be in deliverability but focus on bypassing filters, indicating a misunderstanding of the role.
  • Perverse Success Metric: Reaching the inbox and getting a response, despite poor targeting, is sometimes viewed as a success.

Key considerations

  • Improve Research: Conduct thorough research on the target audience to understand their needs and interests.
  • Data Validation: Implement data validation and hygiene practices to ensure accuracy and relevance.
  • Targeting Strategy: Develop a targeted approach based on accurate data and a clear understanding of the recipient's role and responsibilities.
  • Manual Checks: Consider manual review of target lists to avoid irrelevant outreach.
  • Define Success: Redefine success metrics beyond simply reaching the inbox; focus on relevance and engagement.
Expert view

Expert from Email Geeks responds that even though the targeting was bad, the email worked as it reached the inbox and got a response.

May 2024 - Email Geeks
Expert view

Expert from Spam Resource explains that many cold emailers fail to adequately research their target audience, relying on broad assumptions and outdated data, leading to irrelevant pitches to deliverability experts who have no need for their services.

April 2022 - Spam Resource
Expert view

Expert from Email Geeks explains that many people claim to be in deliverability who help cold emails bypass filters.

July 2024 - Email Geeks
Expert view

Expert from Word to the Wise explains that the increasing reliance on automated marketing technologies without proper data validation and hygiene practices results in poorly targeted campaigns, causing deliverability experts to receive irrelevant cold outreach. The article speaks about poor data practices.

February 2025 - Word to the Wise

What the documentation says
3Technical articles

Deliverability experts receive poorly targeted cold outreach due to issues with segmentation, data maintenance, and content relevance. Sending irrelevant emails to this audience can negatively affect sender reputation and increase the likelihood of being flagged as spam, ultimately harming deliverability rates. Accurate targeting and clean, up-to-date email lists are crucial to avoid these issues.

Key findings

  • Poor Segmentation: Improper audience segmentation leads to sending irrelevant content.
  • Data Maintenance Failure: Failing to maintain clean and up-to-date email lists results in poor targeting.
  • Content Irrelevance: Sending irrelevant content affects sender reputation and deliverability rates.
  • Increased Spam Risk: Irrelevant emails increase the likelihood of being flagged as spam.

Key considerations

  • Improve Segmentation: Segment audiences effectively based on relevant criteria to ensure content relevance.
  • Maintain Data Quality: Regularly clean and update email lists to remove outdated or inaccurate data.
  • Content Relevance: Ensure content is highly relevant to the recipient's role and interests.
  • Protect Sender Reputation: Implement practices that protect sender reputation and improve deliverability rates.
Technical article

Documentation from Microsoft answers that improper audience segmentation affects sender reputation. Sending irrelevant content to recipients like deliverability experts can negatively impact sender reputation with Microsoft's email services, potentially leading to legitimate emails being marked as spam.

December 2023 - Microsoft Documentation
Technical article

Documentation from Sendgrid shares that failing to maintain clean and up-to-date email lists results in poor targeting and can lead to sending irrelevant emails to deliverability experts, ultimately affecting sender reputation and deliverability rates.

August 2022 - Sendgrid Documentation
Technical article

Documentation from Mailchimp Resources explains that sending highly relevant content to segmented audiences improves engagement and reduces the likelihood of being flagged as spam, which requires accurate targeting to avoid sending irrelevant emails to deliverability experts.

June 2021 - Mailchimp Resources

Related resources
2Resources

What is cold email? An ultimate guide for beginners (2025)
What is cold email? An ultimate guide for beginners (2025)

Cold email, if done smartly, can fetch you a lot of potential clients. Check out as we delve into each & every aspect of cold emailing.

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The Economics of Cold Outreach – Word to the Wise
The Economics of Cold Outreach – Word to the Wise

It’s time we talk about cold outreach mail. In the last 2 years the volume and aggressiveness of cold outreach mail seems to have exploded. There are dozens of companies out there who are sel…

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