Email Deliverability Tips

Ensuring requested opt-in email is delivered to subscriber inboxes is an increasingly difficult battle in the age of spam filtering. Open and click thru response rates can be dramatically affected by as much as 20-30% due to incorrect spam filter classification.

Permission

Confirming that the people who ask for your information have actually requested to be on your list is the number one step in the battle for deliverability. You should be using a process called confirmed opt-in or verified opt-in to send a unique link to the attempted subscriber when they request information. Before adding the person to your list they must click that unique link verifying that they are indeed the same person that owns the email address and requested to subscribe.

Subscriber Addresses

When requesting website visitors to opt-in ask for their "real" or "primary" email address instead of a free email address like Yahoo or Hotmail. Free emails tend to be throw away accounts and typically have a shorter lifetime than a primary ISP address.

List Maintenance

Always promptly remove undeliverable addresses that bounce when sending email to them. An address that bounces with a permanent error 2-3 times in a 30 day period should be removed from the list. ISP's track what percentage of your newsletters bounce and will block them if you attempt to continually deliver messages to closed subscriber mailboxes.

Message Format

Usage of HTML messages to allow for text formatting, multiple columns, images, and brand recognition is growing in popularity and is widely supported by most email client software. Most spam is also HTML formatted and thus differentiating between requested email and spam HTML messages can be difficult. A 2004 study by AWeber.com shows that plain text messages are undeliverable 1.15% of the time and HTML only messages were undeliverable 2.3%. If sending HTML it is important to always send a plain text alternative message, also called text/HTML multi-part mime format.

Content

Many ISP's filter based on the content that appears within the message text.

Website URL: Research potential newsletter advertisers before allowing them to place ads in your newsletter issues. If they have used their website URL to send spam, just having their URL appear in your newsletter could cause the entire message to be filtered.

Words/phrases: Choose your language carefully when crafting messages. Avoid hot button topics often found in spam such as medication, mortgages, making money, and pornography. If you do need to use words that might be filtered, don't attempt to obfuscate words with extra characters or odd spelling, you'll just make your messages appear more spam like.

Images:

Avoid creating messages that are entirely images. Use images sparingly, if at all. Commonly used open rate tracking technology uses images to calculate opens. You may choose to disable open rate tracking to avoid being filtered based on image content.

Attachments: With viruses running rampant and spreading thru the usage of malicious email attachments many users are wary of attached documents. It's often better to link to files via a website URL to reduce recipient fear of attachments and reduce the overall message size.

CAN-SPAM Compliance

The January 2004 Federal CAN-SPAM law introduced a number of rules regarding the delivery of email. It's important you have your legal counsel review your practices and ensure you are in compliance. The two most important rules include having a valid postal mail address listed in all commercial messages and a working unsubscribe link that is promptly honored to remove the subscriber from future messages.

Reputation

Reputation services are often used by large ISP's as a way to vet email senders regarding their email practices and policies. Businesses listed with these services are then given less stringent filtering or no filtering at all. Several reputation services are:

• http://www.isipp.com/iadb.php
• http://www.bondedsender.com

• http://www.habeas.com

Relationships & Whitelisting

Contact with major ISP's and email providers is essential in letting them know about your requested subscriber email. Many large providers such as AOL and Yahoo have specific whitelisting programs and postmaster website areas to ensure your email is delivered as long as you meet their policies and procedures in handling your opt-in list.

Email deliverability is about ensuring requested opt-in email is delivered to the intended recipient. While no single tip will enable you to get 100% of your email delivered each one utilized as a group can go a long way to reaching that goal.

Author: Tom Kulzer, CEO and Founder of Newtown, PA based AWeber Communications, Inc. an opt-in email service provider. With 7 years managing opt-in follow up and newsletters for small businesses, email deliverability is an integral part of day to day operations. Learn more: http://www.AWeber.com and http://www.DeliveryMonitor.com

---

How Can You Be Sure That Your Marketing Efforts Will Generate Profits?

There are several ways to ensure that your adverts are... Read More

Email Marketing Kung Fu

Have you ever heard email described as, "the killer Internet... Read More

Grab Those Emails! ? 11 Key Ways to Get Your Visitors to Hand Over Their Email Address

If you are trying to get an opt-in email list... Read More

How NOT To Appear Like A Spammer

Unless you use the Internet only for surfing and never... Read More

Are You Backing Up Your BIGGEST Asset?

Have you ever accidentally lost an important file on your... Read More

Signature File Dos and Donts

Signature files have been around since, well, before most current... Read More

Email Marketing Tips for Reaching an International Audience

Targeted, cheap, fast, trackable and with more reporting than traditional... Read More

Email Etiquette III

Further to my previous issues this subject continues - part... Read More

5 Things You NEED to Know About Your AOL 9.0 Subscribers

In Fall 2003, America Online (AOL) released its brand new... Read More

Reach Out and Slap Someone

I got my first email account way... Read More

Build or Buy--Should You Build Your Own Opt-in Email List?

The easiest way to acquire an email list for your... Read More

Tips to Build Your Email Address Database

WHY BUILD YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS DATABASE? Gaining your customers' email... Read More

What Is Wrong With Email Marketing?

If you are active on the web promoting your products,... Read More

Autoresponders, Which Autoresponder Is Right For Your Business?

An autoresponder is a software program that automatically sends a... Read More

Using Blind Carbon Copy (BCC) For Email Privacy

Need for PrivacyPeople have become hypersensitive about their privacy during... Read More

The Opt-In Secret

Everyone knows that in order to be successful online you... Read More

Virtual Marketing in a Tangible World

One of the greatest challenges facing business owners and managers... Read More

A Cool Email Communication Tip

If I sent you an email that said: "The Big... Read More

Can You Win The Battle By Using A Toothpick?

Every business needs a low cost way to reach targeted... Read More

How To Set Up an Ezine Encyclopedia

Do you read all your Ezines? Or do you file... Read More

How To Build Your Greatest Opt-In List

I get e-mails all the time from people on my... Read More

Why Are People Cheesed Off With the Internet?

Having been connected to the "net" now for about eight... Read More

Avoiding Blacklisting: Making Sure Your Email Gets Through

We all know that email is probably today's most popular... Read More

Let The Email Wars Begin

Things just got a lot hotter in the hyper-competitive world... Read More

Opt-In Email to Increase Website Traffic and Boost Online Sales

Sending messages and information to people who have given you... Read More

Six Tips for Nonprofit E-mail Success

An opt-in e-newsletter is one of the most effective marketing... Read More

How To Improve Your Open Rates And Click-Thru Rates In Your Email Campaigns

In this article I will give you several tips that... Read More

Using A Simple Idea to Target Your Audience

A wonderfully easy and free concept that many people seem... Read More

Lumpy Mail Gets Your Message Through

When it comes to your gravy, lumps are bad. When... Read More

Ten Tips to Building Your Opt-in List.

To build and maintain your opt-in list requires constant attention.As... Read More

Use the ?Reply All? Function in Email Judiciously

Type "email etiquette" into the search bar of any popular... Read More

10 Persuasive Triggers To Plug Into Your Ad

1. Most people want to win over others. Tell your... Read More

Successful Email Marketing

No doubt email is still the best way to get... Read More