Hey lemlister!
Big news – Google and Yahoo are shaking things up for bulk senders in 2024.
Come February 1st, some serious email requirements will be enrolled to kick spam to the curb and amp up the email game for everyone.
So, if your company sends email to Google and Yahoo users, you may have some work to do and not a lot of time to do it.
If your organisation's got an abuse complaint rate of 0.3% or higher, you will face automatic blocking of all messages by Google and Yahoo.
Let's see how we can avoid and resolve this this together.
Applies To:
All senders of commercial email.
Email deliverability.
Email provider requirements.
Sender Guidelines:
Authentication
Securing your emails is a must. It keeps bad actors from pretending to be you—a trick known as domain spoofing. If you skip this step, cybercriminals might turn your email domains into weapons for nasty cyber attacks. Stay protected. 🔒
Bulk senders must implement robust authentication measures to verify the sender's identity, closing security loopholes exploited by attackers.
We discourage the use of our platform for bulk emailing and strongly advise against sending more than 100 emails per email provider on a daily basis.
Valid DNS Records
Ensure that sending domains or IPs have valid forward and reverse DNS records, also referred to as PTR records.
All emails must be authenticated using SPF, DKIM, and DMARC.
SPF is your email guardian, stopping email spoofing—the go-to move in phishing and spam. It ensures that incoming emails are legit by letting the server check if they're from an IP okayed by the domain's admin.
DKIM, on the other hand, lets organizations vouch for their messages. By signing them in a way providers can verify, it adds an extra layer of trust. This is done through cryptographic authentication, making sure your emails are the real deal.
DMARC, your shield against email fraud. While SPF and DKIM lay the groundwork, DMARC takes it a step further. It fine-tunes email authentication, allowing organizations to set policies for email validation. With DMARC, you not only prevent spoofing but also gain control over how your domain handles unauthenticated emails. It's the defender of your email integrity, ensuring only legitimate messages get through.
Please double check this setup with your IT department to ensure these changes are made or verified. Also, please use our DNS articles noted here.
Valid IP configuration
Ensure valid PTR records for your sending IP addresses, matching the specified hostname.
Set up reverse DNS records pointing to your domain using the Google Admin Toolbox Dig tool.
Shared IP addresses can impact your delivery rate; check for internet blocklists and monitor reputation with Postmaster Tools if using an email service provider.
Avoid Impersonating Gmail From: headers. Gmail's DMARC quarantine enforcement policy may affect email delivery if this is attempted.
Using Unsubscribe Links
Messages must contain a clearly visible unsubscribe link in the message body that can be initiated with a single click (one-click unsubscribe). Unsubscribe actions must be taken for a requesting user within 2 days.
Bulk senders are required to provide Gmail and Yahoo recipients with a one-click unsubscribe option and process these requests within two days.
Ensure the correct setup of unsubscribe links within the Outreach application, covering both one-off and bulk emails.
You can add one with a few clicks easily on our platform, please refer to this article.
Spam Rate Threshold: Keep to Below 0.10% and avoid ever reaching a spam rate of 0.30% or higher.
Maintaining a low spam rate is very important, for this and for the success of your camapigns. If recipients mark your messages as SPAM above the new 0.3% threshold, they might get blocked or end up in the spam folder. Stay below the limit for smooth delivery.
Enforce a clear spam rate threshold to prevent users from receiving excessive unwanted messages, establishing an industry-first standard for spam control.
Monitor and manage your sending reputation and abuse complaints for the Google network using Google Postmaster.
More advice about how to avoid spam available here.
Compliance with these requirements is crucial for uninterrupted email delivery and maintaining positive sender reputations.
In closing, let's applaud the efforts of Google and Yahoo! in enhancing industry security.
As things shift in the world of email, it's natural to feel some bumps along the way. While change can be a bit tricky, we're staying positive. This marks the start of a journey towards a more secure and enjoyable inbox experience. Let's keep moving forward and look ahead to what's next in the world of email with optimism!
For any further assistance or clarification, reach out to our support team. 🙌