Email Deliverability 101: How to Keep Your Sales Emails Out of Spam (and In Your Prospect’s Inbox)

Email is a powerhouse for sales, but if your emails land in spam, they’re useless. To boost your deliverability and keep your messages in inboxes, follow these key steps:

1. Set Up SPF, DKIM, and DMARC

Think of these as your email’s ID. Without them, email providers might think you're a spammer.

• SPF: Tells providers which servers can send emails for your domain.
• DKIM: Adds a signature to prove the email is legit.
• DMARC: Helps prevent phishing and spoofing.

Make sure your domain’s DNS settings have these records properly configured to build trust with ISPs (Internet Service Providers).

2. Warm Up Your Email Domain

If you start blasting cold emails from a new domain, expect trouble. Warm it up by:

• Slowly increasing send volume.
• Engaging with people likely to reply.
• Using warm-up tools to automate the process.

This helps establish credibility with inbox providers.

3. Avoid Spam Triggers

Spam filters are picky. To stay safe:

• Skip all-caps, excessive exclamation marks, and urgent-sounding phrases.
• Avoid spammy words like "free money" or "guaranteed."
• Keep links minimal and use clean URLs.
• Personalize emails—don’t rely on generic templates.

A well-structured, relevant email is less likely to get flagged.

4. Keep a Clean Email List

Too many bounces or unengaged contacts hurt your sender reputation. Regularly:

• Remove invalid or inactive contacts.
• Track engagement and adjust accordingly.

5. Monitor Your Sender Reputation

Your email reputation affects whether your messages land in inboxes or spam folders. Use tools like:

• Google Postmaster Tools (for Gmail insights)
• MxToolbox (to check blacklists)
• Sender Score (to measure reputation)
• Mail-Tester (to check spam score before sending)

Stay proactive to keep deliverability high.

6. Send Consistently

Email providers flag erratic sending patterns. To stay safe:

• Send emails steadily over time.
• Segment your list to avoid blasting everyone at once.
• Test different send times to maximize engagement.

7. Make Unsubscribing Easy

It seems counterintuitive, but clear opt-outs help your deliverability. Ensure:

• There’s an easy-to-find unsubscribe link - Ubico makes this simple with an automated opt-out link or message.
  

Final Thoughts

Great sales emails don’t just need great content, they need great deliverability. Implement these best practices, and you’ll see more emails land where they belong.

At Ubico, we help businesses improve outreach with smarter automation and strategies. Need help optimizing your email campaigns? Let’s talk!