Summary
Warming up a new email sending domain for a small list of cold contacts involves a multi-faceted approach centered around establishing a positive sender reputation. Key actions include: starting with small batches of emails (e.g., 10), gradually increasing volume daily while batching by recipient domain; ensuring the domain is not newly registered (ideally 30-90 days old) and has a website (even a redirect); being transparent about address acquisition; prioritizing Gmail's best practices given its sensitivity; maintaining a consistent IP address; and linking sub-brand hostnames to appropriate websites. Essential technical aspects include: setting up proper email authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC); monitoring feedback loops; tracking domain/IP reputation via tools like Google Postmaster Tools and Sender Score; and immediately addressing blacklist issues. Critical strategic elements are: consistent sending volume/frequency; engagement focus through valuable content; list segmentation to prioritize engaged contacts; thorough list validation to remove bounces/spam traps; personalization to boost interaction; and a planned warm-up process spanning several weeks, with significant engagement needed within the first 30 days. Considering Gmail as a benchmark is suggested, as it's highly sensitive.
Key findings
- Gradual Ramp-Up: Start with small batches of emails and gradually increase sending volume to build a positive reputation.
- Domain Age & Website: Ensure the domain is not new (30-90 days old) and has a website for verification.
- Transparency & Content: Be clear about address acquisition and provide valuable, engaging content.
- Gmail Priority: Prioritize Gmail's best practices due to its sensitivity.
- Authentication & Monitoring: Set up SPF, DKIM, DMARC and monitor feedback loops & reputation scores.
- List Hygiene & Segmentation: Validate email lists and segment to prioritize engaged contacts.
- Consistency & Personalization: Maintain consistent sending and personalize emails to encourage engagement.
- Engagement Timeline: Focus on increasing engagement in the first 30 days to improve deliverability.
Key considerations
- Starting Volume: Determine the appropriate initial email volume based on list size and ISP guidelines.
- Authentication Configuration: Ensure SPF, DKIM, and DMARC are properly configured for authentication.
- FBL Integration: Integrate with feedback loops to receive and process spam complaints.
- Reputation Tracking: Regularly monitor domain and IP reputation.
- Blacklist Protocols: Have a plan to address blacklisting issues.
- Engagement Strategy: Develop a strategy to encourage recipient engagement from the start.
- Content Relevance: Ensure content is relevant and valuable to the recipients.
- Sending Schedule: Establish a consistent sending schedule for pattern recognition.
What email marketers say
9 marketer opinions
Warming up a new email sending domain for a small list of cold contacts requires a strategic approach focused on building a positive sender reputation. Key elements include maintaining consistent sending volumes and frequency, sending valuable and relevant content to encourage recipient engagement (opens and clicks), segmenting the list to start with the most engaged contacts, validating the email list to remove bounces and spam traps, personalizing emails to increase engagement, and planning a well-thought-out warm-up process that could take several weeks. Increasing engagement in the first 30 days is critical to avoiding the spam folder.
Key opinions
- Consistent Sending: Maintaining consistent sending volumes and frequency helps ISPs recognize and trust the sending patterns.
- Engagement Focus: Sending valuable and relevant content encourages recipient engagement, signaling a positive sender reputation to ISPs.
- List Segmentation: Starting with the most engaged contacts builds a positive sender reputation quickly.
- Warm-up Duration: A well-thought-out warm-up plan should be implemented over several weeks to build a solid reputation.
- List Hygiene: Validating the email list and removing bounces and spam traps increases deliverability and avoids blacklisting.
- Personalization: Personalizing initial warm-up emails encourages engagement through relevant content and dynamic addressing.
- Engagement Period: Increasing engagement in the first 30 days is critical to getting out of the spam folder.
Key considerations
- Engagement Metrics: Actively monitor open and click rates to gauge recipient engagement and adjust strategy accordingly.
- List Validation Tools: Utilize email validation tools to identify and remove invalid emails and spam traps from the contact list.
- Content Relevance: Ensure the content sent is relevant and valuable to the recipients to encourage interaction and avoid being marked as spam.
- Sending Schedule: Establish a consistent sending schedule to maintain a predictable sending pattern that ISPs can recognize and trust.
- Personalization Strategy: Develop a personalization strategy using dynamic content and addressing by name to increase engagement and avoid spam filters.
- Reputation Building: Focus on building positive reputation over the long term, not just on initial campaign success.
Marketer view
Email marketer from Woodpecker recommends that during domain warm up you should send personalized emails to people who you know and who will engage, this helps to build positive engagement with your domain.
17 Jun 2021 - Woodpecker
Marketer view
Email marketer from Hunter.io says prior to email warm-up you should ensure that your email list is validated, check for bounces, spam traps or invalid emails and remove these to increase deliverability.
12 Dec 2023 - Hunter.io
What the experts say
8 expert opinions
Warming up a new email sending domain for a small list of cold contacts involves several key steps. It's crucial to start with small batches of emails, gradually increasing the volume daily while batching per recipient domain. Ensure the domain isn't brand new, ideally registered for at least 30-90 days, and has a website, even a simple redirect, to establish legitimacy. Be transparent about how you obtained email addresses in initial messages. Given Gmail's sensitivity, prioritize their best practices. Maintaining a consistent IP address is also vital. In the case of sub-brand emails, the hostnames should link to an appropriate website to reassure postmasters.
Key opinions
- Gradual Ramp-Up: Start with small batches of emails (e.g., 10) and gradually increase the sending volume daily.
- Domain Age: Ensure the domain is not newly registered; ideally, it should be at least 30-90 days old.
- Website Presence: Having a website associated with the domain, even a simple redirect, is crucial for legitimacy.
- Transparency: Be clear about how email addresses were obtained in initial communications.
- Gmail Sensitivity: Gmail is highly sensitive, so following their best practices is essential.
- Consistent IP: Maintaining a consistent IP address during warm-up is important.
- Sub-brand Hostnames: Sub-brand email hostnames should link to an appropriate website to reassure postmasters.
Key considerations
- Batch Size: Carefully manage the size of email batches and increase them gradually to avoid triggering spam filters.
- Domain Verification: Verify domain registration details and ensure they are accurate and up-to-date.
- Website Content: While the website content can be basic, ensure it provides enough information to verify the legitimacy of the sender.
- Email Content: Be mindful of the content of initial emails and avoid using spam trigger words or phrases.
- ISPs: Understand the specific requirements and sensitivities of different ISPs, especially Gmail.
- IP Reputation: Monitor the IP address reputation and take steps to address any issues promptly.
- Recipient Engagement: Focus on obtaining engagement from the beginning in order to build reputation.
Expert view
Expert from Email Geeks shares Google's suggestion to start with a batch of 10 emails, wait a few hours, and repeat a few times when warming up a domain.
3 Mar 2023 - Email Geeks
Expert view
Expert from Word to the Wise explains that Gmail is among the most sensitive ISPs during domain warm-up, so following best practices for Gmail often translates well to other providers, allowing for a potentially more aggressive approach elsewhere.
10 Dec 2021 - Word to the Wise
What the documentation says
5 technical articles
Warming up a new email sending domain involves gradually increasing email volume to build a positive reputation, implementing email authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) for identity verification, monitoring feedback loops to address deliverability issues, tracking domain and IP reputation using tools like Google Postmaster Tools and Sender Score, and immediately stopping sending and contacting the blacklist if blacklisted.
Key findings
- Gradual Ramp-Up: Gradually increase email volume to build a positive reputation and avoid being flagged as spam.
- Email Authentication: Implement SPF, DKIM, and DMARC to verify sender identity and improve deliverability.
- Feedback Loops: Monitor feedback loops (FBLs) to identify and address deliverability issues.
- Reputation Monitoring: Track domain and IP reputation using tools like Google Postmaster Tools and Sender Score.
- Blacklist Response: Immediately stop sending and contact the blacklist if blacklisted.
Key considerations
- Initial Volume: Determine the appropriate initial email volume based on list size and ISP guidelines.
- Authentication Setup: Properly configure SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records to ensure email authentication.
- FBL Integration: Integrate with feedback loops to receive and process spam complaints.
- Monitoring Tools: Regularly monitor domain and IP reputation using appropriate tools.
- Blacklist Removal: Have a plan in place to address blacklisting issues promptly, including contacting the blacklist.
Technical article
Documentation from Microsoft suggests monitoring feedback loops (FBLs) to identify and address any deliverability issues promptly. FBLs provide insights into spam complaints and other negative signals.
27 Nov 2022 - Microsoft
Technical article
Documentation from Google Postmaster Tools recommends gradually increasing the volume of emails sent from a new domain to build a positive reputation with email providers. This gradual ramp-up helps to avoid being flagged as spam.
17 May 2022 - Google Postmaster Tools
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