Summary
A sudden drop to zero in FBL spam rates and identifier counts, coupled with decreased inbox placement, indicates a significant email deliverability issue stemming from various potential causes. One common factor is a decline in sender reputation, resulting from poor sending practices, list hygiene issues (including spam traps and unengaged users), problematic content, or even changes in audience behavior or email provider algorithms. This can cause emails to be marked as spam, blocked entirely, or directed to the bulk/spam folder, preventing user interaction and spam reporting. Other technical issues can also contribute, such as misconfigured feedback loops (FBLs), authentication problems (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), or blocklisting. In specific cases, emails may be entering Gmail purgatory or being globally filtered due to new spam filters, thereby requiring direct bug reports to the client software company. Diagnosing the root cause necessitates a comprehensive assessment of sender reputation, technical configurations, list health, content quality, engagement levels, and policy adherence. Monitoring tools like Google Postmaster Tools, checking DNS records, observing open rates, and analyzing campaign changes become essential for identifying and resolving the underlying problem.
Key findings
- Declining Sender Reputation: A low or declining sender reputation is a primary driver of deliverability problems.
- Bulk/Spam Folder Placement: Emails landing in the bulk/spam folder prevent users from marking them as spam, artificially lowering the spam rate.
- Total Blocking/Filtering: A zero spam rate with decreased inboxing often indicates aggressive filtering or blocking by ISPs.
- FBL Issues: Problems with feedback loops (FBLs) can lead to incorrect or missing spam reports.
- Authentication Failures: Improperly configured SPF, DKIM, and DMARC authentication impact deliverability.
- List Hygiene Deficiencies: Poor list hygiene, including spam traps and unengaged users, is a major contributor.
- Gmail Purgatory: Gmail may be filtering emails to only the most engaged users, placing others in a 'purgatory' state.
- Potential New Filters: Newly deployed filters could be causing the issue, requiring bug submissions from customers.
Key considerations
- Monitor Reputation: Continuously monitor sender reputation using tools like Google Postmaster Tools.
- Check DNS Records: Verify DNS records are correctly configured for authentication.
- Observe Open Rates: Monitor open rates as an early warning sign of deliverability issues.
- Analyze Campaigns: Review recent campaign changes and segment lists based on engagement.
- Implement List Hygiene: Regularly clean lists to remove unengaged users and spam traps.
- Validate Affiliate Data: Implement processes to validate affiliate data and identify problematic sources.
- Verify FBL Setup: Ensure feedback loops are properly configured and functioning with ISPs.
- Check Blocklists: Check if your sending IP or domain is on any blocklists.
- Policy Compliance: Ensure compliance with the sending policies of major email providers.
- Seek User Feedback: Encourage users experiencing issues to report them as bugs to their email client provider.
What email marketers say
13 marketer opinions
A sudden drop to zero in FBL spam rates and identifiers, impacting inbox placement, suggests a significant shift in email delivery. Several factors could contribute, including changes in audience engagement, algorithm updates by email providers (like Gmail purgatory), or a decline in sender reputation. Issues with feedback loops (FBLs), list hygiene, authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), content quality, sending volume, and the presence of spam traps in affiliate data can all play a role. It might also indicate emails are being blocked entirely or going directly to spam without being registered as complaints. Monitoring sender reputation tools (Google Postmaster Tools), checking DNS records, observing open rate drops, analyzing campaign changes, and ensuring correct configuration of mail servers and feedback loops are crucial steps in diagnosing and addressing the problem.
Key opinions
- Engagement Drop: Changes in audience behavior, such as decreased engagement, can affect deliverability and spam scores.
- Algorithm Updates: Email providers' algorithm updates can significantly impact inbox placement.
- Sender Reputation: A decline in sender reputation, often due to poor sending practices or content, can lead to filtering or blocking.
- Authentication Issues: Incorrectly configured SPF, DKIM, and DMARC authentication can cause deliverability problems.
- List Hygiene: Poor list hygiene, including the presence of spam traps and unengaged users, negatively impacts deliverability.
- Affiliate Data: Bad data from affiliate feeds, especially spam traps, can quickly damage sending reputation.
- Gmail Purgatory: Gmail might be filtering emails to only the most engaged users, placing others in a 'purgatory' state.
- Blocked or Filtered: A zero spam rate combined with decreased inbox placement may indicate you are being blocked or filtered aggressively.
Key considerations
- Monitor Reputation: Regularly monitor sender reputation using tools like Google Postmaster Tools to detect sudden changes.
- Check DNS Records: Verify DNS records are correctly configured to avoid authentication issues.
- Observe Open Rates: Monitor open rate drops as an early warning sign of deliverability problems.
- Analyze Campaigns: Review recent campaign changes and segment lists based on engagement to improve deliverability.
- Clean Lists Regularly: Implement robust list hygiene practices to remove unengaged users and spam traps.
- Validate Affiliate Data: Implement processes to validate affiliate data and identify potentially harmful sources.
- Check FBL Configuration: Ensure feedback loops are correctly configured and functioning to receive accurate spam reports.
- Raw Bounce Checks: Check raw bounces in mail servers for details on blocked or undelivered emails.
- Customer Bug Reports: Have customers report their local client issue as a bug with the client software, there may be a trigger that has flagged all mail as spam.
Marketer view
Email marketer from Mailchimp explains that sudden changes in delivery rates (and potentially related spam metrics) can stem from alterations in sending volume, content triggers, or recipient engagement. They advise reviewing recent campaign changes and segmenting lists based on engagement to improve deliverability.
25 Aug 2024 - Mailchimp
Marketer view
Marketer from Email Geeks recommends establishing a baseline for expected metrics from each affiliate and setting up alerts for deviations, in addition to email validation. They also advise throttling sends to affiliate leads to identify problems before they affect overall deliverability.
20 Feb 2022 - Email Geeks
What the experts say
3 expert opinions
A zero FBL spam rate and identifier count, coupled with decreased inbox placement, points to significant deliverability issues. One possibility is that emails are landing in the bulk/spam folder, preventing users from reporting them as spam, so no complaints are being registered. Also, there might be issues with the feedback loops (FBLs) themselves, leading to incorrect or missing spam reports. Finally, a complete drop in spam complaints alongside reduced inboxing often indicates aggressive blocking or filtering by ISPs, suggesting underlying problems with list quality, sending reputation, or content.
Key opinions
- Bulk Folder Placement: Emails landing in the bulk/spam folder prevent users from marking them as spam, resulting in a zero spam rate.
- FBL Issues: Problems with feedback loops (FBLs) can lead to incorrect or missing spam reports.
- Aggressive Filtering: A complete drop in spam complaints with decreased inboxing often means aggressive filtering or blocking.
Key considerations
- Check Bulk Folder: Investigate whether emails are being delivered to the bulk/spam folder instead of the inbox.
- Verify FBL Setup: Ensure feedback loops are properly configured and functioning with ISPs.
- Identify Filtering Cause: Focus on identifying the cause of the filtering (list quality, sending reputation, content) and addressing it with ISPs.
- Authentication Checks: Verify correct authentication settings to enable FBL reporting
Expert view
Expert from Word to the Wise shares that a sudden and complete drop in spam complaints, along with decreased inbox placement, strongly suggests you're being blocked or filtered aggressively. Focus on identifying the cause of the filtering (list quality, sending reputation, content, etc.) and addressing it with the ISPs.
15 Jan 2025 - Word to the Wise
Expert view
Expert from Email Geeks shares that there is no spam to report if the email is in the bulk folder.
18 Dec 2024 - Email Geeks
What the documentation says
4 technical articles
A zero FBL spam rate coupled with inbox placement issues may stem from several technical and policy-related causes, according to documentation from major email providers. A low or suddenly declining sender reputation, often resulting from poor sending practices, inadequate list hygiene, or problematic content, can lead to emails being marked as spam or blocked entirely. This can also be caused by a misconfigured Feedback Loop Reporting setup. Additionally, a complete absence of spam complaints or unusual metrics may indicate a total block, necessitating a review of blocklists and adherence to sending policies specified by platforms like Microsoft. In Gmail it could be a problem in the feedback loop. Diagnosing and rectifying these issues require careful attention to sender reputation, technical configurations, and policy compliance.
Key findings
- Low Sender Reputation: A low or declining sender reputation is a primary cause of deliverability issues.
- Complete Blocking: Zero spam complaints may indicate that emails are being blocked entirely.
- FBL Configuration: A misconfigured Feedback Loop Reporting (FBL) setup may cause incorrect FBL reporting.
- Technical Configuration Issues: Issues within the setup between the email client and the email provider.
Key considerations
- Monitor Reputation: Continuously monitor sender reputation scores to detect sudden changes.
- Review Sending Practices: Evaluate sending practices, list hygiene, and content quality to identify areas for improvement.
- Check Blocklists: Check if your sending IP or domain is present on any blocklists.
- Verify Policy Compliance: Ensure compliance with the sending policies of major email providers.
- FBL Verification: Verify the FBL reporting setup is not misconfigured and configured correctly.
Technical article
Documentation from RFC explains that a misconfigured Feedback Loop Reporting setup may be causing an error. Verify with your email provider if you are getting the correct feedback loops.
26 May 2024 - RFC Documentation
Technical article
Documentation from Amazon SES Documentation explains that if your FBL spam rate and identifier counts in GTP suddenly went to zero, it could indicate that you've been completely blocked from sending to Gmail users, or there's a problem in the feedback loop. Double check settings are correct.
16 Oct 2024 - Amazon SES Documentation
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