Does Trustpilot's Google partnership guarantee higher email inbox rates?
Michael Ko
Co-founder & CEO, Suped
Published 6 Jun 2025
Updated 19 Aug 2025
7 min read
Many companies that offer services like customer review collection, such as Trustpilot, sometimes make claims about their email deliverability. A common one is that their Google partnership guarantees a high email inbox rate, often cited as 99%. This naturally raises questions for email marketers and businesses, especially regarding whether such partnerships offer a special pass from major inbox providers like Google.
The short answer is no, a Google partnership in the context of review platforms does not automatically translate into superior email inbox placement rates or special exemptions from email spam filters. The reality of email deliverability is far more complex and is governed by strict, independent protocols.
Understanding the Trustpilot-Google partnership
The partnership between Trustpilot and Google primarily concerns how reviews collected through Trustpilot appear on Google's platforms, not email deliverability. This collaboration allows for Trustpilot reviews to be displayed in Google Shopping results, Google Ads, and as Google Seller Ratings, providing valuable social proof for businesses. You can find more details about Google's review partners on their support page concerning seller ratings and how to get them.
This integration helps businesses leverage their customer feedback for greater visibility and credibility in search and advertising. It signifies that Trustpilot is a recognized third-party review aggregator whose data is trusted by Google for display purposes. However, this trust does not extend to an implicit 'pass' on email sending policies. Google's email filters operate independently, focusing on the sender's reputation, authentication, and user engagement, regardless of any business partnerships.
The claim of a 99% inbox rate from Trustpilot often stems from their own excellent sender reputation built over time by sending legitimate review invitation emails. Their stringent practices, combined with a user base that generally expects and engages with review requests, contribute to their high deliverability. It is not because of a special agreement with Google's email infrastructure.
The true drivers of email deliverability
Email deliverability relies on several key factors, none of which are bypassed by a general business partnership. At the core is sender reputation. This includes the reputation of your sending IP address and, more importantly, your domain's reputation. Major inbox providers, like GmailYahoo and Outlook, use sophisticated algorithms to assess if your emails are trustworthy. These algorithms consider metrics like spam complaint rates, bounce rates, recipient engagement (opens, clicks), and whether your emails are consistently marked as spam or junk. Even legitimate emails from reputable companies can land in the spam folder if these metrics are poor.
Email authentication protocols also play a critical role. These include SPF, DKIM, and DMARC. These records verify that an email sender is legitimate and authorized to send emails on behalf of a domain. Proper configuration of these records is fundamental to email deliverability. Without them, your emails are much more likely to be flagged as suspicious and sent to the spam or junk folder, or even rejected outright by recipient mail servers. For detailed guidance, you can explore our comprehensive guide to DMARC, SPF, and DKIM.
Engagement signals are increasingly important. When recipients open, click, reply to, or move your emails to their primary inbox, these positive interactions tell inbox providers that your emails are valued. Conversely, if recipients consistently delete your emails without opening them, mark them as spam, or move them to the trash, it negatively impacts your sender reputation and thus your inbox placement. Understanding these dynamics is crucial for improving Gmail email inbox placement and other inbox providers.
Third-party sending vs. using your own domain
Many third-party services, including review platforms, offer to send emails on your behalf. While this can seem convenient, it introduces a reliance on their sender reputation. If you allow Trustpilot (or any other third-party service) to send emails using their own SPF, it means the emails are authenticated by Trustpilot's domain, not yours. If they use your domain with your SPF, then they are sending using your domain's reputation. This is a critical distinction for email deliverability. Ultimately, for emails associated with your brand, you want your own domain's reputation to be strong and controlled.
Sending via third-party's domain (e.g., Trustpilot's)
When a third-party like Trustpilot sends emails on your behalf using their domain, their sender reputation dictates deliverability. This can be beneficial if your own domain's email reputation is poor or nascent.
Pros: Leverages their established, high sender reputation. Requires less direct management of your own email infrastructure for these specific sends.
Cons: Brand disconnect: emails come from Trustpilot.com or a similar domain, not directly from your domain. You lose control over the sending reputation for these specific email streams, which can impact long-term brand consistency.
Sending via your own domain (recommended)
When you configure a third-party service to send emails on behalf of your domain, it means the emails are authenticated via your SPF or DKIM records. This ensures that your domain's reputation is built and maintained directly, which is crucial for long-term deliverability success.
Pros: Builds and maintains your own brand's sender reputation. Consistent branding and improved trust with recipients as emails clearly originate from your domain.
Cons: Requires proper configuration of SPF and DKIM records for the third-party sender. Any deliverability issues from these sends will directly impact your domain's reputation.
Ultimately, if a third-party is sending on your behalf, you need to ensure they are set up correctly within your domain's SPF record and DKIM settings. Most reputable review platforms, including Trustpilot, will provide instructions on how to do this. This ensures the emails are technically validated as coming from your domain, even though the platform is initiating the send.
The myth of special exemptions
No legitimate email service provider (ESP) or inbox provider offers a special 'pass' or guaranteed inbox rate based on a partnership. Even internal communications from tech giants like Microsoft, such as Office or Xbox related emails, can sometimes land in the spam folder if certain deliverability thresholds are not met or if recipient engagement is low. This demonstrates that no sender, regardless of their relationship with an inbox provider, is immune to spam filtering criteria.
The focus should always be on building and maintaining a strong sender reputation, ensuring proper email authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), and fostering high recipient engagement. These are the elements that truly influence whether your emails reach the inbox or are flagged as spam. Companies that claim otherwise are often simplifying a complex technical reality, or simply trying to make a sale.
Beware of misleading claims
Any service guaranteeing a 99% inbox rate without qualification should be approached with skepticism. Deliverability is dynamic and influenced by many variables. Focus on fundamental email best practices over marketing promises to achieve sustainable inbox placement.
For ongoing monitoring of your email performance, tools like blocklist monitoring and DMARC monitoring are essential. These help you track your sender reputation, identify potential issues, and troubleshoot deliverability problems before they significantly impact your campaigns. Understanding and acting on Google Postmaster Tools data is also key for maintaining high deliverability with Google.
Views from the trenches
Best practices
Always prioritize sending emails from your own domain and ensure proper SPF, DKIM, and DMARC authentication for all third-party senders.
Regularly monitor your domain's sender reputation metrics through tools like Google Postmaster Tools to identify and address issues proactively.
Focus on building organic recipient engagement by sending relevant, valuable content to a well-maintained, permission-based email list.
Avoid purchasing email lists, as they often contain spam traps and lead to low engagement and high complaint rates, damaging your reputation.
Common pitfalls
Believing claims of guaranteed inbox rates from third-party services, which often oversimplify the complexities of email deliverability.
Neglecting to configure proper email authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) when using third-party email sending platforms.
Failing to monitor your email blocklist status, which can lead to widespread email rejections without immediate awareness.
Focusing solely on email volume without considering the quality of your recipient list and the engagement it generates.
Expert tips
Implement a robust email validation process to keep your lists clean and minimize bounces and spam trap hits.
Segment your email audiences to send highly targeted content, which can significantly improve engagement rates.
Regularly clean your email lists by removing inactive subscribers who haven't engaged with your emails in a long time.
Test your emails for potential spam triggers before sending to catch issues that might affect deliverability.
Marketer view
Marketer from Email Geeks says they have never received a Trustpilot email in their inbox, questioning the 99% claim.
2022-04-27 - Email Geeks
Marketer view
Marketer from Email Geeks says that Google wouldn't likely exempt a partner without significant system changes, so they are always dubious of such claims.
2022-04-27 - Email Geeks
The bottom line on Trustpilot and email deliverability
While Trustpilot's partnership with Google is valuable for displaying reviews in search results and ads, it does not provide a guaranteed higher email inbox rate. Email deliverability is a complex ecosystem influenced by sender reputation, authentication, and user engagement, not by business partnerships with inbox providers.
To ensure your emails consistently reach the inbox, focus on fundamental email best practices. This includes properly authenticating your domain for all sending services, maintaining a clean and engaged email list, and continuously monitoring your sender reputation. Trust in email is earned through consistent good sending practices, not through external affiliations.
Gmail
Yahoo
and Outlook, use sophisticated algorithms to assess if your emails are trustworthy. These algorithms consider metrics like spam complaint rates, bounce rates, recipient engagement (opens, clicks), and whether your emails are consistently marked as spam or junk. Even legitimate emails from reputable companies can land in the spam folder if these metrics are poor.
Trustpilot sends emails on your behalf using their domain, their sender reputation dictates deliverability. This can be beneficial if your own domain's email reputation is poor or nascent.
Microsoft, such as Office or Xbox related emails, can sometimes land in the spam folder if certain deliverability thresholds are not met or if recipient engagement is low. This demonstrates that no sender, regardless of their relationship with an inbox provider, is immune to spam filtering criteria.
