How can I ensure deliverability when many signups are from qq.com addresses and what steps can I take to prevent spam signups?

Key findings

• QQ.com complexity: QQ.com (Tencent) has extensive requirements for email deliverability, often making it a significant challenge for international senders. Whitelisting with the ISP may be required for optimal delivery.
• Legitimacy concerns: Numeric QQ.com addresses can be legitimate, particularly for Chinese recipients, but if your audience is not primarily Chinese, a high volume of these sign-ups could indicate spam or forged addresses.
• Impact of spam sign-ups: Bot-generated or fraudulent sign-ups can significantly harm your sender reputation and deliverability, leading to blocklistings and increased spam folder placement.
• Prevention is key: Implementing preventative measures on your signup forms is crucial to avoid collecting invalid or suspicious email addresses.

Key considerations

• Audience relevance: Assess whether your target audience genuinely includes Chinese individuals who would use QQ.com. If not, treat these sign-ups with caution.
• Robust validation: Employ comprehensive email validation and deliverability best practices for QQ.com at the point of sign-up.
• Spam prevention tools: Utilize CAPTCHAs, double opt-in, honeypots, and potentially real-time bot detection solutions on all signup forms.
• Audit trails: Implement a system to capture IP addresses and browser metadata during sign-ups to help identify and analyze suspicious activity.
• ESP collaboration: Work with your email service provider to ensure they have strong prevention mechanisms for bot and spam sign-ups.

Key opinions

• Forged addresses: Many QQ.com addresses, especially those with numeric strings, are likely forged or invalid if the business does not primarily target Chinese recipients.
• Deliverability hurdles: QQ.com has strict deliverability requirements, making it difficult to achieve consistent inbox placement even for legitimate addresses.
• Bot sign-up damage: Forms without adequate protection (like CAPTCHA or double opt-in) are vulnerable to being slammed by bots, leading to significant deliverability issues, including landing on blacklists or blocklists.
• Double opt-in benefits: Double opt-in is highly recommended not only for confirming subscriber intent but also as an effective spam prevention measure.

Key considerations

• Geographic relevance: Only pursue deliverability to QQ.com if your business genuinely targets Chinese consumers; otherwise, these addresses might be a drain on resources and reputation.
• Implement strong form security: Utilize measures like CAPTCHA, reCAPTCHA, and double opt-in to secure your signup forms and prevent fake sign-ups. More tips can be found on fighting spam sign-ups.
• Monitor sign-up data: Request your developers to add an audit trail (IP address, browser metadata) to signup forms, even if using a third-party vendor. This data can be crucial for identifying suspicious activity and preventing nefarious signups.
• Leverage ESP prevention: Ensure your email service provider has robust features for identifying and preventing spam sign-ups and for validating email addresses.

Key opinions

• Forged address prevalence: QQ.com addresses, particularly those with numeric strings, are frequently forged or associated with bot activity, posing a risk to sender reputation.
• High deliverability barrier: QQ.com imposes stringent deliverability requirements, making it exceptionally challenging to consistently reach the inbox without specific compliance measures.
• ESP responsibility: Email service providers must enhance their prevention mechanisms to block bot-generated sign-ups and protect client deliverability.
• Data hygiene priority: Maintaining a clean email list by preventing invalid sign-ups is fundamental for avoiding spam traps and maintaining a positive domain reputation.

Key considerations

• Cautious approach to QQ.com: Unless there is a clear strategic reason to target Chinese consumers, it's generally advisable to be highly cautious with QQ.com addresses due to the high likelihood of them being invalid or difficult to reach.
• Proactive prevention: Implement multiple layers of protection on signup forms, including CAPTCHA, honeypots, and strict email validation, to prevent bot-generated spam.
• List quality focus: Prioritize the quality of your email list over quantity. Sending to a list with a high percentage of bad or unengaged addresses will inevitably lead to blocklistings (or blacklistings) and lower inbox rates.
• ESP best practices: Ensure your ESP actively filters out known spam traps and forged addresses, supporting overall deliverability improvements.

Key findings

• Whitelisting for QQ.com: Applying for whitelisting directly with QQ.com (Tencent) is cited as one of the most effective ways to improve deliverability, although it is often limited.
• Technical setup: A robust technical setup, including properly configured SPF and DMARC records, is essential for authenticating email and ensuring it reaches the inbox, particularly with stricter ISPs.
• Spam filtering: Setting up anti-spam filters within your hosting control panel (e.g., cPanel) can help filter out spam before it reaches your inboxes or is added to your lists.
• Fake QQ accounts: Spam often fakes QQ accounts, leading to bounces that can negatively impact sender reputation if not properly managed.

Key considerations

• ISP-specific compliance: For QQ.com, investigate specific sender guidelines and whitelisting procedures. This can be complex and may require local representation.
• Core authentication: Ensure your domain has a strong technical setup, including SPF, DKIM, and DMARC for email authentication. These are fundamental for all deliverability.
• Form-level spam prevention: Implement anti-spam filters or solutions directly on your signup forms. This includes using CAPTCHAs and potentially rate-limiting sign-ups from suspicious IPs.
• List suppression: Proactively manage your suppression list to avoid sending to invalid or unengaged addresses. This helps reduce bounces and complaints, signaling positive engagement to ISPs.