Summary
When warming a new IP address, targeting the right segment of users is critical to building a positive sender reputation. The primary goal is to send email to users who are highly engaged, as their positive interactions (opens, clicks) signal to internet service providers (ISPs) that your emails are valued, thereby improving your deliverability. The ideal number of active users for targeting depends on various factors, including the overall size of your list, your usual sending frequency, and the specific ISP you are targeting. Beginning with a smaller, highly engaged subset allows for a controlled ramp-up, gradually increasing volume as your reputation strengthens.
Key findings
- Start small: Begin with a conservative volume, typically the most active users, to establish trust with mailbox providers.
- Engagement focus: Prioritize recipients with recent opens or clicks (e.g., within the last 30 days) to demonstrate positive engagement.
- Gradual increase: Slowly increase your sending volume daily or weekly, typically by 10-20%, while continuously monitoring your deliverability metrics.
- Segment by ISP: Consider warming up separately for major ISPs like Gmail, Yahoo, and Outlook, as their filtering algorithms differ.
- Monitor performance: Continuously track metrics such as open rates, click rates, bounce rates, and spam complaints to inform your warming schedule.
Key considerations
- List size: For very large lists, you may need to adjust the initial daily volume and warming duration. Conversely, small lists might allow for a quicker ramp-up, but engagement remains paramount.
- Sending frequency: Your natural sending cadence (daily, weekly) should influence your warming schedule. Consistency is important, as discussed in our guide on consecutive sending for IP warming.
- Recipient segmentation: Beyond engagement, consider further segmenting your audience based on factors like geographic location or email client to diversify your sending patterns.
- Reputation building: IP warming is fundamentally about building a positive sender reputation. Maintaining strong engagement is key to this process.
- Long-term strategy: Successful IP warming integrates into a broader email deliverability strategy, including list hygiene and content quality.
What email marketers say
Email marketers widely agree that targeting highly active users is crucial for successful IP warming. Their collective experience highlights the importance of engagement, segmentation, and continuous monitoring to adapt strategies in real time. Many advise starting with very small, highly engaged segments and slowly increasing volume based on positive performance indicators. This approach helps to build trust with internet service providers (ISPs) and establish a solid sender reputation before sending to broader audiences.
Key opinions
- Engagement-based targeting: Marketers frequently recommend selecting recipients based on their recent engagement, such as opens or clicks within a defined period. This ensures high interaction from the initial sends.
- ISP segmentation: It's a common practice to segment your audience by major email providers (e.g., Gmail, Yahoo, Outlook) and warm each segment individually. This allows for tailored adjustments based on ISP-specific responses, as detailed in our guide on targeting mailbox providers.
- Initial volume: For brand new IPs, a starting volume around 100 emails per day per ISP segment is often suggested to minimize risk and establish a baseline.
- Open rate targets: Many marketers aim for a 20% open rate during warming, viewing anything below 15% as a potential sign of issues requiring a slowdown in volume.
Key considerations
- Adjusting segment size: The number of active users targeted should be adjusted based on the overall contact list size and existing activity levels. If an initial segment is too large, consider further sampling or segmentation.
- Daily monitoring: Review deliverability metrics daily or every couple of days. If deliverability suffers, especially at specific mailbox providers, it indicates a need to slow down the sending rate.
- Volume increase percentage: While 10-15% daily increases are sometimes mentioned for larger lists, a 20% daily increase is often preferred to build a more robust sending foundation. Consider our best practices for IP warming strategy and volume scaling.
- Postmaster contact: For new IPs, reaching out to postmaster teams, particularly at Outlook, can be beneficial to notify them of your warming efforts and potentially smooth the process.
- Data-driven adjustments: The size of subsequent segments should be dynamically adjusted based on the previous day's results and overall engagement performance, as suggested by Maileroo's guide on IP warming.
Marketer view
Marketer from Email Geeks suggests that an IP warm-up strategy should be built around the recency of last engagements. They recommend segmenting recipients by major email providers like Gmail, Yahoo/AOL/Verizon, and Outlook/Hotmail/MSN/Live, plus a category for everyone else, to tailor the sending process.
Marketer view
Marketer from Email Geeks advises starting with an initial volume of about 100 emails per day for each segment when warming a brand new IP. They also highlight the importance of contacting the Outlook postmastery team to inform them about new IP warming activities, which can help ensure smoother deliverability.
What the experts say
Experts in email deliverability consistently emphasize that IP warming is a delicate process requiring strategic targeting of highly engaged users. Their advice centers on the principle of building trust with ISPs through consistent positive engagement, rather than simply sending high volumes. Experts often highlight the dynamic nature of reputation, underscoring the need for continuous monitoring and adaptive adjustments to the sending strategy. They also stress that the goal is not just to send emails, but to ensure they land in the inbox.
Key opinions
- Engagement as currency: Experts view positive user engagement (opens, clicks, replies) as the most valuable signal for ISPs during IP warming. This engagement directly contributes to a positive sending reputation.
- Quality over quantity: The focus should be on the quality of recipients and their interaction, not just the volume of emails sent. Sending to unengaged users during warming can quickly damage reputation.
- Patience is key: Successful IP warming takes time, often several weeks or even months, depending on the volume and list quality. Rushing the process can lead to blacklisting or low inbox placement, something our guide on blacklists covers in detail.
- Consistent sending: Maintaining a consistent sending schedule and volume increase is more important than rapid spikes, which can trigger spam filters.
Key considerations
- Reputation monitoring: Beyond basic metrics, experts advise using tools like Google Postmaster Tools to monitor your IP and domain reputation during the warming period. Our guide on improving domain reputation offers further insights.
- Feedback loop enrollment: Enrolling in ISP feedback loops (FBLs) provides valuable data on spam complaints, allowing for quick adjustments to prevent blacklisting (or blocklisting).
- List hygiene: Experts stress the importance of starting with a clean, validated list to avoid hitting spam traps or sending to invalid addresses, which can severely impede warming.
- Adaptability: Be prepared to adjust your warming schedule based on real-time performance and ISP feedback. A rigid schedule can be detrimental if issues arise, as discussed by experts at Spam Resource.
Expert view
Expert from Spam Resource suggests that new IPs must earn their reputation gradually. It is not about simply sending more email, but about receiving positive responses from recipients. Engaging highly active users first helps to establish this positive feedback loop with ISPs.
Expert view
Expert from Word to the Wise advises that consistency in sending volume and frequency is crucial during IP warming. Erratic sending patterns can trigger spam filters and hinder the reputation-building process, making steady, predictable increases preferable.
What the documentation says
Technical documentation from major platforms and email service providers provides foundational guidance on IP warming, often recommending a structured approach to volume and recipient selection. These resources typically emphasize the importance of starting with low volumes, targeting highly engaged subscribers, and incrementally increasing sending rates. The overarching message is to prove to ISPs that your email traffic is legitimate and desired by recipients, which translates into positive sender reputation metrics. Adherence to these guidelines is crucial for ensuring optimal inbox placement.
Key findings
- Initial volume limits: Many documentation sources suggest starting with very small volumes (e.g., 100-200 emails per day) during the first few days of warming a new IP.
- Targeting active users: It is consistently advised to select the most active and engaged subscribers for the initial sends. This group is most likely to open and click, providing positive signals to ISPs.
- Gradual ramp-up: Documentation outlines specific daily or weekly volume increases, often between 10% and 20%, ensuring that ISPs can gradually assess sender behavior.
- Performance monitoring: Key metrics like open rates, click-through rates, and complaint rates must be continuously monitored. A lower performance rate necessitates slowing down or pausing the warm-up.
Key considerations
- Engagement definition: Documentation often defines engaged users as those who have opened or clicked an email within a specific recent timeframe (e.g., 7, 30, or 90 days).
- Audience selection: While targeting active users, documentation suggests focusing on those with the highest likelihood of engagement, such as loyal customers or recent sign-ups.
- Consistency: Maintaining a consistent sending volume for each step of the warm-up schedule is crucial. Avoid erratic sending patterns that can appear suspicious to ISPs.
- ISP-specific nuances: Some documentation (e.g., from CleverTap) may provide specific recommendations for warming to particular mailbox providers.
- Deliverability rate: Documentation often points to a target deliverability rate (e.g., 96-99%) as an indicator of successful warming, with lower rates suggesting issues with sender reputation.
Technical article
Documentation from CleverTap suggests that for the initial day of IP warming, the focus should be on selecting the smallest volume of highly engaged users. They recommend targeting users who are categorized as 7 Day Clicker, with a maximum of 115 users to ensure a conservative start.
Technical article
Documentation from Leanplum states that during the IP warm-up period, it is critical to target the most active and engaged subscribers. They advise starting with these high-engagement (low-risk) users, specifically those with recent email activity, to build a strong sender reputation.
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