Summary
Dedicated IP warm-up is a critical, disciplined process for establishing a positive sender reputation with Internet Service Providers (ISPs) for any new or significantly increased email sending volume. It involves starting with very low volumes of engaging content sent to your most active subscribers, then gradually and consistently increasing the volume over several weeks. Continuous monitoring of deliverability and engagement metrics, such as open rates, bounce rates, and complaint rates, is essential throughout the warm-up period. Patience, segmenting recipients, maintaining excellent list hygiene, and leveraging your Email Service Provider's (ESP) support are key to successfully building the trust required for optimal email deliverability.
Key findings
- Start Small and Engaged: Begin your IP warm-up with very low volumes of emails sent exclusively to your most engaged and active subscribers, typically those engaged within the last 30-90 days, or transactional emails.
- Gradual Volume Increase: Incrementally increase your sending volume daily, following a disciplined, phased approach over several weeks to months. Avoid large spikes or skips in daily sending.
- Consistent Monitoring: Continuously monitor key deliverability metrics, including open rates, click rates, bounce rates, and complaint rates, using your ESP's reputation dashboards and feedback loops.
- Content Quality Matters: Prioritize sending high-quality, engaging content that encourages positive interactions. Positive engagement signals are crucial for building trust with Internet Service Providers (ISPs).
- Duration and Consistency: The warm-up process typically takes 2-6 weeks, or even longer, depending on your sending volume and list quality. Consistent sending patterns are vital throughout this period.
- Reputation Building: The primary goal of IP warm-up is to establish a positive sender reputation with ISPs, which allows your emails to be delivered reliably to the inbox rather than being delayed or blocked.
Key considerations
- Domain Segmentation: Segment your sending based on recipient domains such as Gmail, Hotmail-Outlook, and Verizon Media Group, as each may respond differently during warm-up.
- Automation Handling: Consider keeping automated emails on a shared IP pool or delaying them until your dedicated IP warm-up is complete to avoid negatively impacting the warm-up process.
- Patience and Remediation: Expect deferrals in the initial weeks and be prepared to open remediation requests with mailbox providers if necessary. Patience is crucial as results improve gradually.
- Spreading Volume: Distribute your daily sending volume over as long a period as possible, rather than sending in large bursts, to build a steady and consistent reputation.
- Engagement Threshold: Aim for a unique open rate of 15% or greater during warm-up. Achieving this threshold indicates a positive reputation is being built, allowing for careful volume increases.
- ESP Support: Leverage your Email Service Provider's (ESP) resources, as many offer specific warm-up schedules, deliverability support, and tools to monitor your progress.
- List Hygiene: Maintain excellent list hygiene throughout the warm-up period by only sending to engaged, opted-in subscribers. Avoid using unengaged or purchased lists which can harm reputation.
What email marketers say
14 marketer opinions
Establishing a strong sender reputation for a new dedicated IP is paramount for email deliverability, demanding a methodical warm-up strategy. This process begins by dispatching low volumes of highly engaging content, or transactional emails, solely to your most active subscribers. Volume should then be incremented slowly and steadily, with sends distributed consistently across the day. Throughout this phase, diligent monitoring of deliverability metrics, including open and bounce rates, alongside careful list hygiene, is essential. Patience is a virtue, as initial deferrals are common, and leveraging your Email Service Provider's expertise can significantly aid in building the necessary trust with mailbox providers.
Key opinions
- Start with Engaged Users: Initiate IP warm-up by sending low volumes of transactional emails or highly engaging content to your most active subscribers, typically those engaged within a recent 30-day period.
- Gradual Volume Ramp-Up: Slowly and consistently increase your sending volume daily, with the rate of increase determined by positive engagement metrics.
- Prioritize Engagement: Focus on sending high-quality, engaging content to active subscribers to generate positive interaction signals, which are crucial for building trust with Internet Service Providers (ISPs).
- Monitor Key Metrics: Diligently track deliverability metrics such as bounce rates, complaint rates, and open rates to assess progress and identify potential issues early.
- Maintain Consistent Flow: Distribute your daily email volume evenly throughout the day and avoid abrupt spikes or skips in sending frequency to establish a steady reputation.
- Engagement Threshold for Scale: Achieving a unique open rate of 15% or higher typically indicates that a positive sender reputation is being built, allowing for further controlled increases in sending volume.
Key considerations
- Embrace Patience: Anticipate initial delivery delays or deferrals during the warm-up period and be prepared to engage in remediation efforts with mailbox providers if necessary, as results will improve gradually.
- Segment by Domain: Consider segmenting your email sends based on recipient domains, such as Gmail, Hotmail-Outlook, and Verizon Media Group, as each may require a tailored approach during warm-up.
- Manage Automated Sends: It's advisable to keep automated or triggered emails on a shared IP pool or postpone them until your dedicated IP has successfully completed its warm-up phase.
- Leverage ESP Resources: Utilize your Email Service Provider's recommended warm-up schedules and dedicated deliverability support to navigate the process effectively.
- Prioritize List Hygiene: Strictly adhere to best practices for list hygiene by sending only to engaged, opted-in subscribers, which is fundamental to avoiding bounces and complaints that can harm your new IP's reputation.
- Resist Rapid Volume Increases: Avoid the temptation to push sending volume too quickly; consistently adhering to the warm-up plan is vital for establishing long-term sender trust.
Marketer view
Email marketer from Email Geeks confirms that SendGrid's IP warm-up schedule is generally good, advising to segment sending based on domains (Gmail, Hotmail/Outlook, Verizon Media Group, and all other domains). She recommends beginning sends to the most engaged recipients (e.g., within a 30-day window) using engaging content, incrementally expanding the audience. She notes that deferrals are likely in the first weeks and advises opening remediation if needed, emphasizing that sending to engaged recipients and not pushing volume too fast is key. She also suggests checking with the ESP for dedicated deliverability support and clarifies that send amounts include all mail to the receiving domain via those IPs, recommending keeping automations on a shared pool or delaying them until warm-up is complete.
1 Oct 2022 - Email Geeks
Marketer view
Email marketer from Email Geeks advises sticking to the warm-up plan and staying patient throughout the process, noting that results will gradually improve.
5 Sep 2022 - Email Geeks
What the experts say
2 expert opinions
To build a robust sender reputation and ensure strong deliverability, warming up a new dedicated IP address, or one experiencing a significant volume increase, is an essential practice. This process centers on starting with small volumes sent to your most engaged subscribers, then systematically increasing email volumes while consistently monitoring key deliverability metrics. Maintaining strict list hygiene and ensuring regular sending patterns are vital. The warm-up typically spans several weeks, with a primary focus on generating positive engagement signals to establish trust with Internet Service Providers.
Key opinions
- Target Engaged Subscribers: Best practice involves commencing with low email volumes directed exclusively to your most active and engaged subscribers to generate positive interactions.
- Incremental Volume Growth: Gradually increase your sending volume, day by day, maintaining a disciplined approach to avoid sudden spikes that can negatively impact deliverability.
- Consistent Sending Patterns: Ensure a steady and predictable sending pattern throughout the warm-up phase, as inconsistent volumes can disrupt reputation building.
- Continuous Performance Monitoring: Diligently track engagement rates, alongside bounce and complaint rates, to assess progress and quickly identify any issues.
- Strict List Hygiene: Maintaining excellent list hygiene is paramount, meaning you should only send to active and legitimate recipients and avoid those prone to complaints or hard bounces.
- Phase Duration: The typical duration for a dedicated IP warm-up ranges from 2 to 6 weeks, depending on the volume and quality of your list, emphasizing the need for patience.
Key considerations
- Establish Sender Trust: The primary objective of IP warm-up is to build a solid sender reputation, particularly for new dedicated IPs or when significantly increasing email volume.
- Strategic Volume Increase: The process demands a methodical, gradual increase in sending volume, starting small and steadily scaling up, to avoid triggering spam filters.
- Avoid Poor Quality Lists: During warm-up, it is critical to use only highly engaged, opted-in subscribers. Steer clear of unengaged, inactive, or purchased lists, as these can quickly harm your new IP's reputation.
- Continuous Metric Review: Consistently monitor key deliverability metrics such as opens, clicks, bounces, and complaints. These signals provide vital feedback on your IP's reputation and inform adjustments to your sending strategy.
- Process Timeline: Understand that the warm-up period is not instantaneous; it typically spans 2-6 weeks, requiring patience and consistent adherence to best practices to achieve optimal results.
Expert view
Expert from Spam Resource explains that IP warming remains crucial for new IPs or significant volume increases to establish sender reputation. Best practices involve starting with low volumes to highly engaged users, gradually increasing sending, avoiding inactive recipients initially, maintaining good list hygiene, and ensuring consistent sending patterns.
2 Mar 2022 - Spam Resource
Expert view
Expert from Word to the Wise shares that IP warming is vital for new IPs to build a solid reputation. Key best practices include starting with low volumes to the most engaged subscribers, gradually increasing sending, maintaining consistent patterns, closely monitoring engagement, bounces, and complaints, and avoiding unengaged or purchased lists during the warm-up period. The process typically takes 2-6 weeks, emphasizing positive engagement.
7 Jun 2023 - Word to the Wise
What the documentation says
5 technical articles
To ensure optimal email deliverability, warming up a new dedicated IP address is a fundamental practice, as advised by major platforms such as SendGrid, Mailgun, and Amazon SES. This strategic process involves starting with minimal email volumes sent to your most engaged subscribers and then progressively escalating the sending volume daily. Throughout this ramp-up, which can span several weeks to months, continuous and vigilant monitoring of key deliverability metrics like bounce rates, complaint rates, and engagement is critical for building a robust and trusted sender reputation with Internet Service Providers.
Key findings
- Initial Low Volume Sends: Begin the warm-up process by sending emails at very low volumes.
- Systematic Volume Ramp-Up: Gradually increase sending volumes day by day in a disciplined manner, avoiding sudden spikes.
- Prioritize Engaged Recipients: Direct initial sends to highly engaged users to generate positive interaction signals.
- Mandatory Metric Monitoring: Continuously track vital deliverability metrics, including bounce rates, complaint rates, and engagement, to assess IP health.
- Reputation Building Objective: The primary goal of warm-up is to cultivate a positive sender reputation and trust with Internet Service Providers.
- Variable Warm-up Duration: Be aware that the warm-up period can range from several weeks to potentially months, depending on volume and list quality.
Key considerations
- Importance of ISP Trust: Recognize that the entire warm-up process is geared towards establishing consistent trust with various Internet Service Providers.
- Leverage Provider Documentation: Consult specific guidelines from your Email Service Provider, such as Twilio SendGrid's detailed phased approach or Amazon SES's Reputation Dashboard.
- Patience and Consistency: The warm-up is a marathon, not a sprint; patience and consistent daily sending are vital for success.
- Feedback Loop Integration: Pay close attention to feedback from ISPs, especially regarding complaints and bounces, as indicators of reputation.
- Adaptation Based on Metrics: Be prepared to adjust sending volumes or targeting based on real-time deliverability performance.
Technical article
Documentation from SendGrid explains that IP warm-up involves starting with low sending volumes to engaged users and gradually increasing volume daily, while carefully monitoring reputation metrics to build trust with ISPs.
19 Dec 2023 - SendGrid
Technical article
Documentation from Mailgun advises slowly building IP reputation by gradually increasing email volume over several weeks, prioritizing highly engaged recipients, and closely monitoring deliverability metrics like bounces and complaints.
22 Dec 2021 - Mailgun
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