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What types of email bounces should be eliminated and which should be monitored?

Summary

Understanding how to manage email bounces is critical for maintaining healthy sender reputation and maximizing deliverability. There are different types of bounces, and each requires a specific approach: some should be immediately eliminated from your mailing lists, while others can be monitored and potentially resolved. The key is to differentiate between permanent and temporary delivery failures to ensure your email campaigns remain effective and compliant.

What email marketers say

Email marketers often grapple with the decision of how aggressively to manage bounced emails. While some advocate for removing all bounces to maintain a clean list, others highlight the potential for lost marketing opportunities and revenue if valid, temporarily unreachable contacts are discarded. The consensus leans towards a nuanced approach that considers both email hygiene and subscriber engagement to decide which bounced emails can be re-engaged or restored.

Marketer view

Email marketer from Email Geeks discusses the challenge of balancing bounce elimination versus monitoring. They indicate their team is debating whether to remove all bounces or to keep and analyze those related to networking and bad configuration.

20 May 2020 - Email Geeks

Marketer view

Email marketer from Email Geeks observes that their ESP provides only very generic bounce data. They question how many detailed bounce classifications, beyond basic types, are actually reported back by ESPs and whether this granularity depends solely on the ESP's capabilities.

27 May 2020 - Email Geeks

What the experts say

Email deliverability experts emphasize that bounce management policies are highly individualized, depending on an organization's specific context, volume of mail, and technical setup. They generally agree on the core classification of bounces into hard, soft, or block types, but highlight that the depth of data provided by ESPs can vary. Experts caution against universal solutions, advocating for tailored strategies and careful analysis of bounce data to preserve sender reputation and maximize deliverability.

Expert view

Deliverability expert from Email Geeks states that bounce handling policies are highly organization-specific and subjective. They depend on numerous factors, including the volume of email sent, available resources, and technical capabilities, necessitating a tailored approach.

20 May 2020 - Email Geeks

Expert view

Deliverability expert from Email Geeks suggests that if an organization lacks a bounce handling policy, it should develop one. They indicate that a consultant can assist with this process, especially if the organization is already referencing a deliverability expert's (Laura's) collateral.

20 May 2020 - Email Geeks

What the documentation says

Technical documentation and industry guides universally distinguish between hard and soft bounces, emphasizing that they require distinct handling. Hard bounces are identified as irreversible delivery failures, mandating immediate removal to protect sender reputation. Soft bounces, conversely, represent temporary conditions and are often subject to multiple re-delivery attempts before an address is eventually suppressed. Documentation also highlights that email providers actively monitor bounce rates, and excessive rates can lead to severe penalties, including suspension of sending privileges or IP/domain blocklisting.

Technical article

Documentation from Guardian Digital states that a hard bounce signifies a permanent delivery failure that cannot be fixed. It advises that little can be done to address such failures, implying these addresses should be removed.

05 Mar 2023 - Guardian Digital

Technical article

Documentation from Twilio advises that hard bounces should be removed from mailing lists immediately to maintain a healthy sender reputation. It contrasts this with soft bounces, which can generally be retried.

10 Apr 2024 - Twilio

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