How can Signal Spam improve email delivery to French domains?
Michael Ko
Co-founder & CEO, Suped
Published 23 May 2025
Updated 17 Aug 2025
7 min read
Email deliverability in France presents unique challenges, often leading senders to investigate local initiatives like Signal Spam. My team and I frequently encounter questions about how engaging with Signal Spam can directly improve email delivery rates to French domains.
It is a common misconception that Signal Spam acts as a certification body, or that simply joining guarantees better inbox placement. While it's a significant player in the French email ecosystem, its role is more nuanced than a direct deliverability solution.
Understanding its function is crucial for any sender aiming to optimize their campaigns for French recipients. This article will clarify what Signal Spam is, how it influences delivery, and what concrete steps you can take to enhance your deliverability to French domains, whether you are a member or not.
Understanding Signal Spam's role
Signal Spam is a public-private partnership in France, established to combat spam and protect internet users. Its primary function is to collect spam reports from French internet users and then distribute this aggregated data to its members, which include internet service providers (ISPs), hosting companies, and anti-spam organizations. This collaborative approach aims to strengthen the fight against unsolicited emails across the French digital landscape.
It is important to understand that Signal Spam does not directly improve your email deliverability or act as a whitelist. Instead, it provides valuable data to French ISPs like Orange, SFR, and Laposte.net, who then use this information, along with other metrics, to inform their spam filtering decisions. Senders who consistently generate high complaint rates via Signal Spam will likely see their emails land in the spam folder or be rejected. Postmastery mentions leveraging the feedback loops from these providers. You can learn more about how Orange uses its requirements to your advantage.
While direct membership for all senders is not always feasible or necessary, the data it collects is integral to the overall filtering logic of major French mailbox providers. Therefore, senders should view Signal Spam as a reflection of their sending reputation among French users, and actively work to minimize complaints. Ignoring these signals can severely impact your deliverability to French audiences.
Understanding Signal Spam's function
Signal Spam collects and aggregates spam complaints from French internet users. This information is then shared with mailbox providers and other members to help them improve their spam filtering effectiveness. It is not a whitelist or certification service.
Impact on deliverability
High complaint rates reported through Signal Spam contribute negatively to your sender reputation with French ISPs. These ISPs use this data to determine whether your emails land in the inbox, spam folder, or are rejected. Poor reputation, often influenced by such reports, can significantly hinder your email performance. You can learn more about how a bad domain reputation impacts deliverability.
How Signal Spam data influences deliverability
Mailbox providers in France, similar to Yahoo and AOL, integrate data from various sources into their spam filtering algorithms. Signal Spam is one such significant source for French domains. When a user reports an email as spam via their email client, and that client is part of the Signal Spam network, the complaint is forwarded to Signal Spam. This data is then shared with relevant mailbox providers.
The aggregated complaint rates from Signal Spam directly feed into your sender reputation scores at these ISPs. A consistent pattern of high complaints will result in your sending IP or domain being increasingly penalized, leading to emails being filtered into the spam folder or even blocked outright. Conversely, maintaining low complaint rates signals to these ISPs that your mail is legitimate and wanted by their users, which can contribute to better inbox placement.
This mechanism, often through feedback loops, allows French ISPs to dynamically adjust their filtering rules based on real-time user feedback. For instance, Orange has implemented spam-report based dynamic filtering, where user spam reports play a direct role. Therefore, while you don't directly register with Signal Spam for deliverability, being aware of and actively managing your email practices to minimize spam complaints is key.
Sender behavior
Good sender practices: Focus on sending to engaged subscribers, segmenting your lists, and providing clear unsubscribe options. Implement double opt-in for new sign-ups to ensure genuine interest.
Content quality: Craft relevant, personalized content that meets subscriber expectations. Avoid spammy keywords and excessive images or links.
Technical setup
Authentication: Properly configure SPF, DKIM, and DMARC to prove legitimate sending. This builds trust with mailbox providers and helps reduce the likelihood of being blocklisted (or blacklisted).
List hygiene: Regularly clean your email lists to remove inactive or invalid addresses, reducing bounces and spam trap hits.
Consequences of poor practices
Increased spam complaints: Sending to unengaged users or sending unwanted content will lead to higher spam reports, which Signal Spam will collect.
Damaged sender reputation: High complaint rates directly impact your sender score, making ISPs suspicious of your mail. This can lead to your email address ending up on a blacklist.
Deliverability impact
Inbox placement decline: Emails are more likely to land in spam folders (or junk) or be rejected entirely by French mailbox providers.
Reduced campaign performance: Lower open rates, click-through rates, and overall ROI for your email marketing efforts.
Best practices for French domains
Improving email delivery to French domains involves a comprehensive approach that goes beyond just understanding Signal Spam. It requires adhering to general deliverability best practices, with a specific emphasis on the preferences and filtering mechanisms of French ISPs. A strong sender reputation is the cornerstone of good deliverability.
One critical step is to maintain pristine email lists. This means regularly cleaning your lists to remove inactive or invalid addresses. Sending to unengaged users or spam traps, for example, can significantly hurt your reputation and lead to increased spam complaints that feed into systems like Signal Spam. For those concerned about emails going to spam, consider how to fix email deliverability issues.
Furthermore, ensuring your email authentication protocols—SPF, DKIM, and DMARC—are correctly configured and aligned is paramount. These technical safeguards help mailbox providers verify that your emails are legitimate and prevent spoofing. French ISPs, like all major providers, rely heavily on these authentication records to determine trust. A comprehensive guide to improving your email reputation and deliverability often starts with these fundamentals.
Beyond technical setup, content quality and user engagement are crucial. Send relevant, valuable emails to your subscribers. Personalization can help increase engagement and reduce the likelihood of your emails being marked as spam. Provide clear and easy-to-use unsubscribe options, and respect those requests promptly. High unsubscribe rates are a negative signal, but they are preferable to high spam complaint rates, which directly impact your sender reputation and can lead to your domain (or IP address) being added to a blocklist (or blacklist). Remember, an email's content is one indicator for deliverability.
Views from the trenches
Best practices
Actively monitor spam complaint rates, especially those that might feed into Signal Spam and other French ISPs.
Segment your email lists carefully, sending targeted content only to highly engaged subscribers to reduce spam reports.
Ensure all email authentication protocols (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) are correctly implemented and maintained for your sending domains.
Provide clear, easy-to-find unsubscribe links in all your emails and process unsubscribe requests promptly.
Warm up new sending IPs or domains gradually to build a positive sending history with French mailbox providers.
Common pitfalls
Believing that simply joining Signal Spam or similar organizations will automatically solve deliverability problems.
Ignoring low engagement metrics, which often precede an increase in spam complaints and blocklisting.
Failing to implement or properly configure email authentication, leading to messages being flagged as suspicious.
Sending large volumes of emails to unverified or old lists, increasing the risk of hitting spam traps.
Using generic, untargeted email content that does not resonate with the recipient, leading to higher complaint rates.
Expert tips
Monitor your domain reputation metrics across all major French ISPs (Orange, SFR, Laposte.net) to detect issues early.
Regularly audit your email content for anything that might trigger spam filters, such as excessive links or sales language.
Engage in feedback loops provided by ISPs to receive direct notifications of spam complaints and adjust sending practices accordingly.
Consider localizing your email content and sending times to better suit the preferences of your French audience.
If your emails are being blocked, remember that being on a blacklist is often a symptom, not the root cause, of deliverability issues.
Expert view
Expert from Email Geeks says that Thomas Fontvielle is no longer with Signal Spam, which explains why the email address is bouncing.
2024-04-24 - Email Geeks
Expert view
Expert from Email Geeks explains that Signal Spam is not a certification system and will not automatically accept senders with poor deliverability, meaning it's not a quick fix for existing issues.
2024-04-25 - Email Geeks
Final thoughts on French email deliverability
While Signal Spam plays a vital role in the French email ecosystem, it is not a direct solution for improving deliverability if your emails are already encountering issues. Instead, it serves as a critical feedback mechanism, providing French mailbox providers with data on user complaints. Your success in reaching French inboxes hinges on a broader strategy that minimizes these complaints.
Focusing on strong sender reputation through meticulous list hygiene, proper email authentication, and relevant content is key. By adhering to these best practices, you naturally align your sending behavior with what French ISPs and platforms like Signal Spam deem acceptable. This proactive approach will ultimately lead to better inbox placement and more successful email campaigns in France. If you're encountering deliverability issues, learning how to improve email delivery when emails are going to spam is critical.
The relationship between Signal Spam and French ISPs highlights the importance of user feedback in shaping deliverability. Rather than seeking a quick fix or certification, prioritize building a robust sending infrastructure and fostering positive engagement with your French audience. This will be your most effective path to consistent inbox delivery.
Maintaining a healthy sender reputation requires ongoing effort. Continuously monitor your email metrics, including open rates, click-through rates, and complaint rates. Use tools like Google Postmaster to track your domain's performance and address any emerging issues swiftly. Being proactive in managing your sender reputation is the best defense against deliverability challenges.
Orange, 
SFR, and 
Laposte.net, who then use this information, along with other metrics, to inform their spam filtering decisions. Senders who consistently generate high complaint rates via Signal Spam will likely see their emails land in the spam folder or be rejected. Postmastery mentions leveraging the feedback loops from these providers. You can learn more about how Orange uses its requirements to your advantage.
