If my email provider shows 99% deliverability, why are my clicks still low?

Your email provider's deliverability metric often reflects delivery to the recipient server, not actual inbox placement. Emails can still land in spam or junk folders, leading to low engagement even with a high delivery rate. True deliverability means reaching the primary inbox.

How can I tell if my emails are going to spam folders?

The most reliable method is using inbox placement testing (seed testing). You should also monitor metrics like declining clicks, conversions, and paradoxically, lower unsubscribe rates, as these often indicate emails aren't being seen. Regularly check sender reputation tools like Google Postmaster Tools for Gmail or Microsoft SNDS for Outlook.

What role does sender reputation play when deliverability seems high?

Sender reputation, encompassing both IP and domain reputation, is critical. Even with a high delivery rate, a poor sender reputation can cause emails to be filtered to spam. Tools like Google Postmaster Tools provide insights into how mailbox providers perceive your sending practices.

Can email content or frequency affect my engagement, even if emails reach the inbox?

Yes, absolutely. Irrelevant content, excessive sending frequency, poor mobile design, or a lack of personalization can all lead to low click-through rates and conversions, and higher unsubscribe rates (when emails are seen), even if your emails successfully land in the primary inbox.

Why would declining unsubscribes be a sign of a problem?

While it might seem positive, consistently declining unsubscribe rates, especially alongside declining clicks and conversions, can indicate that your emails are not even reaching the inbox or are being heavily filtered to spam. If subscribers don't see your emails, they cannot unsubscribe from them.

Why are email clicks, conversions and unsubscribes declining despite high deliverability? - Troubleshooting - Email deliverability - Knowledge base

It is a frustrating scenario for any email marketer or business owner: you meticulously track your email campaigns and see high delivery rates, yet your clicks, conversions, and even unsubscribes are inexplicably declining. It feels like your messages are being accepted, but they are not translating into meaningful engagement. This disconnect often points to a critical difference between what your email service provider reports as 'delivery' and what actually constitutes true inbox placement. An email might be delivered, but if it lands in the spam folder, it is effectively invisible. This impacts everything, from your immediate campaign results to your long-term sender reputation.Understanding true email deliverability is essential to diagnosing and resolving these issues.

Understanding true deliverability and inbox placement

Often, the 'deliverability rate' reported by email service providers (ESPs) indicates the percentage of emails that were successfully accepted by the recipient mail server. However, this statistic does not tell you where those emails ultimately landed. A high delivery rate can mask a significant problem: a large portion of your emails might be going straight into the spam or junk folders. This is why you might see a 99% delivery rate, but very little activity from your subscribers.Hidden factors often lead to incorrect deliverability rates.

Delivery vs. inboxing

Understanding the difference between email delivery and inbox placement is crucial. Delivery means the email reached the receiving server, but inboxing means it successfully landed in the primary inbox. When emails are consistently filtered to spam, recipients cannot see them, leading directly to declining clicks and conversions. Even open rates have become less reliable indicators due to privacy changes like Apple Mail Privacy Protection, making clicks and conversions more vital metrics to track for engagement. You may even notice that email open rates look off or unreliable as a result.

Paradoxically, declining unsubscribe rates can also be a red flag. If people are not unsubscribing, it could be because they are not seeing your emails in the first place, or they are simply deleting them without opening. A healthy email program typically sees a certain percentage of unsubscribes from active users who are managing their preferences. A lack of unsubscribes, combined with low engagement, can therefore imply a significant portion of your list is unengaged or simply not receiving your content.

Diagnosing the underlying causes

To truly diagnose the problem, you need to go beyond the basic metrics provided by your ESP. The most reliable way to assess your actual inbox placement across various Internet Service Providers (ISPs) like Gmail and Yahoo is through inbox placement testing, also known as seed testing. This involves sending your emails to a predefined list of seed addresses hosted by various ISPs and then monitoring where they land. For a comprehensive test, consider our email deliverability tester.

Tool	Focus	Notes
Google Postmaster Tools	Domain and IP reputation	Essential for Gmail delivery and spam rate insights.
Microsoft SNDS	Outlook/Hotmail reputation insights	Provides data on junk mail complaints and blocklist issues.
Cisco Talos Intelligence	IP/domain blocklists (blacklists)	Comprehensive threat intelligence and reputation data.
Senderscore	Overall sender reputation	Provides a score based on various reputation factors.
Barracuda/McAfee	B2B email security and filtering	Crucial for understanding deliverability to corporate recipients.

Even if your IP reputation in a tool like Google Postmaster Tools appears High, this does not guarantee inbox placement across all providers. Your domain reputation is often an even more critical factor. A poor domain reputation can override a good IP reputation, leading to filtering. Regularly monitoring both your IP and domain reputation in Google Postmaster Tools is essential.

Addressing technical and content factors

Email authentication protocols like SPF, DKIM, and DMARC are foundational for email deliverability. Even if they are technically 'set up', misconfigurations or alignment issues can cause emails to fail authentication checks, leading to them being flagged as suspicious or sent to spam. Regular auditing of these records is necessary to ensure they are correctly implemented and maintained, especially as your sending practices evolve.

Example DMARC record with p=noneTXT

v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:dmarc_reports@example.com; ruf=mailto:dmarc_forensics@example.com; fo=1;

Technical issues

Poor list hygiene: Sending to old or inactive addresses, resulting in spam traps or bounces.
Shared IP issues: Negative impact from other senders on the same shared IP address.
Blocklist presence: Your domain or IP appearing on a major blacklist (or blocklist).
Authentication failures: Misconfigured SPF, DKIM, or DMARC records leading to emails being rejected.
Missing List-Unsubscribe: Not providing an easy way for recipients to opt out can increase spam complaints, even if your email engagement rates are decreasing due to List-Unsubscribe header behavior.

Content and audience issues

Irrelevant content: Emails not meeting subscriber expectations or lacking value.
Over-sending: Too high a frequency leading to subscriber fatigue and disengagement.
Poor email design: Non-responsive or poorly formatted emails, especially on mobile devices.
Lack of personalization: Generic messages that do not resonate with individual segments.
Unclear call to action (CTA): Recipients are unsure what to do next, leading to low clicks.

Strategies for improving engagement and conversions

Improving engagement metrics requires a holistic approach. It is not just about getting to the inbox, but also about what happens once your email arrives. Content quality, audience relevance, and sending frequency all play significant roles in whether a subscriber will open, click, and ultimately convert. You might have excellent technical deliverability, but if your message does not resonate, your efforts will not yield the desired results.

Monitor engagement by ISP: Track performance with major providers (Gmail, Yahoo, Outlook) to spot specific issues, such as why Gmail click rates are low.
Implement feedback loops: Sign up for ISP feedback loops to receive spam complaint data directly.
Segment your audience: Send highly targeted content to specific segments based on interests and behavior.
Optimize email frequency: Test different sending frequencies to find what resonates best with your audience.
A/B test subject lines and content: Experiment to improve open and click-through rates.
Clean your list regularly: Remove inactive subscribers and unengaged users who haven't opened or clicked in a long time. This helps prevent spam traps and maintains sender reputation, as an outdated or poorly managed email list is a primary culprit behind declining deliverability rates.

Actively managing your email list and content strategy is crucial for long-term success. A smaller, highly engaged list of subscribers is far more valuable than a large list with low engagement and a high risk of being flagged as spam. Focus on delivering value, respecting subscriber preferences, and continuously optimizing your campaigns based on real engagement data.

Views from the trenches

Best practices

Regularly perform seed testing to get accurate inbox placement data across various ISPs.

Actively monitor your domain and IP reputation using tools like Google Postmaster Tools and Microsoft SNDS.

Segment your email list and personalize content to improve relevance and engagement for different subscriber groups.

Ensure all email authentication protocols, including SPF, DKIM, and DMARC, are correctly configured and aligned.

Promptly address any blocklist (blacklist) listings for your sending IPs or domains.

Common pitfalls

Confusing 'delivery rate' from an ESP with actual 'inbox placement rate' can mask underlying issues.

Over-relying on a single reputation source, such as Google Postmaster Tools, for overall deliverability assessment.

Ignoring declining engagement metrics like clicks and conversions, assuming high delivery means success.

Failing to regularly clean email lists, which can lead to high bounce rates and spam trap hits over time.

Sending generic, untargeted emails that do not resonate with the audience, leading to low clicks and conversions.

Expert tips

Analyze open and click rates for each major email provider individually to identify provider-specific issues.

Consider the impact of shared IP addresses, as the sending habits of neighbors can affect your own reputation.

Engage with recipients by providing valuable content to encourage interaction and reduce passive disengagement.

Regularly review email content and design for mobile responsiveness and clear calls to action.

Test different email frequencies to find the optimal balance that maintains engagement without causing fatigue.

Expert view

Expert from Email Geeks says: The true deliverability rate involves emails reaching recipient inboxes, not just being successfully delivered, as emails sent to spam folders are still considered delivered.

2023-11-29 - Email Geeks

Expert view

Expert from Email Geeks says: Image load rates (opens) can indicate trends, as more inbox placements usually mean more image loads, while more spam folder placement results in fewer.

2023-11-29 - Email Geeks

Next steps for better engagement

When your email clicks, conversions, and even unsubscribes are declining despite high reported deliverability, it is a strong indicator that your emails are likely landing in spam or junk folders. The 'deliverability rate' from your ESP often only measures successful acceptance by the receiving server, not actual inbox placement. A low unsubscribe rate, in this context, suggests emails are not being seen at all.

To address this, you need a multi-faceted approach. Start with accurate inbox placement testing to confirm where your emails are truly landing. Then, focus on technical health, ensuring your email authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) is flawless, actively managing your sender reputation across all major ISPs, and promptly addressing any blocklist (or blacklist) issues. Simultaneously, refine your content strategy to be highly relevant and engaging, and maintain impeccable list hygiene by removing unengaged subscribers. This will ensure your emails reach the inbox and provide real value to your audience.Learn more about why your emails fail.

Ultimately, email marketing success hinges on consistent inbox placement and, more importantly, consistent engagement. By understanding the nuances of deliverability and proactively addressing both technical and content-related challenges, you can significantly improve your campaign performance and ensure your messages truly connect with your subscribers.