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Summary

When critical product-related emails, unlike regular CRM communications, consistently land in spam folders, it signals a significant deliverability challenge. This issue is particularly concerning when the emails are essential to your product, such as event tickets. While it may seem intuitive to suspect IP problems, the root cause often lies elsewhere, specifically in domain reputation, sending patterns, and recipient engagement.

What email marketers say

Email marketers often face complex deliverability challenges, especially when dealing with different types of email sends from a single domain. Product-related emails, despite their importance, can encounter spam filtering if they deviate from established sending norms or recipient expectations. Many marketers emphasize the critical role of domain reputation over IP address, the impact of sudden volume spikes, and the challenges of engaging new recipients.

Marketer view

Marketer from Email Geeks explains that the domain's reputation is generally much more important for email placement than the IP address, with only a few exceptions. They also query whether the email is cold or if recipients should already be engaged.

13 Jan 2020 - Email Geeks

Marketer view

Marketer from Email Geeks states that changing IP addresses rarely helps and should only be considered as a last resort in extreme situations, as other causes need to be ruled out first. They also mention that plain text content might be an issue if it doesn't offer enough engagement.

13 Jan 2020 - Email Geeks

What the experts say

Email deliverability experts consistently highlight that a multi-faceted approach is required to tackle spam placement, moving beyond simple IP blacklisting concerns. They often point to domain reputation, proper technical configuration, and recipient engagement as primary drivers of inbox placement. Their advice frequently includes detailed steps on authentication, content optimization, and strategic sending practices to maintain a healthy sender reputation.

Expert view

Expert from Email Geeks notes that Gmail places less emphasis on IP reputation and much more on domain reputation. This suggests that a poor sending domain's standing is a more likely cause for emails landing in spam than the IP itself.

13 Jan 2020 - Email Geeks

Expert view

Expert from Email Geeks advises that changing IP addresses is a solution seen only in extreme circumstances. They stress the importance of exhausting all other potential causes before considering an IP change to fix deliverability issues.

13 Jan 2020 - Email Geeks

What the documentation says

Official documentation and research into email deliverability provide the foundational understanding for why emails land in spam. These resources consistently highlight the importance of sender reputation, adherence to authentication standards (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), and compliance with various anti-spam guidelines. They also shed light on factors like content quality, recipient engagement, and volume management, offering systematic approaches to diagnose and resolve deliverability issues.

Technical article

Documentation from Klaviyo Help Center states that while inbox providers do not report specific reasons for spam placement, it's generally due to a low sending reputation. This reputation is often impacted by sending to unengaged lists or accumulating spam complaints.

22 Jun 2024 - Klaviyo Help Center

Technical article

Documentation from Mailgun states that a poor sender reputation is a leading cause of emails ending up in the spam folder. This reputation can be damaged by previous sending practices that triggered spam filters or caused low engagement.

10 Aug 2024 - Mailgun

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