Why is Orange.fr throttling my legitimate emails and how can I resolve it?

Key findings

• Specific throttling: Orange and Wanadoo (which is part of Orange) often throttle emails independently of other ISPs like Gmail or Microsoft, even if a sender's reputation elsewhere is perfect.
• Engagement factors: Orange considers engagement a significant indicator. Low engagement from subscribers can trigger throttling, as noted by University of Email.
• Complaint rates: High spam complaint rates (potentially exceeding 0.6% for bulk senders) can lead to protective mechanisms, including throttling or blocking, as Orange tightens its policies. This is a crucial factor to monitor.
• Brand reputation impact: Issues could stem from broader brand activities, even if specific IPs used for legitimate emails appear clean. Orange might associate the entire brand with problematic sending practices observed elsewhere.
• Communication with Orange: Direct contact with Orange's postmaster team (via abuse@orange.fr) is often necessary. They generally respond in English, but may not if blatant spam is detected.

Key considerations

• Monitor specific metrics: Beyond general deliverability, focus on complaint rates, spam trap hits, and engagement (opens, clicks) for Orange.fr subscribers. You can learn more about why your emails fail.
• Review sending practices: Ensure your list acquisition methods are clean, and subscribers are truly engaged. Avoid sending to inactive users.
• Warm up new IPs: If you're using new dedicated IPs, gradually increase volume. New senders with high volumes are more prone to throttling, as highlighted by Campaign Refinery.
• Dedicated IP vs. shared IP: For consistent volume, dedicated IPs are generally better for reputation, but they also require careful management of your sending practices.
• Address underlying issues: If throttling is persistent, consider if there are any OFR_999 errors or other technical signals that Orange might be reacting to.

Key opinions

• Orange-specific issues: Many marketers report throttling specifically from Orange and Wanadoo, distinct from other ISPs, implying unique filtering logic or policies at Orange.
• Impact of lead generation: Some theories suggest that if a brand engages in 'dirty' lead generation practices elsewhere, Orange might penalize the entire brand's email sending, regardless of the specific IP's reputation for legitimate mail. This can lead to issues such as emails failing to Orange.fr.
• Contacting postmaster: Directly contacting Orange via their abuse address is a recommended first step to understand the root cause of throttling.
• Language barriers: Orange is generally responsive in English, but responsiveness may decline if clear spam activity is involved.
• Maintaining legitimate sending: Even with legitimate email content (e.g., price alerts), throttling can occur, emphasizing the need for ongoing vigilance in email practices.

Key considerations

• Engagement focus: Prioritize engaging content and ensure subscribers genuinely want your emails to mitigate throttling based on low engagement.
• List hygiene: Regularly clean your email lists to remove inactive or unengaged subscribers. This helps prevent unclassified soft bounces from Orange.fr.
• Volume management: For bulk senders (over 100 emails/day), adhering to Orange's new guidelines is critical to prevent throttling, as EmailKarma states.
• IP warming: If using new IPs, implement a proper IP warming strategy to build a positive reputation gradually.
• Proactive monitoring: Regularly check your sender reputation and look for specific delivery error codes related to Orange, such as OFR_999 errors.

Key opinions

• Independent filtering: Experts concur that Orange and Wanadoo often employ their own filtering, separate from global security providers like Vade, which can lead to unique throttling issues.
• Brand-wide impact: An expert from Email Geeks suggests that problematic sending behaviors by a brand (e.g., spam traps) for lead generation elsewhere could negatively impact all email sending to Orange domains, regardless of the sender's specific IP reputation.
• Postmaster communication: Directly contacting Orange's abuse team is cited as the best way to get insights into throttling causes, and they are typically responsive in English.
• Spam involvement: Experts warn that if there's any blatant spam originating from the sender, Orange may cease communication, making resolution much harder.

Key considerations

• Thorough investigation: Before contacting Orange, conduct a thorough internal audit of all sending practices across the brand to ensure no problematic behaviors exist that could be impacting reputation.
• Authentication check: Ensure your DMARC, SPF, and DKIM records are correctly configured and aligned, as these are fundamental to building trust.
• Consistent monitoring: Implement robust monitoring for email performance specifically at Orange, paying close attention to bounces and complaint rates. This is crucial for boosting email deliverability rates.
• Segmentation and engagement: Actively segment your audience and prioritize sending highly engaging content to Orange subscribers to demonstrate legitimate interest and improve sender reputation with them.
• Be prepared for dialogue: When contacting Orange, be prepared to provide detailed information about your sending practices and demonstrate your commitment to deliverability best practices.

Key findings

• Sender reputation: ISPs heavily rely on sender reputation to determine email acceptance and throttling rates. This reputation is built on factors like IP history, domain age, spam complaint rates, and engagement.
• Complaint thresholds: Orange.fr has specified complaint rate thresholds (e.g., 0.6%) that, if exceeded, will trigger protective measures, including throttling or blocking, particularly for bulk senders.
• Volume and frequency: ISPs impose rate limits on connections and messages per minute or hour. Exceeding these, especially for new or unestablished senders, leads to throttling.
• Authentication: Proper implementation of SPF, DKIM, and DMARC is crucial for ISPs to verify sender authenticity and prevent spoofing. Lack of proper authentication can negatively impact deliverability.
• Engagement signals: Positive engagement (opens, clicks, replies) signals to ISPs that recipients value the emails, while negative engagement (deletions without opening, marking as spam) lowers reputation.

Key considerations

• Adhere to guidelines: Review Orange.fr's specific email delivery guidelines and ensure full compliance, especially regarding complaint rates and bulk sending practices. For example, Orange tightens complaint rate policies.
• Optimize authentication: Implement strong authentication protocols. DMARC implementation can provide visibility into authentication failures.
• Segment audiences: Send highly relevant content to increase positive engagement and reduce spam complaints, especially for Orange subscribers.
• Monitor blocklists: Regularly check if your IPs or domains are listed on any email blocklists, as this can lead to throttling or rejection.
• Clean unengaged subscribers: Proactively remove subscribers who have shown no engagement over a prolonged period to improve overall list health and reduce negative signals.