African American man sits at his desktop and laptop in order to test email deliverability.

How to Test Email Deliverability

You’re ready to send a new email to your list – but will it go to the inbox or will it land in spam? With the right tools, you can test email deliverability to make sure your campaign lands where you want it to.

With 88% of people checking email every day, email marketing is the most effective way to reach your audience. It’s simple, direct, and allows you to create stronger connections with your customers. 

But your emails have to land in the inbox, and hitting send doesn’t guarantee it. With email service providers (ESPs) like Google and Yahoo employing tougher spam filters, your campaign can easily go to the junk folder. 

Related: Learn the new email deliverability rules from Google and Yahoo

Your email is only as good as your email deliverability. If fewer people see it, you’ll get less traction. That’s why it’s smart to test email deliverability before you reach out to your contacts. Thanks to the tools available today, sending an email doesn’t have to be a shot in the dark. 

Why you should test email deliverability

Think of a mail carrier driving down the road without any way to contain the letters inside. What chance do you have of getting that special birthday card if all the mail is flying out the windows? You must have a way to land all those letters (emails) and packages (attachments) in the mailbox.

The best emails are useless if they land in spam. However, the tricky part is that you don’t know if that’s the case for your emails – unless you test email deliverability beforehand. 

Otherwise, your ESP may report that, let’s say, 98% of your emails were delivered. But that doesn’t mean those emails went to your subscribers’ inboxes. They may have gone to spam. 

To better understand this concept, let’s define email deliverability.

What exactly is email deliverability?

Email deliverability defines the number of emails that successfully reach recipients’ inboxes, not just the junk folder. Don’t confuse it with email delivery, which tells you how many of your emails land in a mailbox – even in spam. Email deliverability measures how many emails specifically land in the inbox, where people can open and read them.

Related: What you should know about email deliverability – From ZeroBounce’s Ciprian Vlad

As we mentioned, your ESP will report your email delivery rates, while your email deliverability can be a mystery. With the right tools, though, you can have more confidence your emails will land in the inbox – and you’ll increase your metrics.

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There is no way to get good email deliverability with invalid email addresses. It’s why you can’t achieve good deliverability without checkng email addresses.

Tools for testing and improving email deliverability

So, how do you get more clarity over your potential inbox placement? Let’s take a look at how you can test email deliverability and identify any issues that may land your campaigns in spam.

Use an inbox placement tester

The easiest, fastest, and most reliable way to test email deliverability is to use an inbox placement tester. This tool lets you test whether your email will land in the inbox or spam for various email providers (Gmail, Yahoo, etc.). 

By making the necessary tweaks before you send the email, you’ll be able to prevent it from going to the junk folder.

Step-by-step process to test email deliverability

Getting feedback on your email deliverability is pretty simple. With just a few simple steps, you can see whether your email presents any errors or issues that prevent it from landing in the inbox. 

Here’s how you can do it. 

Step 1: Pick an inbox placement tester

To make sure you get accurate feedback, you need to find a tool that lets you “peer into the future” with an email before you send it. 

Did you know that aside from email validation, ZeroBounce also allows you to test email deliverability? If you do decide to go with ZeroBounce’s inbox placement tester, here are the next steps to take.

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An inbox placement tester was a pipe dream years ago — but now it’s one of the most useful tools a marketer can use.

Step 2: Create the email you’re planning to send

To test email deliverability the right way, you need an email that you’re planning to send. Don’t just write filler copy – you need a real-life example to get accurate results. So use your ESP or email design tool to create the email you intend to send.

Step 3: Set up your test and choose mailbox providers

Email deliverability can vary from one email provider to another. ZeroBounce allows you to choose from more than 100 international email addresses. Picking the most commonly used email providers, you’ll get reliable feedback.

Step 4: Test email deliverability

It’s time to hit send on your test and get your results. ZeroBounce’s tool paints a clear picture of your potential email deliverability. Also, it breaks down your results by provider. For instance, some of your emails may land in the inbox for Gmail, but not Yahoo.

Step 5: Make adjustments and send

Analyzing your results gives you a chance to identify any issues and fix them. You can make tweaks and then test again, until your deliverability is optimal. Once you get the green light, you can hit send knowing you did everything to help your email go to the inbox.

The best part is you can try the ZeroBounce inbox placement tester for free – just by signing up for an account.

Try the inbox placement tester for free

Issues that affect email deliverability

When your emails land in spam, there could be a broader cause that affects your entire email marketing program. If you’re facing several challenges, your sender reputation may be low. 

An inbox placement tester identifies potential issues your email has, including:

  • Broken code that may lead to rendering problems on all or some devices
  • Broken links, or too many links in your email
  • Too many images and too little text
  • Spam-trigger words in your subject lines or email body
  • Errors in your email header that can affect inbox placement

You may not be aware of these issues and the fact that they can cause your emails to miss the inbox. Approaching your email marketing with patience and diligence often results in higher engagement. 

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A valuable question: “Does this email look like spam?” Some emails immediately look spammy! Don’t do this.

Validate your email list for higher email deliverability

Internet service providers (ISPs) and email service providers (ESPs) ultimately decide whether your emails belong to the inbox or not. However, the way you handle your email marketing plays an important role – and email validation is vital. 

Popular ESPs, like Yahoo, Google, and Microsoft, consider a high bounce rate a red flag for potential spam, so they may route your campaigns to the spam folder. If more than 2% of your emails bounce back, you’re already in the danger zone and must remove invalid contacts immediately. 

Did you know? More than 28% of your email list decays every year due to businesses closing, people changing jobs, or switching to new email providers.

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Email validation tools are the best way to find out the status of your email list, but also where to make adjustments.

How to use an email validation service

Tools like an inbox tester can make testing email deliverability simple, but you should also take steps to maintain and improve the health of your database. Even an email list with high deliverability may not remain that way if you don’t take preventative measures.

The best way you can strengthen your email deliverability is to remove invalid or harmful email addresses from your list. The principle is the same whether your list is under 100 or 100,000. Getting rid of bad data improves your metrics and ensures you don’t degrade into a situation where your emails are going to spam.

Related: Wondering if your email list needs cleaning? Evaluate it for free

Here’s how you can use an email validation service:

  • Bulk email validation. It’s the first line of defense and the best way to bolster your email list. You can upload your entire list to the site platform at least quarterly to check each address. A quality email checker will ensure that every email on your list is legitimate. 

    The tool flags problematic or inactive emails accordingly. You can and should remove those emails from your list. Keeping low-quality email addresses on your list is a surefire way to get plummeting deliverability.  
  • Email validation API. Another way to protect your email deliverability is to make sure bad emails don’t creep onto your list via your email address collection forms. If these forms don’t have a filter for poor-quality data, you’ll continue to acquire bad emails even if you validate your email list in bulk.

    An email validation API connected to your forms helps you prevent that by rejecting fake and invalid contacts right at the point of capture. 
Time to verify your list?

Common pitfalls and how to avoid them

Even with the best intentions, some mistakes can hinder your email deliverability. Here are some of the most common pitfalls that can cause your campaigns to go to spam and fail. 

Adding people to your email list without permission

Adding people to your list without asking them for permission leads to low engagement and potential spam complaints. So never assume someone would like to get your emails. Instead, you can invite them and allow them to enter their own email address into your signup forms.

Also, set up the double opt-in subscription method, where anyone who subscribes to your emails receives an automated email with a unique link. If they truly want to get your emails, they must click that link to certify their interest in getting on your list.

Ignoring email authentication

These days, you must have a game plan for email authentication. As of February 1, 2024, anyone sending marketing emails needs to authenticate their emails to comply with Google and Yahoo requirements. Failing to set up SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records can lead to your emails being rejected outright. 

If you are unfamiliar with email authentication, our team can help you get started.

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The DMARC Authentication Process is a very good thing because it ensures that legitimate emails go where they’re supposed to.

Not having a sending schedule

This is one of the most overlooked things that makes a big difference. You should send your emails on a set schedule.

For example, if your email comes out every Wednesday at 8 AM, stick to that schedule. If you send two emails a month, send them on the first and third Friday, and try to send them at the same time. Consider testing email deliverability as often as you can, especially before sending an important campaign or newsletter.

When you send your emails at regular intervals, you build trust with ISPs and ESPs. You’re not behaving as a spammer does, so your emails are more likely to land in the inbox.

Holding on to disengaged subscribers

Every email list will eventually develop a segment of subscribers who disengage. They stop opening your emails for various reasons. Some may have signed up for a discount or content offer, but don’t really care about what you have to offer. Others may have different interests and don’t find your content relevant anymore. 

When a large chunk of your list doesn’t open your emails, the relevance of your content declines in the eyes of ESPs – and your emails may land in spam. To avoid that, remove subscribers who haven’t engaged with your content in more than six months. 

Skipping A/B testing

Without testing differences with the emails you craft, you miss out on the chance at possible higher engagement and inbox placement. You never know what a difference you’ll get when you test. 

Make email deliverability a priority

Improving email deliverability requires persistent effort. Even if you work on creating the best emails you can, your efforts will be in vain if you do not maximize the success of your campaigns.

If you were sending a parcel in the mail, would you make sure the address was legible? Would you ship an expensive painting without carefully packing it to ensure it wasn’t destroyed? No. Because you hope that what you’re sending arrives.

Email deliverability maintains the same mindset but with electronic mail. You take some precautions and perform regular maintenance to ensure your emails arrive. Your reputation is at stake. 

Try the inbox placement tester for free

Consider it a two-pronged approach:

  • You’re regularly testing email deliverability to ensure there aren’t any problems right before you send. 
  • At the same time, you continuously check all of the boxes for good email hygiene: building your email list properly by getting permission, checking your contacts validity regularly, and ensuring your domain and IP address are authenticated.

Investing a bit more effort into your email marketing will pay off. Start today by thinking about one simple thing you can do to boost your email deliverability and connect with your audience.

Whether it’s verifying your email list or quickly testing an email you’re about to send, you’ll see things beginning to move in the right direction.