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Improve inbox placement

Inbox placement is the share of your Broadcasts that reach the inbox instead of the spam folder or being blocked outright. Mailbox providers decide placement from your sending domain's authentication, your reputation, and how subscribers engage with what you send. This page covers the practical changes that most improve placement.

Before you begin​

  • Confirm your sending domain is authenticated with SPF, DKIM, and DMARC. Ask whoever manages your DNS to verify these records are published and passing (confirm the exact steps in your account).
  • Have access to your reporting so you can watch bounces, complaints, and engagement after each Broadcast.
  • Make sure your suppression list is active so bounced and complained addresses are removed automatically.

Steps​

  1. Authenticate your domain. Publish SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records for your sending domain. This is the single biggest factor in whether providers trust your mail.
  2. Warm up gradually. If the domain or IP is new, start with smaller, highly engaged audiences and increase volume over days rather than sending your full list at once.
  3. Send to engaged subscribers. Prune addresses that have not opened or clicked in a long time. Low engagement and spam-trap hits drag down reputation.
  4. Honor unsubscribes and complaints. Keep a visible unsubscribe option in every Edition and rely on the suppression list to keep bad addresses out.
  5. Balance your content. Avoid image-only Editions, misleading subject lines, link shorteners, and heavy spam-trigger wording. Include a plain-text alternative.
  6. Send consistently. Keep a steady cadence and volume rather than large, irregular bursts.

Result​

Over the next few Broadcasts your bounce and complaint rates should fall while open and click rates hold steady or rise. Compare placement-related metrics in reporting before and after these changes to confirm the trend.

Canonical terms: Author, Edition, Folder (Project Folder), Broadcast. See the Glossary.