The Annual Deliverability Audit: A January Checklist
January is the quiet window between peak seasons. The full-stack audit that catches drift in authentication, DNS, list hygiene, and monitoring before it costs mail.
#List Hygiene
6 articles with this tag
Email Validation Services: What They Can and Cannot Do
Validation APIs verify syntax, domains, and mailbox existence. Where each check works, where catch-alls and traps defeat them, and where validation belongs in your stack.
Spam Traps: Pristine, Recycled, and How Clean Senders Still Hit Them
Spam traps are addresses that never belonged on your list. The types, who operates them, how they end up in your database, and the hygiene that keeps them out.
Bounce Classification: Hard, Soft, and What Your Handling Logic Gets Wrong
Hard versus soft is not enough. How SMTP codes, enhanced status codes, and provider quirks should drive your retry, suppression, and reputation logic.
Double Opt-In: Why It's Worth the Drop in Sign-Up Rate
Double opt-in cuts sign-up volume by 20–30%. Here is why the deliverability and list quality trade-off almost always favours confirmation anyway.
List Hygiene Beyond Bounces: Engagement-Based Suppression Strategies
Bounce-based list cleaning is decades behind modern deliverability. The 90/180/365-day engagement model, sunset policies, and re-engagement that actually works.