Google and Yahoo implemented enhanced security requirements and spam prevention measures on 1 Feb 2024. This could have a significant effect on your email marketing results.
- Unengaged contacts and bounced emails will have a greater impact on your email reputation, and therefore, delivery of your emails into inboxes of all your contacts.
- A complaint rate of 0.3% (3 complaints per 1000 unique email addresses sent to) is likely to result in your emails being rejected from Google’s network.
- An email frequency of 10 or more emails per month per contact is likely to attract more attention of spam filters.
- New security features on your domain are necessary to avoid significant email deliverability problems.
Here are a few recommended actions to mitigate the risk of poor email marketing results as a result of these latest global changes.
1. Modify Domain Name Sessions (DNS)
Your email marketing platform will have provided technical instructions to modify your Domain Name Settings (DNS). Do not dismiss this. Take action now.
2. Personalise your email content to each contact
Sending the same emails to every contact in an email marketing database is a sure way to annoy some contacts.
Build an online email preference centre to allow contacts to opt in or out of specific content. Personalise email content based on interests and behaviour.
This is a proven way to improve engagement (open and click-through rates) and reduce unsubscribe rates.
3. Act on unengaged contacts
Unengaged contacts are a liability. It’s necessary to employ a semi-automated process to re-engage contacts who have not opened any email in the last four months.
If those contacts fail to re-engage, your email marketing platform should stop emailing them completely.
4. Optimise email frequency
It is now a strong recommendation to not email more than 10 emails per month to each contact. The more frequently you email, the more spam filters will dislike you.
On the flip side, emailing once every few months is just as bad. Optimising the frequency depends on your audience and your content and must be constantly evaluated.
5. Optimise content
There are no set rules that apply to the creation of email content and email design, in order to avoid your emails being flagged by spam filters. It’s a constant work in progress for every email marketer.
Here are a few topics that all email marketers need to stay on top of.
- Craft engaging and relevant subject lines
- Use a personalised and consistent sender name
- Avoid spammy wording
- Optimise your email calls to action (CTA) and links
- Optimise your email design
- Optimise for mobile
6. Monitor results
Your email marketing platform must includes tools to monitor important email metrics and continuously improve.
The world of email marketing, and specifically the security and spam prevention measures employed by global email inbox providers, is constantly changing.
A contact on your mailing list is no longer an automatic asset that you can market to. A contact can be a liability and affect your email marketing to all other contacts.
So, you have two options.
- Aim to master it on your own; or
- Find a trusted partner to implement the right software solution and good processes.
We implement and then help manage a CRM, Sales and Email Marketing Automation solution for Trainers, Syndicators, Bloodstock Agents and Stud Farms wishing to future proof their sales and marketing activities.
Our technical expertise and industry experience makes us a trusted partner for 8 of the 20 top thoroughbred trainers (by national winners), three of the top racehorse syndicators and a leading stallion farm in Victoria.
But it’s not just the big operations that ask for our help. A further 17 businesses use the CRM we implement and manage for them including trainers with as few as 20 horses in work and several software and financial service businesses in the thoroughbred industry.