Email Deliverability Self-Audit

SPF tells inbox providers which servers are allowed to send for your domain.

Verify: Check DNS for a TXT record that starts with v=spf1 and includes your email platform.

If missing: Add the SPF record your email platform gives you before sending more campaigns.

DKIM signs each email so inbox providers can confirm it was not tampered with.

Verify: Send a test email and check the headers, or verify DKIM inside your ESP domain settings.

If missing: Add the DKIM CNAME or TXT records from your ESP and wait for validation.

DMARC tells receivers what to do when SPF or DKIM fail, and can send you reports.

Verify: Look for a _dmarc TXT record on your domain. At minimum, start with p=none while monitoring.

If missing: Publish a DMARC record before tightening policy to quarantine or reject.

A branded sending domain gives your business its own reputation trail.

Verify: Check that emails send from a domain you control, not only a shared ESP domain.

If missing: Set up branded sending in your ESP before scaling volume.

Postmaster shows Gmail reputation, spam rate, authentication, and delivery errors.

Verify: Log into Google Postmaster Tools and confirm the sending domain is verified.

If missing: Add the domain and DNS verification record, then check it weekly.

High complaints are one of the clearest signals that subscribers do not want the email.

Verify: Check ESP reporting and Postmaster Tools. Watch for spikes after campaigns.

If missing: Suppress cold segments, reduce frequency, and tighten opt-in sources.

Repeated sending to bad addresses damages sender reputation.

Verify: Check that hard bounces are suppressed automatically inside your ESP.

If missing: Turn on bounce suppression and clean older imported lists before sending.

Purchased, scraped, or unclear list sources create complaint and spam-trap risk.

Verify: Review recent imports and signup sources. Every contact should have a clear opt-in reason.

If missing: Do not campaign to unclear sources. Re-permission or suppress them.

Continuing to mail people who never engage teaches inboxes that your email is unwanted.

Verify: Look for an active segment or automation suppressing 90 to 180 day non-engagers.

If missing: Create a sunset segment and stop sending broad campaigns to it.

Sending to engaged contacts first gives inbox providers better early signals.

Verify: Review the last few campaigns and confirm sends were segmented by recent engagement.

If missing: Start campaigns with 30, 60, or 90 day engaged segments before mailing colder users.

Sudden spikes can look suspicious, especially on new or recovering domains.

Verify: Compare daily send volume over the last 30 days. Look for sharp jumps.

If missing: Ramp volume slowly and avoid sending to the whole list after long silence.

A hard-to-find unsubscribe link pushes unhappy readers toward the spam button.

Verify: Send yourself a campaign, click unsubscribe, and confirm the flow works.

If missing: Fix the unsubscribe link before sending any more campaigns.

People complain when they do not recognize who is emailing them.

Verify: Check the from name, from email, reply-to, and footer identity in recent sends.

If missing: Use a consistent brand or person name and a monitored reply address.

Hype, misleading urgency, and aggressive formatting can lower trust.

Verify: Review recent subject lines for phrases like free money, act now, winner, risk free, or repeated punctuation.

If missing: Rewrite around a real reader benefit instead of pressure or hype.

Broken mobile layouts reduce engagement and increase complaints.

Verify: Send test emails and check Gmail and Apple Mail on a phone.

If missing: Fix layout, font size, button size, and image scaling before sending.