The Art of Deliverability
Edition #1: Starting the year right!

Welcome to the first edition of The Art of Deliverability, where each month, our team of industry experts will share tips, tricks, best practices and actionable insights to help you maximize email deliverability and ensure your messages reach their intended destination – your subscriber's inbox. Whether you’re a seasoned expert or starting with email marketing, The Art of Deliverability will keep you ahead of the curve.

As we enter 2025, it’s the perfect time to reflect on your email program’s performance and set yourself up for success in the new year. In this first edition, we’ll cover why an annual deliverability review is essential, key metrics you should be analyzing, and how to adjust your strategy to maintain a strong email performance all year long.

The importance of post-peak pulse check

The new year offers a fresh start, making it an ideal time to evaluate your email program's health. Mailbox Providers (MBPs) like Gmail, Yahoo, and Hotmail continuously monitor for signs of poor sending practices or subscriber fatigue.

Some fluctuation in delivery metrics is expected over time and isn’t necessarily a cause for concern. However, if your emails have shown significantly lower engagement, a spike in complaints, or a higher bounce rate, your long-term sender reputation and inbox placement may be affected.

Conducting a comprehensive review now helps you assess how well your email strategy is performing and where adjustments are needed. Ask yourself:

  • Were your emails delivered as expected?
  • Did your audience engage with your content?
  • Are there any red flags that could compromise future campaigns?

Taking the time to evaluate now will set you up for smoother sending in the months ahead.

Key metrics to review

To gain a clear understanding of your performance, let’s start by reviewing these critical metrics:

Open rate

A healthy open rate — typically above 18% — indicates that your emails are reaching inboxes and capturing attention. However, it’s important to be mindful of Mail Privacy Protection (MPP), which can inflate open rates, especially if a significant portion of your audience uses Apple devices. If you noticed a decline in email open rates throughout the holiday season, it could indicate inbox placement issues or subscriber fatigue.

Bounce rate

Aim to keep your bounce rate below 2%. Higher rates are often a result of outdated or invalid email addresses, due to inconsistent sending or poor list hygiene. Addressing this problem promptly is crucial to maintaining a good Sender Reputation.

Spam complaint rate

At Emma by Marigold, we advise keeping your complaint rate below 0.02%. Higher rates suggest that your emails are not welcomed in your subscriber's inbox. MBPs take spam complaints seriously and consistently high complaints can harm your Sender Reputation, limiting your ability to reach inboxes.

Unsubscribe rate

A spike in unsubscribes may indicate that your content missed the mark or that you were sending more frequently than your audience could handle, which can be a common issue during the peak send season.

Small volumes of unsubscribes are a natural part of maintaining a healthy list, but consistently high rates are a signal to adjust your email program. To reduce unsubscribes and keep your audience engaged, implement a preference center where subscribers can choose the type and frequency of emails they receive. Additionally, reassess your email cadence to find the right balance between staying top of mind and respecting your subscribers’ inbox.

Engagement by domain

It’s always good to analyze how your emails perform across different domains like Gmail and Yahoo. If you notice variations or patterns in engagement, this can highlight domain-specific issues that may require targeted interventions. Emma by Marigold users can leverage the Insights tab to track domain-specific performance over time.

Segment and re-engage

Once you’ve reviewed your post-peak metrics, now it’s time for the fun part – segmenting your audience and start planning your email and deliverability strategy for 2025. We recommend starting simple and follow the three ‘R’s:

Reward engaged subscribers

These are your most active subscribers— and can be categorized as those who opened or clicked within the last 30 to 90 days. Keep them engaged with personalized, relevant content, and consider rewarding their loyalty with exclusive offers or a simple “thank you” campaign.

Reactivate unengaged subscribers

This group engages less frequently but still may show interest in your content by interacting (clicking or opening) a campaign within the last 90-180 days. All is not lost with these subscribers - in fact, tapping into these subscribers can involve minimal effort but high returns as they’re already invested and understand your business or product. A good way to do this is by sending them a re-engagement campaign, which can remind them why they subscribed to your emails and highlight the value of staying connected. Offering an “opt-down” option for fewer emails rather than a full unsubscribe can help retain this segment.

Remove inactive subscribers

With your year-start review complete, it’s time to prepare for the year ahead. January is an excellent opportunity to refresh your email program by applying these strategies. A clean, engaged, and healthy list is essential for maintaining a strong sender reputation and high deliverability rates.

Emma’s powerful segmenting capabilities make it easy to identify active and inactive subscribers with just a few clicks. You can create custom segments based on engagement metrics like opens and clicks, allowing you to target inactive subscribers with re-engagement campaigns before considering removal. This keeps your list healthy while maximizing your email marketing potential.

Looking ahead: January planning

With your post-peak review complete, it’s time to prepare for the new year. January is an excellent opportunity to put these strategies into practice and give your email program a refresh.

In next month’s edition of The Art of Deliverability, we’ll explore best practices for list hygiene and management, and aligning your email program with emerging trends to optimize deliverability in 2025.

Set yourself up for success in 2025 (and beyond)

Deliverability isn’t set and forget — in fact, it requires attention and strategic adjustments to ensure your emails continue to land in the inbox. By regularly reviewing your key metrics, segmenting your audience, and staying up-to-date on important industry changes, you’ll be well-positioned for long-term success.

And, remember, deliverability is earned. Keep your list clean, prioritize engagement, and always look for opportunities to optimize.

About the Author

Deliverability Manager John Peters has been with Marigold for over 10 years and has extensive expertise in email compliance and deliverability. John is passionate about helping senders navigate the complexities of email deliverability and fostering a healthy email ecosystem that benefits both senders and recipients.

More Content by John Peters

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