 In conversations with email marketers they commonly interchange the words bounces, blocks and blacklists not really knowing the difference between each. So I’ve decided for this blog post to clear up this confusion by defining each according to the purpose they serve, with recommendations for how to deal with them.
Bounces
Most bounces are temporary and are caused by many factors. For example, the recipients inbox is full or the email client is noticing too high of a volume threshold – these are considered soft bounces. On the other hand there are hard bounces which are permanent, typically caused by invalid email addresses. Either way there are methods you can put in place to help prevent receiving email bounces. The easiest and best thing to do is segment your email list by recent email subscribers, openers, and/or clickers. This will increase the probability of your email marketing reaching those active subscribers, and of keeping their email addresses active.
Blocks
Blocks are a bit more serious because at this point the Internet service provider (ISP) has purposely decided to keep your email marketing from delivering into their system. Blocks are usually put into place because the ISP has determined that you are a risky email sender. You can help prevent a block by closely guarding your spam complaints and soft/hard bounces. And typically with blocks, if you can justify preventative methods you’ve put into place, you can request the block to be removed, or wait the standard 48 hours for automatic block removal.
Blacklists
Of the three, if you are following all email marketing best practices and are a conservative marketer, blacklists are the easiest to avoid. Yet at the same time, once you're on a blacklist it's very difficult to get off. So let’s talk about what a blacklist is.
A blacklist is a system setup by various organizations whose main purpose is to catch email marketers who send to non-subscribed email addresses. Typically what blacklist operators do is create various email addresses (called spam traps) that they post in numerous locations. They will never use these addresses for subscription to any email list. That being said, if that email address receives a mailing, they know that the sender grabbed this information without proper consent. Thus the email sender is put on a blacklist.
Any ISP/email client that subscribes to the blacklists will in turn reject any email from that sender. And to be removed from the blacklist you will have to do a complete cleaning of your email list, and prove to the blacklist organizations that you are no longer hitting their spam traps. So instead of trying to get off of one, prevent it by assuring you follow a strict double opt-in process, confirming each person does in fact want to receive your piece of digital mail.
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About the Author
Ghia Espino is an account manager at Lyris. She strategizes with clients to improve their online marketing performance and works as their Lyris advocate.
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