Whether your email reaches the inbox depends on two things: proving it's really from you, and showing that people want it. Both are in your control.
Prove it's from you: SPF, DKIM and DMARC
These are three small records in your domain's DNS settings. Together they tell inboxes "emails from this domain, sent through this service, are genuine".
- SPF lists which services may send email for your domain.
- DKIM adds a digital signature to every email, so inboxes can check it wasn't changed or faked.
- DMARC tells inboxes what to do if an email fails those checks, and is now expected by Gmail and Yahoo.
In 404 Emails you add your domain under Settings → Sending and copy the records it shows into your DNS provider. The domain page also checks your DMARC record and tells you exactly what to add if it's missing.
Show people want it
- Only email people who agreed. Never buy or rent lists.
- Make unsubscribing easy. A clear link in every email, and the one-click unsubscribe button that Gmail and Yahoo show.
- Keep spam complaints very low. Gmail asks bulk senders to stay under 0.3% and recommends under 0.1%.
- Remove addresses that bounce. A hard bounce means the address doesn't exist; sending to it again hurts you.
Warm up a new domain
If you've never sent from your domain, start with your most engaged people and smaller sends, then grow. Inboxes trust senders whose first emails get opened, not complained about.
Write like a person
A recognisable sender name, a subject that matches the content, a sensible mix of text and images, and no ALL-CAPS urgency. If you'd be annoyed to receive it, so will the inbox filters.
What 404 Emails does for you
Addresses that hard-bounce or mark an email as spam are blocked automatically for your workspace, so you never email them again by mistake. Every email carries an unsubscribe link and the one-click unsubscribe header.