First email send questions

• 

  Tanya Vanasse

  • June 28, 2019 20:03

  We have had a major drop in open and have tried to figure out why but have been unsuccessful.

   

  Tanya Vanasse | Healthcare Marketing Manager

  CBORD & Horizon Software

  office: 844.462.2673

  email: tgv@cbord.com

  ______________________________________________

   

  

   

  
  
  ------Original Message------
  
  Hi all,
  
  We just sent our first email on Act-On and noticed our open rate dropped quite a bit from our previous platform. Our click through rate maintained at high rate, but we are concerned about deliverability. We have taken steps to ask recipients to add us to safe senders on the new IP, but has anyone else experienced this and did you notice an increase after sending over a period of time? Thanks!
  
  ~Debra
  
  ------------------------------
  Debra Menter
  Chief Executive Group
  ------------------------------
  
  0
• 

  Thijs Krijger

  • June 28, 2019 20:04

  We've experienced the same after moving to Act-On from another mail service provider. But it has gotten better over time, now we're back at almost the same level we had before.
  
  We suspected that it had to do with the domain/IP reputation of Act-On's sending servers. Unfortunately, we discovered that the IP reputation of Act-On's sending IP's is not great. So you're going to have to rely on having your domain reputation high. 
  
  

  Some notes:

  • It's very important to complete the DKIM/SPF setup steps. Without them your email's are also sent from the b2b-mail.net or similar domain, which also doesn't have a great reputation. Having both IP and Domain reputation medium increases the likelihood of your emails going to spam instead of the inbox.

  • When setting up an email campaign, use the tool to check the email's spam score to be sure your email(design) isn't part of the problem.

  • Also, setting the custom marketing domain and making sure all the auto-generated links point to that domain (and not the a123456.acton.com/blablabla) We found that this lowered our spam score considerably. 

  • In addition to that, it's a good practice to not directly start sending to your whole email list, but to build it up over time to 'warm it up', if you have the possibility to do that.

  
  
  For reference, this is the IP reputation our sending IPs over the last 60 days, from Google Postmaster. (99% of emails are sent through Act-On)
  
  
  My best guess is that ... or don't follow industry guidelines. Maybe the new sending IP's that Act-On added at the start of this year might also need to build their reputation first.
  
  When we moved to Act-On we also reached out to their support about this, but the only 
  
  
  
  ------------------------------
  Thijs Krijger
  Binarytree SA
  ------------------------------
  -------------------------------------------
  Original Message:
  Sent: 01-16-2019 08:52
  From: Tanya Vanasse
  Subject: First email send questions
  
  

  We have had a major drop in open and have tried to figure out why but have been unsuccessful.

   

  Tanya Vanasse | Healthcare Marketing Manager

  CBORD & Horizon Software

  office: 844.462.2673

  email: tgv@cbord.com

  ______________________________________________

   

  

   

  
  
  
  Original Message------
  
  Hi all,
  
  We just sent our first email on Act-On and noticed our open rate dropped quite a bit from our previous platform. Our click through rate maintained at high rate, but we are concerned about deliverability. We have taken steps to ask recipients to add us to safe senders on the new IP, but has anyone else experienced this and did you notice an increase after sending over a period of time? Thanks!
  
  ~Debra
  
  ------------------------------
  Debra Menter
  Chief Executive Group
  ------------------------------
  
  0
• 

  Chris Apgar

  • June 28, 2019 20:04
  Thanks for the awesome response, @Thijs Krijger! You've covered so many important points here.
  
  @Tanya Vanasseand @Debra Menter As Thijs mentioned, the most critical component is ensuring that your SPF and DKIM records are set up for your account. In our setup instructions, there's information on how to verify that these are complete.
  
  For the rest of it, it's very likely to be a combination of factors. Any changes to the way you send emails can cause a temporary dip in delivery rates, so new IP addresses plus other things that may have changed from switching platforms (marketing list data, email content, sending behavior, etc.) can lead to lower open rates until email providers see a more consistent pattern. Even if you're well versed in email deliverability, you may be interested to join our upcoming webinar for our take on the best practices.
  
  Hope that helps! If you'd like confirmation that there are no issues on the technical side of your email sending, our support team can assist with that.
  
  Best,
  Chris
  
  ------------------------------
  Chris Apgar
  Customer Experience Manager, Act-On Software, Inc.
  ------------------------------
  -------------------------------------------
  Original Message:
  Sent: 01-17-2019 06:06
  From: Thijs Krijger
  Subject: First email send questions
  
  

  We've experienced the same after moving to Act-On from another mail service provider. But it has gotten better over time, now we're back at almost the same level we had before.
  
  We suspected that it had to do with the domain/IP reputation of Act-On's sending servers. Unfortunately, we discovered that the IP reputation of Act-On's sending IP's is not great. So you're going to have to rely on having your domain reputation high.
  
  

  Some notes:

  • It's very important to complete the DKIM/SPF setup steps. Without them your email's are also sent from the b2b-mail.net or similar domain, which also doesn't have a great reputation. Having both IP and Domain reputation medium increases the likelihood of your emails going to spam instead of the inbox.

  • When setting up an email campaign, use the tool to check the email's spam score to be sure your email(design) isn't part of the problem.

  • Also, setting the custom marketing domain and making sure all the auto-generated links point to that domain (and not the a123456.acton.com/blablabla) We found that this lowered our spam score considerably. 

  • In addition to that, it's a good practice to not directly start sending to your whole email list, but to build it up over time to 'warm it up', if you have the possibility to do that.

  
  
  For reference, this is the IP reputation our sending IPs over the last 60 days, from Google Postmaster. (99% of emails are sent through Act-On)
  
  
  My best guess is that ... or don't follow industry guidelines. Maybe the new sending IP's that Act-On added at the start of this year might also need to build their reputation first.
  
  When we moved to Act-On we also reached out to their support about this, but the only
  
  
  
  ------------------------------
  Thijs Krijger
  Binarytree SA
  ------------------------------
  
  Original Message:
  Sent: 01-16-2019 08:52
  From: Tanya Vanasse
  Subject: First email send questions
  
  

  We have had a major drop in open and have tried to figure out why but have been unsuccessful.

   

  Tanya Vanasse | Healthcare Marketing Manager

  CBORD & Horizon Software

  office: 844.462.2673

  email: tgv@cbord.com

  ______________________________________________

   

  

   

  
  
  
  Original Message------
  
  Hi all,
  
  We just sent our first email on Act-On and noticed our open rate dropped quite a bit from our previous platform. Our click through rate maintained at high rate, but we are concerned about deliverability. We have taken steps to ask recipients to add us to safe senders on the new IP, but has anyone else experienced this and did you notice an increase after sending over a period of time? Thanks!
  
  ~Debra
  
  ------------------------------
  Debra Menter
  Chief Executive Group
  ------------------------------
  
  0
• 

  Debra Menter

  • June 28, 2019 20:04
  Thank you all - I think we're getting to the bottom of this and I've signed up for the webinar as well for some extra help. Really appreciate all of the feedback!
  
  ------------------------------
  Debra Menter
  Chief Executive Group
  ------------------------------
  -------------------------------------------
  Original Message:
  Sent: 01-17-2019 14:51
  From: Chris Apgar
  Subject: First email send questions
  
  Thanks for the awesome response, @Thijs Krijger! You've covered so many important points here.
  
  @Tanya Vanasseand @Debra Menter As Thijs mentioned, the most critical component is ensuring that your SPF and DKIM records are set up for your account. In our setup instructions, there's information on how to verify that these are complete.
  
  For the rest of it, it's very likely to be a combination of factors. Any changes to the way you send emails can cause a temporary dip in delivery rates, so new IP addresses plus other things that may have changed from switching platforms (marketing list data, email content, sending behavior, etc.) can lead to lower open rates until email providers see a more consistent pattern. Even if you're well versed in email deliverability, you may be interested to join our upcoming webinar for our take on the best practices.
  
  Hope that helps! If you'd like confirmation that there are no issues on the technical side of your email sending, our support team can assist with that.
  
  Best,
  Chris
  
  ------------------------------
  Chris Apgar
  Customer Experience Manager, Act-On Software, Inc.
  ------------------------------
  
  Original Message:
  Sent: 01-17-2019 06:06
  From: Thijs Krijger
  Subject: First email send questions
  
  

  We've experienced the same after moving to Act-On from another mail service provider. But it has gotten better over time, now we're back at almost the same level we had before.
  
  We suspected that it had to do with the domain/IP reputation of Act-On's sending servers. Unfortunately, we discovered that the IP reputation of Act-On's sending IP's is not great. So you're going to have to rely on having your domain reputation high.
  
  

  Some notes:

  • It's very important to complete the DKIM/SPF setup steps. Without them your email's are also sent from the b2b-mail.net or similar domain, which also doesn't have a great reputation. Having both IP and Domain reputation medium increases the likelihood of your emails going to spam instead of the inbox.

  • When setting up an email campaign, use the tool to check the email's spam score to be sure your email(design) isn't part of the problem.

  • Also, setting the custom marketing domain and making sure all the auto-generated links point to that domain (and not the a123456.acton.com/blablabla) We found that this lowered our spam score considerably. 

  • In addition to that, it's a good practice to not directly start sending to your whole email list, but to build it up over time to 'warm it up', if you have the possibility to do that.

  
  
  For reference, this is the IP reputation our sending IPs over the last 60 days, from Google Postmaster. (99% of emails are sent through Act-On)
  
  
  My best guess is that ... or don't follow industry guidelines. Maybe the new sending IP's that Act-On added at the start of this year might also need to build their reputation first.
  
  When we moved to Act-On we also reached out to their support about this, but the only
  
  
  
  ------------------------------
  Thijs Krijger
  Binarytree SA
  
  Original Message:
  Sent: 01-16-2019 08:52
  From: Tanya Vanasse
  Subject: First email send questions
  
  

  We have had a major drop in open and have tried to figure out why but have been unsuccessful.

   

  Tanya Vanasse | Healthcare Marketing Manager

  CBORD & Horizon Software

  office: 844.462.2673

  email: tgv@cbord.com

  ______________________________________________

   

  

   

  
  
  
  Original Message------
  
  Hi all,
  
  We just sent our first email on Act-On and noticed our open rate dropped quite a bit from our previous platform. Our click through rate maintained at high rate, but we are concerned about deliverability. We have taken steps to ask recipients to add us to safe senders on the new IP, but has anyone else experienced this and did you notice an increase after sending over a period of time? Thanks!
  
  ~Debra
  
  ------------------------------
  Debra Menter
  Chief Executive Group
  ------------------------------
  
  0
• 

  Debra Menter

  • June 28, 2019 20:05
  Thanks again for all the feedback. We did have some trouble with the technical requirements but all have been fixed and we're still unfortunately not seeing a change in our open rates.
  
  For those of you who mentioned seeing the rates get back to normal after sending for a short time - about how long did it take to get back to your typical rates? We've only been sending for about 2 weeks, but I was hopeful we'd start to see the numbers start to pick up. 
  
  Thanks!
  
  ------------------------------
  Debra Menter
  Chief Executive Group
  ------------------------------
  -------------------------------------------
  Original Message:
  Sent: 01-17-2019 14:59
  From: Debra Menter
  Subject: First email send questions
  
  Thank you all - I think we're getting to the bottom of this and I've signed up for the webinar as well for some extra help. Really appreciate all of the feedback!
  
  ------------------------------
  Debra Menter
  Chief Executive Group
  ------------------------------
  
  Original Message:
  Sent: 01-17-2019 14:51
  From: Chris Apgar
  Subject: First email send questions
  
  Thanks for the awesome response, @Thijs Krijger! You've covered so many important points here.
  
  @Tanya Vanasseand @Debra Menter As Thijs mentioned, the most critical component is ensuring that your SPF and DKIM records are set up for your account. In our setup instructions, there's information on how to verify that these are complete.
  
  For the rest of it, it's very likely to be a combination of factors. Any changes to the way you send emails can cause a temporary dip in delivery rates, so new IP addresses plus other things that may have changed from switching platforms (marketing list data, email content, sending behavior, etc.) can lead to lower open rates until email providers see a more consistent pattern. Even if you're well versed in email deliverability, you may be interested to join our upcoming webinar for our take on the best practices.
  
  Hope that helps! If you'd like confirmation that there are no issues on the technical side of your email sending, our support team can assist with that.
  
  Best,
  Chris
  
  ------------------------------
  Chris Apgar
  Customer Experience Manager, Act-On Software, Inc.
  
  Original Message:
  Sent: 01-17-2019 06:06
  From: Thijs Krijger
  Subject: First email send questions
  
  

  We've experienced the same after moving to Act-On from another mail service provider. But it has gotten better over time, now we're back at almost the same level we had before.
  
  We suspected that it had to do with the domain/IP reputation of Act-On's sending servers. Unfortunately, we discovered that the IP reputation of Act-On's sending IP's is not great. So you're going to have to rely on having your domain reputation high.
  
  

  Some notes:

  • It's very important to complete the DKIM/SPF setup steps. Without them your email's are also sent from the b2b-mail.net or similar domain, which also doesn't have a great reputation. Having both IP and Domain reputation medium increases the likelihood of your emails going to spam instead of the inbox.

  • When setting up an email campaign, use the tool to check the email's spam score to be sure your email(design) isn't part of the problem.

  • Also, setting the custom marketing domain and making sure all the auto-generated links point to that domain (and not the a123456.acton.com/blablabla) We found that this lowered our spam score considerably. 

  • In addition to that, it's a good practice to not directly start sending to your whole email list, but to build it up over time to 'warm it up', if you have the possibility to do that.

  
  
  For reference, this is the IP reputation our sending IPs over the last 60 days, from Google Postmaster. (99% of emails are sent through Act-On)
  
  
  My best guess is that ... or don't follow industry guidelines. Maybe the new sending IP's that Act-On added at the start of this year might also need to build their reputation first.
  
  When we moved to Act-On we also reached out to their support about this, but the only
  
  
  
  ------------------------------
  Thijs Krijger
  Binarytree SA
  
  Original Message:
  Sent: 01-16-2019 08:52
  From: Tanya Vanasse
  Subject: First email send questions
  
  

  We have had a major drop in open and have tried to figure out why but have been unsuccessful.

   

  Tanya Vanasse | Healthcare Marketing Manager

  CBORD & Horizon Software

  office: 844.462.2673

  email: tgv@cbord.com

  ______________________________________________

   

  

   

  
  
  
  Original Message------
  
  Hi all,
  
  We just sent our first email on Act-On and noticed our open rate dropped quite a bit from our previous platform. Our click through rate maintained at high rate, but we are concerned about deliverability. We have taken steps to ask recipients to add us to safe senders on the new IP, but has anyone else experienced this and did you notice an increase after sending over a period of time? Thanks!
  
  ~Debra
  
  ------------------------------
  Debra Menter
  Chief Executive Group
  ------------------------------
  
  0

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