Have you ever tried to get 15 people into a nightclub for the first time? The chances are that Tony at the door will kindly invite you to go home and play your JBL loudspeaker to your friends...
Instead, go there a few times alone or in pairs, greeting the Tony kindly, and after a few weeks your new best friend will snap you a kiss and be delighted to roll out the red carpet for your dance floor partners!
We're talking about email marketing here, but you get the picture... Your friends are the campaign and Tony... the ISPs!
Optimal deliverability is based on a good sender reputation, and reputations are built. When a new domain/subdomain is used to route an e-mail campaign, and is therefore associated with a new IP address, or when you haven't sent anything for over a month, your sender score (which reflects your good reputation) is at its lowest. Sending large numbers of e-mails under these conditions is likely to result in massive rejection by ISPs to SPAM folders, or even outright blocking.
To avoid being rejected in this way, it's imperative to "warm-up" your IP addresses. This "warm-up" of IP addresses consists of a series of limited mailings, enabling you to build up your reputation with ISPs. Kill two birds with one stone by taking advantage of these "sample" mailings to A/B test your campaigns! Improve the effectiveness of your campaigns while optimizing their medium- and long-term deliverability.
Here are 4 things to consider for efficient heating
Take care of the technical configuration
After setting up the DKIM (Domain Key Identified Mail) and SPF (Sender Policy Framework) protocols developed to reassure ISPs, set up all unsubscribe options for web users, as well as spam complaint feedback alerts.
You'll be able to effectively remove addresses from your mailing process, an operation that ISPs are particularly sensitive to.
Give priority to sending to subscribers familiar with your campaigns
Send your first campaigns to subscribers who have already opened emails in your previous campaigns (at 30 or 90 days). This proportion of openers will guarantee better engagement, helping you to rapidly improve your sender score and your reputation with ISPs.
Adapt the background of your first campaigns
As we've shown in previous articles, some types of campaign have much higher engagement rates than others. ISPs will appreciate a high open rate and take it into account to enhance your reputation.
For your first mailings, and to support this warming-up process effectively, give priority to campaigns that usually have higher engagement scores with your prospects: welcome emails, highly anticipated special events (Black Friday), etc...
Finally, take into account the analysis of your first A/B tests to ramp up the most effective campaigns with the best engagement rates.
Ensure a gradual ramp-up of your shipments
To begin with, opt for regular, limited shipments. Avoid sending "large packages" on a one-off basis. Concentrate on small volumes (between 2k and 5k) sent at regular intervals (e.g. every two or three days). If you don't encounter any deliverability problems during these initial shipments, gradually ramp up your volumes while keeping an eye on your KPI's.
In the event of a deterioration in the latter, and in particular in the deliverability rate, take a break and cut back... until things return to normal, then resume your warm-up process.
That's it! Respect these points and you and your IP addresses will be hot. The dance floor is yours, and emails are delivered!
If you have a question, or would like us to support you in this process, our click-matic warming experts are here to help you optimize your deliverability rates for a long time to come.
