Stop Undeliverable Emails in their Tracks

You know the feeling: hours spent writing and curating the perfect newsletter; double-checking and triple-checking spelling and grammar. You write and rewrite your subject line over and over (and over) again until it’s perfect.?

Then (often hours later), you’re relieved to finally hit ‘send.’?

But as soon as the email dispatches, your inbox starts to come alive with new emails. You open your inbox curiously to discover the dreaded message??:?

??“Email delivery failed.” ??

While everyone has the misfortune of getting this notice from time to time, internal communicators – responsible for sending hundreds of emails weekly – see it far too often. But they shouldn’t have to.

Given that internal comms teams deliver key company updates to dozens if not thousands of employees, an undelivered email is more than a nuisance. It can impede a department and even an entire organization from hitting its goals.??

Undelivered internal communications impact business operations and employee engagement—even safety if you’re dealing with emergency alerts or crisis communications .

Luckily, there are tons of new tools and techniques available these days to dodge undeliverable emails.???????

But the first step is understanding what exactly happens when an email can’t reach its destination.??

The three most common culprits behind an undeliverable email are:

??Outdated email lists: make sure your email lists are updated regularly when an employee leaves or moves onto a new role.?Try out a list management tool to automate this process.

??Sender reputation: keep your sender credibility high to avoid being marked as spam. That means using segmented emails to send the right message to the right audience.

??Email list structure: this need to always be correctly formatted ensuring that spaces and punctuation are in the right order.?There are tons of list structure templates out there to use.

With these hurdles in mind, let’s talk about solutions.?

From dodging spam folders to perfecting your sender reputation, we've got a few insider tips to ensure your messages land right where they belong – in your recipients' inboxes!?

So, grab a seat, get your notepad out, and jot the tips below into an email pre-send checklist to master the art of email deliverability. ??

Send strategically

We have two words for you: timing and segmentation.

• Timing: even if there isn’t anything technically wrong with your email, it could have low credibility. Sending emails at the best time and frequency means engaging more people, getting more clicks, and building up your email reputation.?
• Segmentation and Goals: we've said it before and we'll say it again — along with sending emails at the right time, tailoring your emails to specific recipients and objectives leads to better engagement and better credibility in the long run.

Troubleshoot quickly

Spot the first signs that an email won’t be delivered early on:?

• Check email subscribers: regularly clean and update your email lists. For example, every time an employee leaves, make a checklist that includes removing them from your email lists.?
• Use a tool that makes email list updates easy: ContactMonkey’s list management feature helps you manage and edit your Gmail and Outlook email lists at the click of a button.

Ensure internal email security

As we discussed earlier, email deliverability is all about credibility — and this has a lot to do with your email security.

• Implement email security protocols like DKIM, SPF, and DMARC.
• Utilize internal email tools for seamless integration and better control.
• Respect legal regulations like CAN-SPAM and GDPR.

Be original

If your email sounds robotic, it might get marked accordingly. That means getting sent straight to the spam folder. To avoid this:

• Send tailored emails to segmented email lists for improved engagement. Your New York team, for example, shouldn't always be receiving the same messages as your Toronto team.
• Craft engaging content to ensure that your emails aren’t marked as bot messages; if you’re not sure where to start, use an AI email writing assistant for ideas (but always add a personalized touch—and never simply copy, paste, and send).?
• Monitor email analytics to refine strategies and personalize internal emails for better engagement.

Guarantee email delivery with ContactMonkey

Want to ensure email delivery every. single. time? Use an internal communication software with enhanced security features, email personalization, and comprehensive analytics. ContactMonkey helps you:

• Gain insights with robust analytics to enhance communication strategies.

• Track engagement and personalize emails to maximize effectiveness.
• Simplify segmentation with advanced list management features.

Your Takeaways

Undeliverable emails are common. But they don’t have to be. With a robust email communications strategy and secure internal communications tools, you can dodge the “email undeliverable” message every time.?

Want to learn more? Read our full blog on how to improve internal email deliverability !