Email deliverability audit & inbox placement test

The subject line is optimized, the message is personalized, and the call-to-action is compelling. But there’s just one problem…

No replies. No engagement. No conversions. The harsh reality? Your emails might not even be reaching your prospects. Gmail, Outlook, and other Email Service Providers (ESPs) are constantly tweaking their spam filters, and your inbox placement can change without warning. Even a slight misconfiguration in your email setup can mean the difference between landing in the primary inbox, promotions tab, or worse - getting stuck in spam.

We just launched two new tools to help you avoid this headache:

• Email Deliverability Test

• Inbox Placement Test

Let’s go over what each tool checks and why it’s important for your outreach:

Let’s start with the Email Deliverability Test:

The email deliverability test works by analyzing your domain’s email authentication setup and server configurations. To use the tool, you simply enter your email address, and the system performs several checks on your domain’s DNS records and email sending reputation.

The test includes:

• SPF (Sender Policy Framework) check to confirm that your domain has a valid SPF entry, listing authorized mail servers.

• DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail) record check to verify that your emails are digitally signed for authentication and message integrity.

• DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting, and Conformance) record check to ensure that your domain has a policy to prevent spoofing and unauthorized email use.

• MX (Mail Exchange) record check to validate that your domain has properly configured mail exchange servers.

• Reverse DNS (PTR) check to confirm that your IP address has a matching reverse DNS entry, which is important for email trust.

• Blacklist status check to determine if your domain or IP is flagged on major spam blacklists.

Once the analysis is complete, the tool generates a detailed report and sends it to your email, easy peasy.

And now for the Inbox Placement Test:

The tool works by simulating a real-world email sending scenario. Here's how it works:

1. Receive Your Unique Test Code - The tool generates a unique code that you need to paste into a test email.

2. Send to the Provided Email Addresses - You receive a list of test email addresses that belong to different email service providers (ESPs). You must send your test email from the mailbox you want to analyze to these addresses.

3. Analyze the Results - Once the test emails are sent, the tool tracks where each email lands - Inbox, Spam, or Missing - and generates a detailed Inbox Placement Report.

4. View Your Placement Results Score - The tool calculates an overall Placement Results Score (0-100%), which represents the percentage of emails that successfully made it to the primary.

This process helps you understand how different email providers are handling your messages, allowing you to make informed adjustments to improve deliverability and domain reputation.

Why is it important?

Sending cold emails isn’t just about crafting the perfect message - it’s about making sure your emails actually get seen. ESPs like Gmail and Outlook don’t just let any email through; they have strict filters that decide whether your email lands in the inbox, the promotions tab, or gets buried in spam. If your domain authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) isn’t set up correctly, your emails might look suspicious and get blocked. If your IP or domain is blacklisted, your emails could be getting rejected before they even have a chance to be read. And if your content triggers spam filters, your open rates will take a hit. Checking these factors regularly means you’re not just guessing why your emails aren’t performing - you’re fixing the issues before they cost you leads and opportunities.