Email & deliverabilityPractical guide · updated for 2026
Why Your Cold Email Lands in Spam and What to Fix First
Authentication, list quality and engagement decide placement long before the wording does. Fix those three, then check placement in real inboxes rather than assuming delivery means arrival.
Have this ready
- DNS access for the sending domain
- List with bounce history
- Several test mailboxes on different providers
Step by step
- 1Confirm SPF, DKIM and DMARC pass for the sending domain and the exact From address you use.
- 2Check the domain has not appeared on a major blocklist and that the IP is not shared with a bad sender.
- 3Remove hard bounces, disposable domains and role addresses from the list.
- 4Send from a subdomain that matches the brand rather than a lookalike or shortened domain.
- 5Cut images, tracking pixels and short links from the first message; use plain text with one clear question.
- 6Check placement by sending to a few different mailboxes, including a corporate one, and look in the spam folder too.
- 7Reduce volume and improve replies before increasing it again.
Want it done with you?
I can walk you through it in a Magic Box, show you the exact clicks, or do it with you and keep the recording. You log in yourself; I never see your password.
Common questions
Does a warmed-up domain guarantee the inbox?+
No. Placement depends on engagement and complaints too, and no provider can guarantee it.
Should I avoid links entirely?+
In a first cold message, yes. One plain question gets more replies and fewer spam signals.
What complaint rate is too high?+
Keep complaints far below one in a thousand. Receivers start filtering well before one per cent.