Hey Salesloft Champions,

I’m Sam Gorfti, a Senior Channel Health Engineer here at Salesloft, and I focus on ensuring our platform's email, dialer, and sms channels are as healthy and effective as possible. We’ve seen your questions and feedback about email deliverability, sender reputation, and how to maintain strong reply rates—and I’m excited to dive into that today.

Think of email deliverability not as a single checkbox, but as a long-term reputation you build with inbox providers like Google and Microsoft. Every email you send is a vote for or against that reputation. Our goal is to make sure every vote is a positive one, turning your sends into valuable conversations.

Here are the key pillars of strong email deliverability that will help you protect your reputation and boost engagement.
 

Pillar 1: The Technical Foundation

Before you send a single email, you need the right credentials. Inbox providers want to verify that you are who you say you are. This is where your IT or Ops team comes in, but it's crucial for you to know what to ask for.

• Authentication is Non-Negotiable: Ensure your sending domain has SPF, DKIM, and DMARC set up correctly. Think of these as your email's digital passport. They prove your identity to receiving servers, which is the first step to avoiding the spam folder.
• Use a Custom Tracking Domain: When you use Salesloft's default tracking domain, your links are shared with other users. A custom tracking domain aligns all links with your brand. This builds trust with spam filters and looks more professional to your prospects.

✅ Action Item: Verify your domain's health directly in Salesloft. Head to your Admin Settings and use the Email Deliverability Checklist to see your real-time SPF, DKIM, and DMARC status.

Pillar 2: Smart Sending Habits

Your sending behavior is constantly being analyzed. Sudden spikes in volume or sending to unengaged lists are major red flags. You can manage this directly within your Salesloft settings.

• Pace Yourself: Keep your email delay at a minimum of 60 seconds and set a reasonable Daily Send Limit (we recommend starting around 250). This makes your sending patterns look more human and less like an automated bulk sender.
• Don't Overwhelm a Single Company: Use the Domain Send Limit (e.g., 5 emails per domain per day). Sending dozens of emails to the same company in a short period can get your domain flagged by their internal servers.
• Personalization is Your Superpower: We recommend personalizing at least 20-25% of your email content. Low-personalization emails look like spam to both filters and people. High personalization not only improves deliverability but is also the single biggest driver of replies.
• Always Provide an Easy Out: Use Opt-Out Links. A prospect clicking "unsubscribe" is far better for your reputation than clicking "mark as spam." A spam complaint is one of the most damaging signals you can send to inbox providers.

✅ Action Item: Review your team's Email Settings in Salesloft. Are you pacing your sends and encouraging meaningful personalization?

Pillar 3: Quality Over Quantity

This is the most important pillar and the one you have the most direct control over. Even with a perfect technical setup, poor data and content will ruin your reputation.

• Prioritize Data with User Consent: Regardless of where you source your data, the principle is the same, send emails to people who are likely to want them. Sending to unverified or uninterested contacts leads to high bounce and complaint rates, which severely damages your reputation.
• Clean Your Data: Immediately remove bounced email addresses and anyone who complains or verbally opts out from your Cadences. Use Salesloft's Contact Restrictions to keep your lists clean.
• Target Engaged Prospects: Use marketing data or engagement signals to focus on people who are more likely to interact positively with your outreach.
• Make it Relevant: The most important signal to inbox providers is positive user engagement. Is your content personalized and valuable to the recipient?
• Include a Call to Action: Encourage interaction by including a clear call to action, like replying to a question or clicking a useful link. Replies are the ultimate positive signal.
• Mind the Technicals: While engagement is key, it's still good practice to avoid broken links/images and keep your email size under 100KB, as these can be flags for spam filters.

✅ Action Item: Before your next big Cadence push, review your prospect list to ensure it's targeted and ready. For the content itself, consider using Salesloft's AI to help scale personalization and ensure every message is relevant.

Building a strong sender reputation is a marathon, not a sprint. By focusing on these technical, behavioral, and content-based best practices, you'll ensure your emails land in the inbox and, more importantly, start the conversations that lead to closed deals.

For a deeper dive, you can always check out our comprehensive Salesloft Email Deliverability Best Practices guide.