Skincare brand email strategies to avoid spam folders

I've said this before and I'll say it again — we've been struggling.. with cold email deliverability. Cold email infrastructure is frustrating - even when following best practices, deliverability remains inconsistent. I researched everything to solve this problem once & for all. Let me break down what actually works: 1) Infrastructure & Setup: -> Domains & inboxes - Never send cold from your primary domain - Use 3-5 sibling domains, 3-5 inboxes each - Keep branding believable; avoid spammy TLDs (.tk, .ml) - Set up Google Workspace or M365 for legitimacy -> Authentication - SPF covers every sender, DKIM at 2048-bit minimum - DMARC from p=none → quarantine once stable (never jump to reject) - Alignment across From/Return-Path is non-negotiable - Test with mail-tester.com weekly -> Compliance - Clear opt-out, real physical address, legitimate interest docs (EU) - Honor opt-outs within 24 hrs max 2) Sending Strategy: -> Warm-up - New domains need 8-12 weeks minimum - Simulate real engagement (opens/replies/forwards) - Use warmup tools like mailwarm, lemwarm or Instantly.ai -> Volume & Pacing - Start 10-20/day per inbox, add +20-50 weekly if metrics stay green - Randomize send windows; 60-120s gaps b/w sends - Respect recipient time zones (9am-5pm local) -> Timing - B2B sweet spots: Tue-Thu late morning & early afternoon - Avoid Mondays (inbox overload) & Fridays (weekend mode) 3) Content & Copy: -> Subject lines - 6-10 words, human and specific - Personalized context beats cleverness every time - Avoid fake urgency, ALL CAPS, excessive punctuation!!! - Test: "Quick question about [specific company pain point]" -> Body - Short, skimmable, 1 idea + 1 ask maximum - Personalize in layers: hyper-custom for top 10%, segment-level for rest - Use natural language, avoid marketing speak - Images and links kill deliverability - use sparingly -> CTA - Make next step tiny (15-min scan, 1-question reply, "worth a chat?") - Single CTA only - multiple options confuse and reduce response 4) List & Data: -> Sourcing - Prioritize intent and fit over volume always - Dedupe domains (max 1-2 people per company per campaign) - Use Apollo, ZoomInfo or Clay for verified contacts -> Hygiene - Verify syntax + domain + mailbox before sending - Remove hard bounces instantly (never retry) - Prune unengaged cohorts quarterly - Never recycle unsubscribed contacts -> Segmentation - Hot/Warm/Cold bands by recency + engagement - Throttle "Cold" segments heavily 5) Monitoring & KPIs: - Delivery rate ≥98%; investigate anything <95% - Bounce rate <2% (≤1% is excellent) - Spam complaints <0.1% absolute ceiling - Track domain/IP reputation, blacklist status weekly - Use seed accounts & inbox tests ps. Have a response/POA for objections like “not the right person” / “not decision maker” / “No longer at company” / “have in-house team already” / “please contact john from abc” You can also use Valley on LinkedIn - book 2 demos/week for every seat.

Checked my spam folder yesterday and found SO MANY DTC brands that used to be in my promotions tab. Even found double opt-in messages in there. Seems like Google/Yahoo updates are working hard to protect consumers from receiving unwanted messages 👏 For us, email marketers that means taking time to update our sending strategies and tighten the engaged segments. If segmentation was not your top priority before, it definitely should be now! Segmentation allows you to target people based on their intent, their interests, the stage of their customer journey, demographics, location and more. Some basic tips: 1. Check your flow filters. Make sure that people are not receiving your Browse, Cart and Checkout Abandonment flows all at the same time. Think about whether people in your Welcome or Thank You flows need to receive your email campaigns. 2. Make sure to send to your Engaged Segment only. And remember, Open Rates are not the true indication of engagement. 3. Send relevant content. Engaged segment is great, but imagine how many different customer personas are there! You have VIPs, prospects, one-time buyers, low AOV, high AOV, and discount shoppers - they all resonate with a different message. So take the time to really look at your audience and craft compelling offers for them. 4. Send more text-based emails. It is not a secret that text-based emails tend to land in the inboxes more frequently than the image based. So utilize that knowledge, especially if you need to fix your reputation among inbox providers. Plain text emails have the power to stand out among the other promotions tab messages and feel much more personal than the image-based sent-to-everyone flashy email. 5. Clean your list and set up proper exclusion segments. Remove spam trap accounts, unengaged, chronic bouncers, and those who have long story of not opening. What else will you add here?

After auditing 100+ ecommerce email programs, I've found something concerning: Most brands focus on the wrong deliverability factors. Yes, everyone knows about: Using double opt-in Cleaning your list Avoiding spam words But here are the advanced tactics actually moving the needle for our clients: 1. Engagement-Based Sending Identifying highly engaged subscribers Sending to them first Gradually expanding to less engaged segments Only sending to the full list for critical campaigns 2. IP and Domain Warming New ESP? Don't blast your entire list day one. We follow this warming schedule: Week 1: 10% of engaged subscribers Week 2: 25% of engaged subscribers Week 3: 50% of list Week 4: Full list 3. Authentication Isn't Optional We recently took over a client's program where they had: No SPF records No DKIM No DMARC policy After implementing all three: Deliverability did a 180. 4. The Gmail Reply Hack Want to boost Gmail deliverability? Ask for replies. When subscribers reply, it signals to Gmail you're a trusted sender.

Poor email deliverability creates an invisible wall between you and your customers. We see this scenario play out too often: → A marketing team creates amazing content → The brand sends it out → Emails go to spam or bounce → Sales opportunities vanish That’s why you *must* make email deliverability your top priority. Here’s how: ↓ 1. Track key metrics daily Leverage your ESP to monitor: → Unsubscribe rates → Bounces → Domain health When numbers spike, find out why— Was it a specific campaign? A particular segment? Pinpoint the issue and fix it. 2. Segment strategically Ditch the “one size fits all” approach— Break your list into targeted groups: → New subscribers → Frequent buyers → People who browse but don’t buy → Fans of certain products → Engagement tracks based on varying levels of engagement …then write emails that fit each one. A skincare brand we work with split their list by skin type— Oily skin folks got different product recs than dry skin types… …and opens jumped 25% in just one month. 3. Keep your list clean Get rid of… → People who never open emails → Emails that bounce → Inactive contacts A small, engaged list beats a big, quiet one— This helps you avoid the dreaded Gmail promotions tab (once you get in, it’s hard to get out!). 4. Make it personal Use what you know about each subscriber to… → Recommend products they’ll like → Send emails when they’re likely to read → Create content based on their likes and needs Make your emails feel like they’re just for them. These elements work together: → Segmentation boosts relevance → Monitoring catches issues early → A clean list helps emails get through → Personal touches keep people reading The goal isn't more emails— It’s *better* emails that actually get in the hands of consumers when they are most likely to buy Quality content + the right consumers + engaged readers… …that's the formula for turning emails into revenue.

New Strategies For Keeping Your Emails Out of Spam 👇 You might be making amazing emails. But if no one sees them, they won’t drive revenue. Step 1: Your Domain Has a Credit Score (And You Probably Don’t Know What It Is) Inbox providers like Google and Yahoo assign a kind of “credit score” to your domain based on how people interact with your emails. Open rates, clicks, replies = build a good credit score → inbox. No engagement, high bounce/spam complaints = bad credit score → spam folder. Use GlockApps to check yours (not a sponsor I just like them). They’ll give you test email addresses, you send a campaign, and they’ll show you exactly where you’re landing (Inbox vs Promotions vs Spam). Goal: You want 75%+ inbox placement. Step 2: Set Up Your Technicals (Takes 5 Minutes) This is non-negotiable. Missing this = guaranteed spam. Make sure the following records are correctly set up: SPF DKIM DMARC If you're using Klaviyo, this is pretty painless and most of it is automated. You just need to manually add a DMARC record (Klaviyo has an article in this if you look it up). Once it's done, it's done forever. Step 3: Warm Up Your Domain (Even If You’ve Been Sending for Years) Think of warming up your domain like building trust with inbox providers. You wouldn’t apply for a $100k loan with zero credit history. Same thing here. If you’re switching domains or have low open rates, treat your list like it’s fresh: Example Warm-Up Cadence: Start with 250 contacts. Then 250 → 500 → 1000 → 2000 Send unique campaigns every other day. Monitor open rates and only scale when engagement stays strong. Even with a massive list, you can get to full sends within 1 month. Step 4: Send Consistently! In 2025, going silent for weeks and blasting your full list out of nowhere is a huge red flag. Set a minimum cadence of 2 emails per week, even if it’s just a simple text-based update. This keeps your domain “active” and builds positive sending history over time. Step 5: Engagement Is Necessary Open rates, clicks, and replies tell inbox providers, “Hey, people actually want this.” Shoot for: 50%+ open rates 0.5%+ click rates <0.1% spam complaint rate Pro tip: If you’re not hitting those numbers, STOP sending to everyone. Instead, build a 30-day engaged segment (people who opened/clicked in the last 30 days) and only send to them. Once you’re consistently hitting 50%+ open rates, expand to 60, 90, 120-day segments. Bonus: Simple Emails = Higher Engagement Fancy designs are cool. But inbox providers love engagement, not aesthetics. Mix in text-based founder emails. Keep buttons clear. Add PS sections. Make it feel personal. It’s not just better for engagement, it builds trust and makes people want to open the next one.

After optimizing email deliverability (NOT THE SAME as email open rates lol) for 50+ ecommerce brands over 3+ years, This is how you need to view deliverability: Good reputation = Primary tab placement Average reputation = Promotions tab Poor reputation = Spam folder Most brands focus all their energy on subject lines and email design (not a bad thing) But none of that creative work matters if your emails aren't actually reaching inboxes. Let’s do the math: If a brand sends an email that 100 people see, 20 open, and 2 buy Vs: If a brand sends an email that 200 people see, 40 open, and 4 buy That makes a massive difference with a list of 10,000 subscribers right? Here's the email deliverability system we use to fix this: → Configure a dedicated sending domain in Klaviyo settings → Add DMARC record for proper authentication → Implement gradual domain warming over time → Monitor performance per ISP and adjust accordingly We use specific tools to track and improve deliverability performance: - Google Postmaster Tools gives us Gmail-specific insights and data. - GlockApps provides comprehensive spam testing across all major providers. - GMass helps us verify actual inbox placement rates. These are our target benchmarks that separate good from great performance: → Open rate: 30%+ → Click rate: 0.4%+ → Delivery rate: 97%+ → Bounce rate: <1% → Spam rate: <0.03% The reality is that deliverability is the foundation everything else builds on. Everything else is just a small percentage increase on top of that foundation. DM 'Email' for a full audit of your brand's emails

After fixing email deliverability for dozens of 7-8 figure brands... Here's our exact 4-week plan to get out of spam: Week 1: Technical Foundation 👉 Setup SPF, DKIM, DMARC, and branded sending domain 👉 Run deliverability tests to view performance 👉 Clean your list of invalid & unengaged subscribers Week 2: Start Small 👉 Setup key, high engagement flows (Welcome, Post-Purchase, etc.) 👉 Create 14-day/30-day engaged segments 👉 Start emailing 2x/week (no promotions) Week 3: Monitor & Adjust 👉 Aim for 30%+ open rates 👉 Watch spam complaints and bounce rates 👉 Continue emailing for another week Week 4: Scale Smart 👉 Expand campaigns to 30-day/60-day engaged 👉 If open rates drop below 30%, scale down segment size 👉 Include a variety of content campaigns Getting out of spam isn't about quick fixes. It's about building trust with inbox providers over time.

The worst thing for eCom brand's email marketing strategy is landing in the spam folder. You don't get seen. You don't get opened. You don't get clicked. You don't make the sale. Yet with all this knowledge I still see many brands not adopting best practices. 90% of brands I audit have the following in common: 1. Lack of adoption with tools like Google Postmaster 2. No exclusion segmentation to protect them from spam 3. Not adapting to Apple privacy and bot clicks. 4. Not keeping a close eye on engagement metrics when using large segments The game is getting harder. Rules are getting tighter. Yet, brands are still not adapting. Over the next 2 years, I visualise a massive opportunity for deliverability experts. If you're an eCom brand or marketing manager reading this you can do the following today to start a positive trajectory: 1. Implement Google Postmaster and monitor domain health bi-weekly. 2. Implement exclusion segments such as spam traps, spam accounts and bounced emails. 3. Exclude Apple Privacy from your engagement metrics for a true picture of the data. 4. Remove bot clicks from your click data to get a true picture of the data. Deliverability isn't a sexy topic. But landing in the spam folder won't help your business goals.

What do spam and beauty have in common? Both are in the eye of the beholder! No matter how important you believe your messages to be, ultimately the recipients (both provider and individual) determine their worth. When your email is being rejected or filtered as spam, maybe the problem is a technical one! But maybe, just maybe, the problem...is you. 😩 Since filters are assessing mail based on recipient response and data quality, this is a time for self reflection. Once you've confirmed that mail delivers to your own mailbox successfully, verified that authentication is passing, and ensured the addresses look syntactically correct, now what?! 🏫 Isolate the outcome. Is it bounces? Spam folder placement? Is it limited to one mailbox provider, or affecting domains across the board? 🏫 Determine the potential cause. Reputation can degrade over time, with decreased engagement and/or poor data quality leading to spam folder placement, followed by delays and blocks. Mailbox providers may also block senders outright without even filtering their messages as spam, depending on the severity of the issues they're seeing. Review your sending behaviors and try to correlate them to your outcomes. When did you first notice a problem? Prior to that, did you see engagement take a dip, or were deliveries delayed? Did some mail receive elevated spam complaints, or did you send to a batch of unengaged addresses? What do those outcomes mean about your own practices? 🏫 Make a change. Or several! Most often, a reputation problem isn't due to just one mistake, but a series of them that snowballed over time with repetition and growth. If you're a little loose with the opt-in, tighten that up! If you only perform single opt-in, double it! If you send too often, knock it off! Your success is directly relative to how much people want to hear from you, not based on how critical the message is to your business goals. The filters are just learning, and your job is to teach them that your mail is valuable--through actions, not words. #deliverability