Achieving Email Deliverability Excellence part 1: Setting Up Your Email Infrastructure

As marketers, we all strive for optimal inbox placement and successful email campaigns. However, several factors impact email deliverability, making it essential to establish a robust email infrastructure. In this three-part blog series, we will explore the key elements that contribute to high deliverability rates. In this first post, we will delve into setting up your email infrastructure, covering IP addresses, Sender Authentication Package (SAP), SSL certificates, and compliance with the CAN-SPAM Act.

In the second post, we will see what is email reputation and the factors that influence it. The third post is about tools that help with the analysis and monitoring of your email campaigns.

1. IP Addresses:

Salesforce Marketing Cloud provides the flexibility of shared or dedicated IP addresses. Here are some frequently asked questions to guide your decision-making process:

Shared vs. Dedicated IP: 

Shared IP addresses are a pool of addresses used by customers with low send volumes, while dedicated IP addresses are acquired for exclusive use. Dedicated IPs are ideal but require a send volume of at least 250k per month to maintain IP warmup. Sharing dedicated IPs across accounts on the same stack can help maintain send volumes if necessary. you can find complete details on dedicated IP Addresses here. 

Determining the Number of Dedicated IPs: 

The number of IP addresses needed depends on your send volume. Each IP address can send approximately 2500K emails per day. Consult your account executive or Salesforce services team to determine the appropriate number of IP addresses required.

IP Warming: 

New IP addresses are subject to suspicion by Internet service providers. IP warming involves gradually increasing send volumes to build a positive send history for the IP address. The warmup process typically takes four to six weeks. you can find complete details on IP Warming here. 

marketing-cloud doesn't support migrating your existing IP address.

 2. Sender Authentication Package (SAP):

The SAP helps brand your Salesforce Marketing Cloud account and includes the following components. You can buy these products individually also.

Private Domain with Link and Image Wrapping: 

Private domains authenticate emails and allow you to point your cloud pages to your company domain. Link and image wrapping to a custom domain is part of the SAP package, contributing to overall account branding.

Reply Mail Management: 

refer to my blog post here for complete details on reply mail management.

Points to Note: 

• SAP is recommended for accounts with send volumes exceeding 250k per month. 
• Each Business Unit (BU) can have only one SAP, which can be shared across multiple MID's in the same stack. 
• Multiple IPs can be wrapped into an SAP domain, requiring SPF records for each IP in the DNS. 
• Private domains can be shared across accounts, and an account can have multiple private domains.

 3. Email Authentication:

Sender Policy Framework (SPF): 

SPF is a mechanism to inform ISPs of the authorized IP addresses that can send emails from a domain. By placing an SPF record in the DNS, ISPs will consider emails legitimate if they originate from the listed IP addresses. Find complete details on SPF here.

DomainKeys Identified Mail (DKIM): 

DKIM uses encryption mechanisms to identify forged or altered emails by using the email header. It enhances email security and authenticity.

The below video from Twilio explains how email authentication works.

Find complete details on SAP here. In addition to SPF and DKIM authentication, SAP provides other features to enhance email authentication. Consult your account executive or Salesforce services team for complete details on available options.

 4. SSL Certificates:

SSL certificates enable encryption of traffic to cloud pages and images hosted on Marketing Cloud. Separate certificates are required for cloud pages and images, and they are domain-specific. Shared domains across multiple accounts can also share SSL certificates. Remember to renew SSL certificates before they expire. Find complete details on SSL certificates here.

 5. CAN-SPAM Act Compliance:

To avoid legal issues, it's crucial to adhere to the CAN-SPAM Act, which regulates commercial emails. Here are the key criteria for compliance:

• Accurate Sender Identification: Ensure the sender is accurately identified in the header information.
• Relevant Subject Lines: Use subject lines that reflect the email's content accurately.
• Advertisement Identification: Clearly identify the message as an advertisement, unless you have obtained express consent from the subscriber.
• Provide Mailing Address: Include your physical mailing address in the email

This post gives an idea of getting your marketing cloud, ready for your email campaigns. In the next post here, I will be writing on the sender score and the factors that can affect it.