The email landscape continues to evolve, and 2024 promises a significant turning point. As February dawns, Google and Yahoo will unveil revised bulk-sending policies, marking a watershed moment for sender reputation and user experience. These changes are not mere technical tweaks; they represent a conscious shift towards a cleaner, more engaging inbox environment.
This checklist will help you comply with the new email policies for bulk senders enforced by Google and Yahoo starting February 2024. It is essential to ensure that you follow these guidelines to avoid any negative impact on your sender reputation and that your emails are delivered to your recipients’ inboxes.
Note that senders that already include an unsubscribe link in their messages have until June 1, 2024, to implement one-click unsubscribe in all commercial and promotional messages.
1. Sender authentication
Mandatory for senders exceeding 5,000 daily emails to Gmail addresses: Implement and configure all three email authentication protocols.
- SPF: Publish a Sender Policy Framework record in your domain’s DNS records specifying authorized sending servers.
- DKIM: Generate DKIM keys and integrate them into your email headers to digitally sign your messages.
- DMARC: Set up a DMARC policy record in your DNS, specifying how unauthenticated emails should be handled (e.g., “p=reject”). Start with a “p=none” policy and gradually tighten it as you improve.
2. Spam rate threshold
- For Gmail: Maintain a reported spam rate below 0.10% in Google Postmaster Tools. Avoid ever reaching 0.30% or higher, as this could trigger email blocking.
- For Yahoo: No specific spam rate threshold has been defined yet, but prioritize good email hygiene and user engagement to minimize spam reports.
3. Unsubscribe management
- Include a clearly visible, one-click unsubscribe link in every email. The link should be readily accessible, leading to a simple, user-friendly unsubscribe process.
- Process unsubscribe requests promptly, within 48 hours maximum. Automate unsubscribe requests with a dedicated tool or platform (RFC 8058).
- Maintain and respect unsubscribe lists, preventing further emails to unsubscribed recipients.
4. Sender reputation and monitoring
- Use Google Postmaster Tools and Yahoo Y! Sender Hub to monitor your sending reputation and identify potential issues.
- Analyze email delivery reports, bounce rates, and spam complaints to understand user engagement and identify areas for improvement.
- Maintain accurate sender information, including your company name, physical address, and contact details.
5. Additional best practices
- Have a PTR record (reverse DNS) for your sending server’s IP address.
- Use Transport Layer Security (TLS) to encrypt emails in transit, keeping them safe.
- Obtain explicit consent from recipients before adding them to your email lists.
- Segment your email lists and tailor your content to specific audiences.
- Avoid using spammy language and tactics in your email subject lines and content.
- Maintain high-quality email content; avoid excessive images and attachments.
- Format messages according to the Internet Message Format standard (RFC 5322).
- Regularly test your email deliverability and analyze metrics to optimize.
- Stay updated on evolving email policies and adjust your strategy accordingly.
- Use AI-powered email platforms like Netcore that have built-in authentication and compliance features.
Official resources:
- Google email sender guidelines
- Google Postmaster
- DMARC
- SPF
- DKIM
- RFC 5322
- RFC 8058
- RFC 2369
- Yahoo! email standards enforcing
Remember, compliance is not merely a checkbox exercise; it’s a gateway to building trust and fostering meaningful connections with your audience. By embracing these new policies, you position yourself as a leader in this transformation, crafting emails that bring value and resonate with your recipients.
We hope this exhaustive checklist provides a clear and comprehensive guide to achieving compliance with the new Google and Yahoo email policies effective February 2024.
Connect with us to understand how you can benefit from our expertise and experience in adapting to the Google and Yahoo email policy changes in 2024. Serving over 6,500 customers across 40 countries, Netcore delivers 500 million emails every day.
