If you’re anything like us, you probably have more than one email address. Between multiple email inboxes and an increasing number of spam emails, it can feel overwhelming. Email providers, Google and Yahoo, understand that frustration and have recently announced some changes to how your inbox manages spam and potential fraud.
As a consumer, that might be great news. For email senders, you may also have questions. We’re here to share what this means, what you might want to consider, and how we can support you, ensuring the beautiful campaigns you send end up where you want them, in the inbox.
What did Google and Yahoo announce about email inbox protections?
Google and Yahoo announced that as of February 2024, they will begin to enforce new email authentication standards, setting a new standard for unsubscribe or opt-out links. Authentication has been a best practice for email marketers for more than a decade, and unsubscribe links have been a standard legal requirement in email marketing for quite some time.
What is authentication?
It consists of 3 TXT records in your DNS, which is in your web hosting:
- DKIM
- DMARC
- SPF
DKIM and SPF can be compared to a business license or a doctor's medical degree displayed on the wall of an office — they help demonstrate legitimacy.
Meanwhile, DMARC tells mail servers what to do when DKIM or SPF fail, whether that is marking the failing emails as "spam," delivering the emails anyway, or dropping the emails altogether.
Sender Policy Framework (SPF) is a way for a domain to list all the servers they send emails from. Think of it like a publicly available employee directory that helps someone to confirm if an employee works for an organization.
In our system, we have a handy tool, which allows you to check if your authentication is in place:
Once you get the three green lights, you then see this when selecting which email address to send from:
For more information, read this comprehensive guide and let us know if you have questions or need help.
