Navigating the New Anti-Spam Standards for 2024

updated 3 mths ago

We recently did a webinar about these new requirements, you can check out a recording of the session and download the slide deck.

Effective February 2024, email providers are amping up their defenses again spam, malware, and phishing by enforcing a new set of requirements for senders. Google and Yahoo are the first players to implement these new guidelines, geared mainly at bulk senders that push campaigns to large lists of recipients (like you!). At EverTrue, we take security very seriously and are more than happy to help you through these updates.

The requirements are as follows:

Email Authentication: When your email knocks on an inbox to get in, the recipient's email provider acts as a gatekeeper, inspecting the message to see if you're authentic; you'll need to have certain verifying credentials attached to your domain to get through. Tap the shoulder of someone at IT and ask them to help you configure DKIM, SPF, and DMARC - don't worry, they'll know what that means!
Easy Unsubscribe: Unsubscribing shouldn't be detective work, the link to opt out of communication needs to be front and center on all messages sent out to your email lists. For ThankViews, no action is needed on your part, we handle all of this for you! We recommend double-checking that other campaign platforms you may use are following this rule.
Keep Spam Rates Low: It's imperative that you're only sending emails to people who want them. Out of courtesy, but also because you put yourself at risk of getting sent to their Spam folder; this damages your domain's reputation and future deliverability. But good news - if you already have good ThankView Account Health, you're well below the threshold and have nothing to worry about!

Don't fret - our Support Team is here to make sure you're in compliance with these requirements and more than happy you get you set up.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why are these changes happening?

People are sick of spam! This is a way of tightening up whose messages get through to recipients, ensuring that they only receive the mail they want, and none of the mail they don't. Not only this, but it also make sure the messages of well-intentioned senders are protected in transit, and can't be intercepted or altered by bad actors.

How will these new standards affect me?

These changes impact anyone who sends email campaigns to recipients with emails ending in @gmail, @googlemail, @yahoo.com, @ymail.com. As a user of any product in the EverTrue suite, you're going to be held to new standards in order for your communications to be delivered.

What's the deadline for making these changes? What if I want to send ThankViews before we're authenticated?

Google and Yahoo is putting these requirements into effect on February 1, 2024 and it's imperative that you get these updates made as soon as possible. After this date your domain reputation and deliverability will be negatively impacted if you continue to send mail without authentication.

What if I don't comply with these changes?

Plain and simple, your sends will be blocked from being delivered. If you don't have proper authentication, don't provide easy unsubscribing, and don't keep below the spam threshold, your domain’s reputation will be damaged, permanently impacting the deliverability of future messages.

What are my first steps for email authentication?

Come into ThankView Support Chat or email support@thankview.com with your organization's name and the domain you plan to send your ThankViews from. We've written an article that lays out the steps of configuring DNS to get you set up for success.

How do we know if we have DKIM, SPF, and DMARC set up? What if we already have DNS?

Talk to your IT Team/Web Admin! They will be able to go into your domain provider and see if you have authentication requirements met. If you already have DNS set up with ThankView to send from a custom email address, you already have some of the necessary credentials - just have to make sure you tick all the boxes.

How do I know if I have DNS set up?

If you want to see if you have DNS configured, log into ThankView. Under Settings, access your My Portal page and scroll to Send Defaults. If the Custom Email section is populated with your domain, you do have DNS configured.

Don't forget: You could have DNS set up and still be missing some pieces of the authentication puzzle. The best rule of thumb is to reach out to your IT/Web Admin and ask to what extent you meet all requirements.

Is the "Sender Email Address" that we set up the same as using a custom domain?

No, that means you're using another method called Sender Signature, which we will be deprecating in favor of DNS configuration (which is more secure). You will need to follow the steps to configure DNS: reach out to your IT Team, contact Support, and pass off the codes to IT for implementation.

What if we don't have IT Staff? I'm good at following instructions, but my expertise is limited.

It's totally possible to do this yourself, as long as you have access to your domain hosting platform (GoDaddy, Google Domains, etc.). Contact ThankView Support via chat or email and we'll be happy to partner with your to get authentication set up.

Are there any exceptions?

No.

What is the spam threshold being enforced by Google and Yahoo? What levels are considered low?

These providers require that under 0.3% of your domain's communications go to spam. The good news is: if you're a ThankView user with solid Account Health, you're far below this line, as we enforce a spam rate of <0.1%.

What if my emails are still going to my recipients' spam?

This could be happening for a few different reasons. The #1 reason is usually that your email hasn’t been properly authenticated. It is critical to comply with the newest standards in this article.

If someone has unsubscribed from our ThankViews, will our portal remember their address and block future communications?

Yes! Even if you happen to upload them in another batch of contacts, their email will still be flagged as an unsubscriber and you will not be able to send to them. Your best bet is to periodically go to your Contacts, filter by unsubscribers, and delete any gray contacts.

Someone unsubscribed from one of our non-ThankView lists, how can I make sure they're also unsubscribed from ThankView so we don't accidentally send to them?

Good call! Reach out to our Support Team via chat or email with (1) the name of your organization and (2) the person's email; we'll unsubscribe them for you.