Reasons emails don’t get to members
Revision as of 16:12, 15 October 2015 by PSaeger (talk | contribs) (PSaeger moved page Emails Letters and Mailing Lists-Reasons emails don’t get to members to Reasons emails don’t get to members)
Reasons emails don’t get to members
Reasons emails don’t get to members
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“Why do some members say they don’t receive email messages that I send through ChamberMaster?” |
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“Why do some messages “bounce” when I know the email address is valid?” |
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“Why can some members receive messages from me when I send through Outlook but not when I send out of ChamberMaster?” |
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“What can I do to make sure my members get the email messages I am sending through ChamberMaster?” |
Trying to figure out why an email didn’t get to one (or a bunch!) of your members is usually confusing and frustrating. If you have ever asked one of the questions above… read on. While there are many reasons why email messages don’t make it to your members, there are several reasons that seem most common to our ChamberMaster customers. The top three are listed below.
* Note: If you don’t do anything else, read Reason #1 – it may change your life. Okay, maybe it won’t be that exciting, but it could make a big difference in how many email messages get through to your members.
Reason #1: Your chamber’s Sender Policy Framework (SPF) Record may be incomplete or missing
Because of Spam, many ISP's (Internet Service Providers - i.e. Charter, RoadRunner, AOL, Yahoo, etc…) have begun performing a newer type of SPAM check called a reverse domain lookup (also called an “SPF lookup”) to verify that the sending IP address of a mail server is authorized to send email from your domain. In plain language – the member’s email provider is asking, “Is this email message coming from the right place?” If the answer is” no” they will either reject it or filter it to your member’s SPAM folder.
*This is important for ChamberMaster users because when you send email to your members from within the software we list your email address as the sender but route the message through our Strongmail email servers. These servers are specifically designed to help ensure the highest possible email delivery rate, but if a member’s email provider performs an SPF lookup and your chamber’s record does not list ChamberMaster as an approved sender, the message will most likely not get to the member.
Solution: The good news is that there is a quick and easy fix for this – have the company who manages your Domain Name Servers (usually your web hosting company) add ChamberMaster's email servers to your SPF Record.
Free test to see if your SPF records are setup!
You can easily check to see if your domain is already setup by following these 4 steps
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Click on this link - [[1]] |
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Type the domain of your email address in the box (the part after the “@”) and click “SPF Record Lookup” |
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Compare the SPF record on file with the following example: |
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"v=spf1 mx a:smtp01.chambermaster.com a:smtp02.chambermaster.com a:smtp03.chambermaster.com mx:yourdomain.com ~all" |
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If your SPF record is missing or does not contain the chambermaster.com listings, contact your “web guy(or gal)” and have them update the record to include the ChamberMaster mail servers |
Reason #2: Issues with the recipient’s mailbox
Your member’s email message box may be full, the email address may be incorrect, or it may not even exist any more.
Solution: Contact the specific recipient to verify the email address or let them know that their email doesn’t seem to be working properly – they may not be aware of it and you could be the “hero” who helped them not miss that important business deal because their inbox was full!
Reason #3: Your domain may be “blacklisted”
To fight spam, many ISPs limit the number of emails coming from one sender in a given time period. If you exceed this limit your domain may be “blacklisted” and you will have a difficult time getting messages through to anybody.
Solution: Contact any ISP’s which have “blacklisted” your domain and request that they add you to their list of safe senders or “white list”.
Free test to see if your domain is “Blacklisted”
Use the tool at the link below to determine if the domain you use for email is blacklisted by any of the major email servers (and don’t worry, it is normal for some of them to return a “timed out message” – it doesn’t mean anything bad) [[2]]
Final thought:
Unfortunately, even if you have everything setup properly, not every email you send will get through to every member. That’s why we recommend using all the tools at your disposal to get important information to your members – email messages, website updates & banner ads, RSS feeds, “snail mail”, phone calls and personal visits are all part of an effective communication plan to make sure that your members know what is happening at the chamber. The good news is that many of those tools are already available to you as ChamberMaster users!
