Definition
💡 Yellowlisting (or yellow listing) refers to maintaining a list of email servers that send a mix of good and bad emails. For instance, Gmail, Outlook, and Yahoo are commonly considered to be yellowlisted in that they mostly send good messages, but occasionally send spam.
How Does Email Yellowlisting Work?
If an email server is on the yellow list, it means that the server should not be blacklisted. For instance, when a receiving message is checked against the yellow list and the originating server is on that list, then blacklist checks are ignored.
Effects of Yellowlisting
While yellowlisting is not as severe as blacklisting, it can still have significant impacts on email deliverability:
- Emails may be delivered to spam or junk folders, reducing visibility.
- Emails might be delayed as they undergo additional filtering.
- Continuous yellowlisting can harm the sender's reputation, leading to more severe filtering in the future.
How to Avoid Yellowlisting
To maintain good email deliverability and avoid yellowlisting, follow these best practices:
- Maintain Consistent Sending Patterns: Send emails at regular intervals to avoid triggering spam filters.
- Monitor Engagement Rates: Regularly clean your email list to remove inactive subscribers and improve engagement metrics.
- Avoid Spam Complaints: Ensure your emails are relevant and valuable to recipients, and make it easy for them to unsubscribe if they wish.
- Authenticate Your Emails: Use SPF, DKIM, and DMARC to authenticate your emails and build trust with ESPs.
