Problems with Email Delivery

Our emails from Odyssey are being blocked (a red tick in Odyssey)

Emails can be blocked for numerious reasons including,  but not limited to, some of the reasons below:

Content and formatting issues

• Spammy content: Using excessive capital letters, punctuation, or too many links and images can trigger spam filters.
• Suspicious attachments: Sending unapproved attachment types like .exe  or .zip  files, or any attachment that appears malicious, will cause blocks.
• Poor formatting: Inconsistent formatting, poor spelling, or unusual spacing can look unprofessional and trigger filters.
• Lack of a subject line: Some systems block emails that are missing a subject line.
• Phishing or spoofing: Emails that look like phishing attempts or attempts to impersonate someone else are often blocked. 

Sender reputation and authentication 

• Poor sender reputation: A history of sending emails to invalid addresses or a high number of spam complaints can damage your sender reputation, leading to blocks.
• Spam complaints: If enough recipients mark your emails as spam, email providers may block all future mail from you.
• Invalid email addresses: Sending to many incorrect or invalid email addresses will result in a high bounce rate, which hurts your reputation.

• Lack of authentication: Missing or improperly configured authentication records like SPF, DKIM, and DMARC can cause a domain to be distrusted. 

  
  

Technical and volume issues

• High volume: A sudden, large increase in the number of emails you send can be seen as suspicious activity and trigger a temporary block.
• IP address blocklists: Your sending IP address may have been blacklisted due to previous spam activity.

• Technical glitches: Issues with server configuration, incorrect DNS settings, or problems with message headers can cause delivery failures. 

  
  

What to do

• Check your content: Make sure your emails are free of spam-like language, attachments, and excessive formatting.
• Improve your sender reputation: Remove invalid email addresses from your list, address any spam complaints, and ensure your opt-out process is clear.
• Verify authentication: Set up and configure SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records for your domain.
• Monitor volume: Increase your sending volume gradually instead of sending a large number of emails all at once.
• Review technical settings: Ensure your DNS records are correctly set up and check for any errors in your email headers. 

Check that your Domain is has all the correct validation records

• Is your Domain (e.g. www.yourbusiness.com) validated for use with MailJet, and does it have SPF, DKIM and DMARC records created? Please check in with us at Creative Technology at support@myodyssey.app, for confirmation.

• Here's our page on creating the correct domain records, for use with MailJet : https://support.myodyssey.app/article/644-what-are-dns-dkim-and-spf-records

  
  

Hotmail/live/loutlook and older style email addresses

• Anecdotally, we have noticed a higher incidence of problems sending to hotmail / live / outlook and older style (e.g. xtra.co.nz) email addresses, and these can result in the following message:

  The mail server [xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx] has been temporarily rate limited due to IP reputation.

• We have found it's easier to try to find an alternative email address for the recipient.

Blacklisted

• The recipient may have blacklisted you. Contact them and ask them to remove you from their blacklist. They could even add you to their 'whitelist' to ensure your emails get through to them.
  • Whitelisting - Creates a list of trusted email addresses that can bypass filters and be delivered directly to your inbox. Whitelisting can help prevent important emails from being marked as spam, and can also help protect against phishing attempts. 
  • Blacklisting - Creates a list of untrustworthy or spam email addresses. Blacklists are used by organizations like internet service providers (ISPs), anti-spam vendors, and free mailbox providers to prevent spam from entering their systems. 
    
    
• Another reason is because your domain has been blocked from sending by Spamhaus. Here's a really helpful page on what Spamhaus is, and how to get off their blacklist. This page is designed for Internet Service Providers and System Administrators, not end users:
  • https://folderly.com/blog/spamhaus-blacklist

Preblocked error

An email is "preblocked" because it triggers the receiving email server's anti-spam filters before it even reaches the inbox, preventing it from being sent to the recipient at all

.Common reasons include suspicious content (like excessive capitalization, spammy links, or poor spelling), a high complaint rate from recipients marking previous emails as spam, and a poor sender reputation due to a high bounce rate or sending to invalid addresses. Technical issues, such as incorrect domain authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), can also cause preblocking. 

Typofix

An email with the "typofix" status means the recipient's email address is likely incorrect due to a typo, such as @gmal.com  instead of @gmail.com . This error causes the email to be blocked because 

the domain does not exist or the mailbox is invalid

Emails from Odyssey are marked as ‘delivered’ but are not reaching the recipient’s inbox

If Odyssey emails are being marked as delivered, that means they are reaching the recipient's server, therefore there is unfortunately little more we can action from our side at this stage.

Here is some advice from MailJet, Odyssey's Third Party email provider, which outlines what may be occurring on the recipient’s end, including possible causes and suggested steps that may assist in resolving the issue.

If your message is marked as "Delivered" in our system, it means we have received confirmation from the recipient's email server that the message has been successfully accepted.

However, sometimes users encounter a situation where the message shows as delivered, but the intended recipient claims they never received it. This can be confusing, but there are a few common reasons why this might happen.

Why Does This Happen?

When we receive a "Delivered" status, it confirms that the recipient's email server (e.g., Gmail, Hotmail, or another provider) has accepted the message for delivery. However, "accepted" doesn’t necessarily mean that the message has reached the recipient's inbox.

The email can be filtered, blocked, or otherwise diverted after being accepted by the server.

Here are a few possible reasons why a delivered email might not appear in the recipient's inbox:

• Spam or Junk Folder: The most common reason is that the email has been filtered into the recipient's spam or junk folder. This is often due to content in the email that triggers spam filters, such as certain phrases, links, or attachments that are flagged as potentially risky by email providers.
• Additional Spam Filters or Email Security Tools Many users or organizations use additional spam filters or security tools that go beyond the default filters provided by email providers. These tools are designed to protect against phishing and unwanted messages but can sometimes flag legitimate emails incorrectly. If the recipient has any third-party email filtering services or strict security settings, the email might be filtered out before reaching their inbox.
• Email Categorization Some email providers automatically categorize messages into different tabs or folders, such as "Promotions," "Updates," or "Social." This means the message may not appear in the primary inbox and could easily be overlooked. Encourage the recipient to check all categories and folders.  Recipient Rules and Filters The recipient might have specific rules or filters set up in their email client that automatically sort incoming messages. These rules might inadvertently send the email to a specific folder, archive it, or even delete it.
• Email Address Issues Occasionally, the email might have been sent to an alternate or incorrect email address that belongs to the recipient but isn't actively monitored. Confirming the exact address is important to ensure the intended mailbox is receiving the messages.

What Should the Recipient Do?

If the recipient cannot locate the email despite it being marked as delivered, they can take the following steps to troubleshoot the issue:

• Check the Spam or Junk Folder The recipient should begin by checking their spam or junk folder to see if the email was incorrectly flagged.
• Search for the Email Use the search bar in their email client to look for the sender’s address or any keywords from the email. This can help locate messages that have been automatically sorted.
• Review Additional Spam Filters If the recipient is using any third-party email security tools, they should review those settings to determine if the message was blocked or filtered
• Check All Folders and Categories In services like Gmail, messages might be categorized into folders like "Promotions" or "Updates." Encourage the recipient to check these tabs to see if the email ended up there.
• Contact Their Email Provider If none of the above steps help, the recipient should contact their email provider for further assistance. The provider may be able to provide more details on why the message was diverted. Proactive Steps to Avoid Delivery Issues To minimize the chances of your emails being missed by recipients, consider asking your client(s) to add your email address to their contact list or whitelist. This reduces the likelihood of your emails being marked as spam.

Learn more about email transmission errors here https://support.myodyssey.app/article/690-email-errors