Picture this: you’ve crafted the perfect email, packed with valuable insights, tailored content, and an enticing call-to-action. You hit "send," only to realize most of your audience will never see it.

Why? Because it’s sitting in the spam folder, buried under promotional clutter, or worse—blocked by an internet service provider before it even reaches your recipient.

If you’re tired of watching your hard work vanish into inbox limbo, it’s time to take control.

With a few savvy adjustments in HubSpot, you can ensure your emails will be delivered. Let’s dive into the real steps that boost email deliverability, so your messages get the attention (and action) they deserve.

Summary

Steps That Boost Email Deliverability

  1. Connect Verify Email Sending Domains
  2. Implement a Respectful, Privacy-First Approach
  3. Create Spam-Free, Personalized Content
  4. Regularly Monitor and Adjust Based on Key Metrics
  5. Bonus Tips for Maximizing Deliverability in HubSpot

Step 1

Connect Email Sending Domains

The technical setup of your email system in HubSpot is critical. While it can seem a bit tech-heavy and daunting, these foundational steps ensure that your emails end up in inboxes—not spam folders.

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HubSpot allows you to verify your email-sending domains, an essential step for establishing credibility with email providers. Domain verification signals that your emails are from a legitimate source, reducing the risk of them being marked as spam.

Go to your domain settings in HubSpot and follow the verification steps provided. This simple action can make a big difference in deliverability. You’ll likely need to partner with someone in IT since technical information must be entered in your DNS settings to verify.

Step 2

Implement a Respectful, Privacy-First Approach

Getting your email into the inbox doesn’t just depend on technical adjustments. Earning and keeping your audience’s trust is critical. Demonstrating respect for privacy keeps engagement high, which directly impacts deliverability.

Use Double Opt-In for Cleaner Lists

Double opt-in not only ensures compliance with privacy regulations but also confirms that your contacts truly want to hear from you. By requiring new contacts to confirm their subscription, you maintain a cleaner list and avoid sending emails to spam traps or disengaged users—both of which can harm your sender reputation and deliverability.

To do this in HubSpot, navigate to your account settings, go to "Marketing > Email > Subscriptions and toggle the "Send double opt-in email" switch on.

Follow a Clear Consent Process

As regulations around data and privacy become stricter, so should your approach to consent. Use HubSpot’s GDPR-compliant forms to manage permissions and ensure that every contact added to your list has explicitly agreed to receive your emails. Beyond compliance, a clear opt-in process improves deliverability by filling your lists with engaged recipients.

Step 3

Create Spam-Free, Personalized Content

With your list cleaned up and permissions in place, writing the right email content is key to boosting deliverability. Engagement is one of the best indicators of email quality, so make your emails personal, relevant, and free of spam triggers.

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Avoid Spam Triggers in Subject Lines and Content

Certain words, phrases, and punctuation can trip spam filters and damage your deliverability.

Avoid excessive exclamation marks, phrases like “free offer” or “buy now,” and overly promotional language.

Focus instead on clear, helpful, and friendly messaging that demonstrates real value to the recipient.

Personalize to Improve Engagement

Personalized emails consistently outperform generic ones. Use HubSpot’s personalization tokens to insert the recipient’s name, company information, or any past interactions with your brand. 

For instance, if someone downloaded a specific resource, reference it in your email to create a more relevant experience. This level of customization demonstrates to email providers that your messages are thoughtfully created and relevant, which helps improve engagement and deliverability.

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Step 4

Regularly Monitor and Adjust Based on Key Metrics

Improving deliverability is an ongoing process. To keep your emails reaching inboxes, monitor specific engagement metrics in HubSpot that indicate the health of your email strategy.

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Track Bounce Rates, Unsubscribes, and Spam Reports

High bounce rates can indicate issues with list quality (especially if they are “hard bounces”), while frequent unsubscribes or spam reports may suggest that your messaging isn’t resonating with your audience. Use these metrics to refine your content and list management strategies.

Segment Your Lists for Better Engagement

Segmenting your audience allows you to send more relevant messages, boosting engagement and, in turn, deliverability. Use HubSpot’s segmentation tools to divide your lists by factors like industry, location, or past interactions. For example, if you’re targeting a segment interested in a specific product, tailor the content to reflect that product’s benefits and use cases.

Analyze Open and Click Rates to Gauge Engagement

Open and click rates are two of the most telling engagement metrics. If you notice a drop in these metrics, it’s time to re-evaluate your email content, subject lines, or even your send times. High engagement signals to email providers that recipients value your content, which can help future emails reach inboxes instead of spam folders.

Just keep in mind that not all email opens can be tracked these days due to privacy settings, so email click rates are your most reliable indicator of engagement.

Bonus Tips for Maximizing Deliverability in HubSpot

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Send Consistent but Not Overwhelming Frequencies

Finding the right frequency keeps your brand top of mind without overwhelming your subscribers. Experiment to discover a cadence that maintains engagement without inundating your audience.
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Regularly Clean Your Lists

Even with a double opt-in, some contacts will become disengaged over time. Create a list in HubSpot that captures contacts who haven’t opened an email or visited your website in a year to periodically identify and remove inactive contacts. This keeps your sender reputation strong and improves deliverability.

Read our blog called "How to Clean Your Contact Database Before Your HubSpot Renewal" that goes in depth about how to clean your contact database.
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Encourage Engagement with Clear CTAs

Invite recipients to interact with your emails by including clear, relevant calls to action. For example, prompt them to explore a related blog post, register for a webinar, or download a guide. Links and buttons in your email shouldn’t say, “Read more” or “Learn more,” they should be more descriptive. Positive interactions like clicks signal to email providers that your messages are valuable and deserving of inbox space.

Using Email Marketing to Power Your Sales Engine

Each email that lands in your prospect’s inbox represents an opportunity to connect, add value, and advance contacts through the sales funnel.

For marketers leveraging HubSpot, achieving high email deliverability is about much more than technical adjustments—it’s about building a lasting, trustworthy relationship with your audience. By setting up the right technical specifications, prioritizing privacy, crafting targeted content, and actively monitoring your email metrics, you ensure that your emails don’t just reach inboxes—they become a critical part of your sales engine.

Make Your Marketing A Sales System
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