You’ve probably heard the buzz, or maybe you even saw a warning message from your email provider: Google and Yahoo are cracking down on spam.
If your first thought was to ignore it, I get it. It sounds technical and complicated. But as an email deliverability professional, I’m here to tell you: this is not just another update to ignore.
Starting in 2024, Google and Yahoo, who together control a massive portion of the world’s inboxes, have rolled out new rules. In short, they are tired of their users getting spammed, and they are putting the responsibility on us, the senders, to prove we are legitimate.
If you don’t follow these rules, your emails, even the ones your customers want, will start landing in the spam folder. Or worse, they’ll just be blocked entirely.
I know this sounds scary, so I’m going to break down exactly what you need to do in plain English. Here is your simple, 5-step checklist to make sure your emails keep landing in the inbox.
First, Who Do These Rules Really Apply To?
Let’s clear this up immediately. Google and Yahoo have stated that these new rules are strictest for “bulk senders,” which they define as anyone sending more than 5,000 emails to their addresses (like @gmail.com or @googlemail.com) in a single day.
If you’re a small shop sending a few hundred emails a week, you might think you’re safe.
Here’s my professional advice: You must follow these rules anyway.
Why?
- It’s just best practice. These rules are the new standard for all reputable senders.
- You might grow. You may not be a bulk sender today, but you might be after your next big launch.
- It builds trust. Following these rules signals to all inbox providers (not just Google and Yahoo) that you are a good sender, which improves your deliverability everywhere.
So, let’s get you compliant.
Your 5-Step Checklist to Stay in the Inbox
Step 1: Set Up Your “Email Passport” (SPF, DKIM, & DMARC)
This is the most technical part, but it’s the most important. Think of these three things as your email’s official passport and security detail. They prove that you are who you say you are.
- SPF (Sender Policy Framework): This is a public list you post on your domain. It tells the world, “Only these services, like Google Workspace or Mailchimp, are allowed to send email on my behalf.”
- DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail): This is a digital “wax seal” on every email you send. It proves that the email hasn’t been tampered with between your server and your customer’s inbox.
- DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting & Conformance): This is the new, non-negotiable rule. DMARC is the bouncer at the door. It tells Google and Yahoo what to do if an email fails the SPF or DKIM check. It’s your policy that says, “If this passport looks fake, either quarantine it or reject it entirely.”
Your Action: You need to add these as simple TXT records in your domain’s DNS settings. This is usually in the same place you bought your domain, like GoDaddy, Namecheap, or Cloudflare. This is the #1 hurdle for most businesses.
Step 2: Make Your “Unsubscribe” One Simple Click
We’ve all been there: trying to unsubscribe from an email and having to find a tiny, light-grey link at the bottom of a 10-page email.
Those days are over.
The new rule requires a “one-click unsubscribe.” This isn’t just about the link in your footer. It’s about including a special piece of code (called a “list-unsubscribe header”) in your email. This code is what makes the “Unsubscribe” button appear right next to the sender’s name in the Gmail interface.
Your Action: The good news is that most reputable email service providers (ESPs) like Mailchimp, ConvertKit, Klaviyo, etc., are handling this for you. Check their help documentation to ensure you have it enabled. If you’re using some custom-built sending solution, you must have your developer add this.
Step 3: Keep Your Spam Complaint Rate Super Low
This is a big one. A spam complaint is when a user manually clicks the “Report Spam” button on your email. This is the single worst signal you can send to an inbox provider.
Google and Yahoo are now enforcing a hard threshold: you must keep your spam complaint rate below 0.3%.
That is only 3 complaints for every 1,000 emails you send. If you go over this, even for a day or two, you will be sent directly to the spam folder.
Your Action: How do you avoid complaints? Simple: only email people who actually want to hear from you. Which brings us to…
Step 4: Clean Your Email List (Seriously)
The best way to lower complaints and improve your sender reputation is to practice good “list hygiene.”
This means:
- Stop emailing purchased lists. Ever. Period.
- Stop emailing that list from a trade show 3 years ago. They don’t remember you.
- Start “sunsetting” unengaged subscribers. This is the practice of removing people from your list who haven’t opened your emails in the last 6 or 9 months.
It feels scary to delete subscribers you worked hard to get. But a smaller, highly engaged list is 100 times more valuable (and safer) than a large, dead one.
Your Action: Use your email provider’s tools to build a segment of unengaged subscribers. Send them one last “Are you still interested?” campaign. If they don’t click, remove them.
Step 5: Make Sure Your Tech is Aligned
This last step is a bit technical but is a common failure point I see.
First, you need “domain alignment.” This just means the “From” address your customer sees (like [email protected]) must match the domain you used to set up your SPF and DKIM.
Second, make sure you have a valid “reverse DNS” (rDNS) record. This is like a reverse phonebook for your sending server. It lets inbox providers check that your sending IP address is legitimate.
Your Action: If you send from your ESP (like Mailchimp), this is almost always handled for you. If you run your own mail server or use a more complex setup, you’ll need to have your IT person or web host confirm this.
Don’t Panic, But Do Take Action
This can feel like a lot, especially if you’re a business owner wearing ten different hats.
But here’s the good news: these rules are designed to get rid of the real spammers. By following them, you’re not just staying compliant. You’re setting yourself apart as a high-quality, legitimate sender. Your emails will actually have a better chance of being seen by the people who matter.
Start with Step 1. Authentication is the biggest hurdle. The rest is just good, honest email marketing.
Feeling Overwhelmed? You Don’t Have to Do This Alone.
If you read the DMARC section and your eyes glazed over, you are not alone. These technical details are confusing, and the stakes for getting them wrong are high.
My entire job is to handle this for businesses just like yours. I navigate the technical hurdles, fix authentication records, and build email strategies that not only comply with these rules but thrive because of them.
If you want an expert to audit your setup and just make this problem go away, let’s talk.