If you’re using Warmbox to boost your email deliverability but still seeing a ton of your emails land in spam or promotions, this guide is for you. Maybe your inbox placement rate is stuck below 60% (or worse), and you’re not sure what’s going on. Let’s walk through how to figure out what’s wrong, what actually matters, and what you don’t need to sweat.
Step 1: Get Real About Your Expectations
First off, Warmbox is a tool—it’s not a silver bullet. No software can magically fix a bad sender reputation or sloppy email habits. It helps, but you need to do the groundwork.
- Inbox placement rate just means the percentage of emails that land in the main inbox (not spam or promotions).
- Typical Warmbox users see rates between 60-90%. If you’re much lower, something’s up.
Pro tip: Ignore anyone promising 100% inbox placement. It’s not realistic, and obsessing over it will drive you nuts.
Step 2: Check the Basics – Are You Actually Warming Up?
You’d be surprised how often low rates just mean your warm-up isn’t set up right (or at all).
- Did you connect the right sending account?
- Check that Warmbox is “warming up” the same email address you’re using to send real campaigns.
- Is the warm-up process running every day?
- Skipped days or paused warm-ups can tank your reputation.
- Are you running warm-up for long enough?
- For brand new domains, give it at least 2-4 weeks before expecting miracles.
If you skipped these steps or rushed through setup, fix it now. Don’t bother troubleshooting further until your warm-up is running smoothly, daily, for at least a week or two.
Step 3: Inspect Your Domain and DNS Settings
Warmbox can’t compensate for bad DNS configuration. Email providers check your technical setup before they care about your content.
- SPF, DKIM, DMARC: These are non-negotiable. If you don’t know what these are, look them up and set them up. Use online tools like MXToolbox or mail-tester.com to check.
- Domain age: New domains are automatically suspicious to inbox providers. If your domain is less than a few months old, expect lower placement. There’s no quick fix here—just keep sending responsibly and wait.
Pro tip: Never send bulk cold emails from domains you can’t afford to burn.
Step 4: Audit Your Sending Habits
Even with perfect setup, bad sending habits can tank your inbox placement.
- Volume spikes: Sending 20 emails one day and 500 the next is a red flag. Ramp up gradually.
- List quality: If you’re blasting big, scraped, or stale lists, you’ll hit spam traps and hurt your reputation fast.
- Engagement: High bounce rates, no opens, or lots of complaints? That’s a huge deliverability killer.
What works:
- Start small, increase volume by 10-20% per day.
- Prune out unresponsive contacts, especially early on.
What doesn’t:
- “Spray and pray” tactics.
- Buying lists or ignoring bounces.
Step 5: Review Your Email Content
Yes, content still matters. Spam filters are smarter than ever, but dumb mistakes still trip them up.
- Are you using spammy words?
Avoid phrases like “guaranteed,” “act now,” “free $$$,” weird formatting, or ALL CAPS. - Do you use lots of links or attachments?
Keep it simple. Fewer links = less chance of being flagged. - Is your email personalized?
Copy-paste templates to thousands of people are easy for spam filters to spot.
What to ignore:
- Advice that says you need to write like a robot to avoid spam. Just sound like a real person.
Pro tip:
Send yourself a test email. If it lands in spam, so will most others.
Step 6: Check Your Warmbox Settings
Sometimes the issue is right inside Warmbox:
- Are you using the right warm-up volume?
Don’t go from 0 to 100. Start with the default settings, then ramp up slowly. - Is “auto-reply” enabled?
This helps simulate real conversations, which mailbox providers like. - Are all messages being marked as “not spam”?
If not, tweak your message templates to be more human and less salesy.
Warmbox myths to ignore:
- The idea that more warm-up accounts = better deliverability. Quality > Quantity.
- Expecting Warmbox to “fix” your sender reputation overnight.
Step 7: Look at the Data—But Don’t Obsess
Warmbox gives you deliverability stats, but don’t get lost in the weeds. Look for trends, not perfection.
- Steady improvement is what matters.
If your inbox rate climbs week over week, you’re doing fine. - Temporary dips happen.
If you see a sudden drop, check for technical issues or recent changes to your campaigns.
What to watch for:
- Major, sustained drops (20%+ over a week) that don’t recover. That’s a sign something big is wrong.
Step 8: Common Traps and False Alarms
Not every low number is a crisis. Here’s what NOT to panic about:
- Warmbox’s seed inboxes aren’t the real world.
They’re good for trends, not gospel truth. - A few spam placements are normal.
No sender gets 100% inbox, period. - Promotion tab ≠ Spam.
Especially for Gmail, “Promotions” is fine for most cold emails.
What actually matters:
- Are your real recipients opening and replying?
- Do your campaigns get better over time?
Step 9: When to Change Tactics
If you’ve tried everything above for several weeks and your rates are still bad, it’s time for bigger changes.
- Consider a new sending domain.
Sometimes a reputation is just too far gone. - Use a different sending platform.
Some email services have hidden limits or bad reputations themselves. - Get outside help.
Deliverability consultants aren’t cheap, but they can save your bacon if your business depends on email.
Warning:
Jumping ship too fast just spreads the problem around. Only do this if nothing else works.
Keep It Simple, Iterate, Repeat
Don’t overthink it. Most inbox placement problems boil down to:
- Rushing the warm-up
- Bad technical setup
- Sending too much, too soon
- Ignoring engagement
Tweak one thing at a time. Monitor results. If in doubt, scale back and go slower. Deliverability is a long game—patience and a bit of common sense go a long way.