If you're running B2B email campaigns, you already know the pain of bounced emails: wasted sends, trashed sender reputation, and that sinking feeling when your numbers look great—except for your deliverability. If you're tired of throwing emails into the void, this guide is for you. We're cutting through the fluff and showing you, step by step, how to use Neverbounce to actually get your messages where they belong: in real inboxes.
Why high bounce rates matter (and what causes them)
Bounces aren't just annoying—they're a signal to email providers that you might be a spammer. Too many bounces and you'll see:
- Lower inbox placement (even to valid addresses)
- More emails going to spam
- Possible blacklisting
B2B lists especially go stale quickly. People change jobs, companies go under, and suddenly that "verified" list from last quarter is a ghost town. Even a 2-3% bounce rate can cause problems. The root causes:
- Old lists ("We haven't emailed them since 2021, but it'll be fine...")
- Purchased or scraped lists (just don't)
- Typos and formatting errors
- Role-based or generic addresses (like info@ or sales@)
What Neverbounce actually does
Neverbounce is a tool that checks your email list and tells you which addresses are valid, invalid, or risky. It doesn't send emails itself—it just helps you clean up your list before you send a campaign.
What works: - It catches most bad emails, including obvious fakes and domains that don't exist. - It flags risky addresses (like catch-alls) so you can decide what to do. - It integrates with a bunch of CRMs and email platforms, or you can just upload a CSV.
What doesn't: - It can't guarantee 0% bounces. Some emails look real but still won't deliver. - It won't fix your sender reputation if you're already hitting spam folders. - It's not magic: you still have to keep your lists up to date.
Step-by-step: Using Neverbounce to clean your B2B email list
1. Pull your list(s) together
First, get all the email addresses you want to send to in one place. That might mean exporting from your CRM, your email platform, or a spreadsheet. Clean up duplicates and obvious junk before you even start—no sense paying to validate the same bad address twice.
Pro tip: If you have multiple sources (like Sales and Marketing lists), merge them, but keep a column noting where each contact came from. You'll want this info later.
2. Sign up and log in
Head over to Neverbounce and sign up for an account. The free tier lets you test a handful of emails, but for real list cleaning, you'll need to pay per email or get a monthly plan. Pricing is pretty reasonable—think of it as insurance against burning your domain's reputation.
3. Upload your list
- Go to the dashboard and click "Add List."
- Upload your CSV or copy-paste a set of addresses.
- Double-check that the columns line up (Neverbounce tries to guess, but check for yourself).
Neverbounce can also connect directly to popular tools like HubSpot, Mailchimp, and Salesforce, if you want to skip the manual upload.
What to ignore: Don't bother with fancy columns or extra data—Neverbounce only cares about the email field.
4. Let Neverbounce work its magic
Hit "Clean My List." Depending on size, it can take anywhere from a few seconds to a few minutes. You'll get a report with each email marked as:
- Valid: Good to go.
- Invalid: Don't send to these.
- Catch-all: The domain accepts all emails, but you can't be sure the address is real.
- Disposable: Temporary or one-time use emails.
- Unknown: Neverbounce can't tell; this happens, especially with some corporate domains.
Honest take: Don't expect perfection. Some "Catch-all" and "Unknown" emails might still bounce. But the big, obvious problems will be flagged.
5. Download and segment your results
Download the cleaned list as a CSV. Now, segment:
- Valid: Safe to email.
- Invalid/Disposable: Delete these or quarantine them.
- Catch-all/Unknown: Up to you. For B2B, some catch-all addresses are legit (think IT departments). But if you're risk-averse, leave them out, or send to them in a separate, smaller batch.
Pro tip: Never add invalid or disposable emails back into your CRM. You're just asking for trouble later.
6. Import the cleaned list to your email platform
Replace or update your contact list in whatever tool you use to send campaigns. Some platforms (like Mailchimp) let you update contacts in bulk, others might require a new list.
- Always keep a backup of your original list, just in case.
- Don't mix cleaned and dirty lists—you'll undo all your hard work.
7. Send a test campaign
Before blasting a full campaign, send a small test to a segment of your cleaned list. Watch the bounce rate closely. If you still see a lot of bounces, re-check your workflow—you might have missed something.
- Aim for a bounce rate under 1%. If you're still over that, revisit your sources.
- Check engagement too; a clean list is only half the battle.
8. Set up ongoing validation (if it makes sense)
If you're constantly adding new contacts, set up automatic validation with Neverbounce's integrations or API. This way, new emails get checked before they hit your main list.
- For slow-growing lists, a quarterly clean is usually enough.
- For high-volume sales teams, ongoing validation is worth the effort.
What to skip (and what not to expect)
- Don't bother validating emails you never plan to email. If they're just sitting in a database, they're not hurting you.
- Don't expect Neverbounce to fix bad content or spammy sending habits. Deliverability is about more than just the list.
- Don't buy lists and expect validation to make them safe. Purchased lists are full of traps (spam traps, honey pots, angry IT people). Neverbounce helps, but it's not a get-out-of-jail-free card.
Extra tips for keeping B2B bounce rates low
- Use double opt-in when possible. Makes sure addresses are legit from the start.
- Check major domains for typos. E.g., "gmial.com" instead of "gmail.com"—Neverbounce catches some, but not all.
- Monitor your sender reputation. Tools like Google Postmaster Tools or SenderScore can help.
- Warm up new sending domains or IPs slowly; don't go from zero to 10,000 emails overnight.
The bottom line
Cutting your bounce rate isn't rocket science, but it does take discipline. Tools like Neverbounce make the grunt work easier, but no tool is perfect. Clean your lists, send smart, and keep an eye on your results. If you treat deliverability as an ongoing process—not a one-time chore—you'll reach more people and waste less effort. Keep it simple, iterate, and don't fall for silver bullets.