If you’re sending cold emails for B2B and not seeing replies, it’s probably not your pitch—it’s your deliverability. Doesn’t matter how clever your copy is if your message lands in spam or gets ignored by filters. This guide’s for anyone using Revreply and tired of guessing why their emails aren’t getting through. We’ll skip the buzzwords and get straight to what actually works, what’s a waste of time, and how to fix the most common problems.
Step 1: Start With the Basics—Authenticate Your Domain
If you skip domain authentication, you’re dead in the water. This isn’t optional. Without it, your emails scream “spam” to inbox providers.
What to do: - Set up SPF, DKIM, and DMARC: These DNS records prove you’re legit. You’ll find these settings in your domain registrar (GoDaddy, Namecheap, etc.) and Revreply’s onboarding. - SPF tells inboxes which servers can send email for your domain. - DKIM is like a digital signature. - DMARC ties SPF and DKIM together and gives you reporting. - Double-check records: Use tools like MXToolbox or Google’s CheckMX to make sure everything’s lined up.
What doesn’t matter:
Don’t get distracted by paid “deliverability tools” at this stage. If your basics aren’t set, no tool will save you.
Pro tip:
If you’re using a brand-new domain, warm it up before blasting out campaigns. More on that below.
Step 2: Use a Dedicated Sending Domain (and Warm It Up)
Sending from the same domain as your main business? Risky. If you get flagged, your regular business email can get tangled up in spam too.
What works:
- Register a similar domain for outreach. If your company is acme.com, try acme-mail.com or something close but not confusing.
- Set up your DNS records (see Step 1) for this domain.
- Warm up the domain: Don’t go from zero to 500 emails/day. Start with 10-20 manual emails, reply to yourself from other accounts, and gradually ramp up over 2-4 weeks.
What doesn’t:
Buying “aged” domains online. Most are junk or on spam watchlists.
Pro tip:
Keep your sending domain clean—don’t use it for newsletters, transactional mail, or anything except cold outreach.
Step 3: Clean Your List—No, Really
Dirty lists are the #1 way to kill deliverability. Bounce too much and you’ll be flagged as a spammer in days.
What works:
- Use a list cleaning tool before every big send (ZeroBounce, NeverBounce, etc.).
- Remove hard bounces and role-based emails (info@, sales@, etc.).
- Don’t buy lists. Most are stuffed with traps and dead addresses.
What doesn’t:
Trusting that your “opted-in” list is clean if it’s older than six months. Even legit B2B contacts go stale.
Step 4: Don’t Send Too Much, Too Fast
Sending 500 emails in one day from a cold domain? You’ll get throttled, and then blacklisted.
What works: - Start slow: Ramp up by 10-20% per day. - Stagger sends: Don’t drop a huge batch at once. Revreply lets you drip emails over hours or days—use it. - Keep daily limits sane: 50-100 emails/day per inbox is a safe range for cold outreach.
What doesn’t:
Relying on “smart sending” features to save you from poor sending practices. These are helpful, but can’t undo blasting a brand-new domain.
Step 5: Write Like a Human, Not a Robot
Spam filters are smarter than ever. Weird formatting, spammy phrases (“free,” “guaranteed,” “winner”), and wall-of-text emails are easy targets.
What works: - Short, plain-text emails: 2-4 sentences is plenty. - Personalize: At least use first names and company names. - Reply chains: Instead of starting every follow-up as a new thread, reply to your own first email. Looks natural.
What doesn’t:
Stuffing your email with images, links, or attachments. Each one increases your spam risk.
Pro tip:
Test your templates with tools like Mail-Tester before launching a big campaign. If your score is under 8/10, fix the issues first.
Step 6: Monitor Your Reputation
Getting flagged as spam is usually silent—until your replies drop to zero.
What works: - Set up Google Postmaster Tools: You’ll see your sending reputation, spam rates, and other useful clues. - Keep an eye on bounce/complaint rates: Most B2B campaigns should have <2% bounce and <0.1% complaint rates. - Check blacklists: Use tools like MXToolbox to make sure you’re not on any major ones.
What doesn’t:
Assuming “no news is good news.” If you’re not actively monitoring, you’re just waiting for a problem.
Step 7: Make it Easy to Unsubscribe
It feels counterintuitive—why make it easy to leave? But hiding unsubscribe links is a fast track to spam complaints.
What works: - Always include a simple unsubscribe link or line (“Reply ‘unsubscribe’ to stop emails”). - Honor unsubscribes immediately. Don’t wait a week; do it now.
What doesn’t:
Tricking people with dark patterns or hiding opt-outs in tiny fonts.
Step 8: Pay Attention to Replies, Not Just Opens
Open rates are less reliable these days (thanks, Apple Mail privacy updates). Real engagement comes from replies.
What works: - Focus on reply rates: This is the metric that matters for B2B. - Test subject lines and first sentences: These have the biggest impact on reply rates. - A/B test, but don’t over-complicate: Two or three versions is enough to see what works.
What doesn’t:
Obsessing over open rates. They’re nice, but not the best indicator of success anymore.
Step 9: Clean Up After Yourself
Over time, even the best domains get a little messy. Regular maintenance keeps your deliverability high.
What works: - Prune non-responders: If someone hasn’t replied after 4-5 emails, stop sending. - Rotate inboxes: If you’re running big campaigns, swap in fresh inboxes every few months. - Archive or delete old sequences: Too many active sequences can get confusing and lead to mistakes.
Step 10: Ignore the Noise—Stick to Fundamentals
There’s always a new “secret” tool or hack promising to solve deliverability. Most don’t move the needle.
What works: - Focus on basics: Authentication, clean lists, natural sending patterns, and good content. - Stay skeptical: If something sounds too good to be true (“guaranteed inbox placement!”), it probably is.
What doesn’t:
Chasing every shiny new feature. Good deliverability is about consistency, not magic tricks.
Keep It Simple—Iterate Fast
Email deliverability isn’t rocket science, but it’s easy to mess up by overcomplicating things. Stick to the fundamentals, watch your metrics, and make small tweaks. Most importantly: test, learn, improve. That’s how you’ll actually get more B2B replies—and fewer emails lost in the void.
If you’re using Revreply, these steps will get you further than any “growth hack” ever will. Focus on what matters and leave the rest.