Google + Yahoo’s new sender requirements: are you prepared?

As a customer retention consultant, I support and educate brands in their key marketing areas. Big changes are ahead for what I believe is the most impactful customer retention channel: email. If you’re accountable for email within your business you’ve likely heard that Google and Yahoo made a big announcement about their email sender requirements which are set to come into effect in Q1 of 2024.

These changes are being put in place for a variety of reasons. To improve email security, reduce spam, and enhance the overall email experience for subscribers.

So, what are these requirements? They differ depending on the volume you’re sending out each down. Here are the key things to note from the Klaviyo team.

Requirements for all senders.

Keep your spam rates low

Maintaining low spam complaint rates is crucial, specifically below 0.30%. You can monitor your rate using Google's Postmaster Tools.

Don't impersonate Gmail "From:" headers

If you use a Gmail or Googlemail address in your "From:" field, you must get your own domain by February 1, 2024, to avoid landing in the spam folder.

Requirements for brands sending 5K+ emails per day.

Set up DMARC authentication

Klaviyo states that you’re able to set up DMARC authentication for your sending domain in your DNS provider yourself. Your DMARC enforcement policy can be set to ‘none’, and Google has some specific guidelines to help with continued business success.

Align your "From:" header with your domain

If you send over 5,000 emails per day, you'll need to use your dedicated sending domain, and your "From:" header must align with it.

Make the unsubscribe process easy

Make it easy for email subscribers to opt out of your emails. This will involve offering a one-step unsubscribe method and including an unsubscribe link in the email body.

Google has said that they will start enforcing the new requirements starting February 1, 2024, while Yahoo has been a bit vague saying Q1 of 2024. Whilst this is an extremely busy time of year for retail businesses Klaviyo’s advice is to focus on BFCM and then start making these changes in early December.

Ultimately, these changes are positive all around: your subscribers will have a cleaner, less spammy inbox, your deliverability score will most likely improve, and the requirements will keep you following email marketing best practices. Failing to comply could have serious repercussions for your business, with emails potentially marked as spam or blocked altogether which will in turn affect your performance metrics and the reputation of your email domain.

For further information, you can read Google’s update here and Yahoo’s update here. Do you use Klaviyo? Take a look at their blog post here or contact the support team for advice on your next steps. If you use another email service provider they’ll have all the relevant documentation to hand.

If you want to supercharge your sales through email and need someone to deep dive into your account for an extensive audit and strategy my Pinpoint & Plan service is ideal for you.