Strong email performance starts with clean data and engaged subscribers. Metrics such as bounces, open rates, and unsubscribes all influence how email providers assess your emails and how reliably your campaigns reach subscribers.
Email Bounces Explained
What does it mean when an email bounces?
A bounce occurs when an email sent through iRealty cannot be delivered to a recipient’s inbox.
There are two types of bounces within iRealty:
Soft bounces
These are temporary delivery failures, often caused by full inboxes or short-term server issues. In most cases, iRealty will attempt to resend the email automatically.Hard bounces
These are permanent delivery failures. They usually occur when an email address is invalid, no longer exists, or the receiving domain is blocking delivery.
Why bounces matter
Repeated hard bounces indicate to inbox providers that a contact list may not be well maintained. This can reduce trust in your sending behaviour and affect:
Inbox placement for your emails
Overall email deliverability
The iRealty platform automatically marks email addresses that have hard bounced as "Unsubscribed" to mitigate loss of sending reputation.
Engagement Signals: Opens and Unsubscribes
What is an unsubscribe?
An unsubscribe occurs when a recipient chooses to stop receiving your emails. This can happen through the unsubscribe link in the email footer or through an email provider’s built-in unsubscribe option.
What low engagement indicates
Low open rates and increased unsubscribes usually suggest that:
Subscribers do not recall signing up
Emails are being sent too frequently or too infrequently
Content does not align with subscriber expectations
The contact list has not been reviewed recently
Email providers monitor engagement closely. When emails are consistently ignored, future campaigns may be filtered to spam or blocked entirely.
Best Practices to Protect Your Sending Reputation
If engagement trends decline or deliverability issues occur, it is often a sign that your subscriber list needs attention. The following steps can help improve results in iRealty.
Keep your database current
Remove or suppress contacts who have not opened or interacted with your emails in the last 60 to 90 days. Older databases are more likely to contain invalid addresses and disengaged subscribers.
Only email subscribers who have given consent
iRealty is a permission-based platform. You should only send emails to subscribers who have clearly agreed to receive marketing communications from you. Purchased lists or contacts obtained without consent should be removed immediately.
Reconfirm interest when needed
If subscribers were added some time ago or without a clear opt-in step, consider sending a reconfirmation email. A double opt-in process helps confirm genuine interest and improves list quality.
Set clear expectations
Ensure your emails are recognisable and consistent with what subscribers expected when they signed up, such as property updates, market insights, or newsletters. Unexpected content increases the likelihood of spam complaints.
Make opting out easy
Unsubscribing should always be straightforward. iRealty automatically includes an unsubscribe option in every email to support compliance and protect sender reputation.
Summary
Maintaining clean data, sending relevant content, and respecting subscriber consent are essential for long-term success in iRealty. Regularly reviewing your contact list and aligning content with subscriber expectations will support strong deliverability and improved campaign performance over time.
Need Help?
If you have questions about Email Delivery in iRealty, contact:
📞 1300 855 982