Soft bounce and hard bounce are two practically inevitable consequences of email marketing. They are also part of the statistics of this delivery system, as they represent the bounces of the emails sent. That is, the messages that, for some reason, were not delivered and did not reach the users.
However, although both concepts refer to that bounce, that is, when the messages do not reach the final recipient, soft bounce and hard bounce have certain characteristics that differentiate them from each other.
Understanding soft bounce and hard bounce more precisely helps you better understand the reasons why your email marketing campaign is not having the expected success or why your newsletter is not reaching your subscribers.
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Differences between soft bounce and hard bounce
Soft bounce and hard bounce are two different metrics, included in the bounce indicator. This indicates the number of emails that could not be delivered . Thus, depending on the cause of the bounce, it is a soft bounce or a hard bounce.
A.- Soft bounce
It is translated as soft bounce and occurs when there is a temporary problem . It can be a problem related to the email address. For example, when the recipient’s inbox is full. It can also occur when the server is down.
In both cases, these are temporary problems that do not depend on the sender of the message . Furthermore, they are expected to be corrected within a short period of time. In no case do they last over time. Thus, when the problem is solved, the recipient will receive the messages.
When the recipient’s server is back up and running, or when the inbox is cleared, the soft bounce messages will reach the user.
The sender of the message, or of the email marketing campaign, should not worry about this type of information.
Soft bounces and hard bounces are data that appear in the final reports of the campaigns . However, since these are specific errors, it is azerbaijan phone number data assumed that they will be resolved in a matter of time.
B.- Hard bounce
In this case, it is a hard bounce , i.e. a more serious sydney pro theme review problem. This type of error occurs when there is an error in the sending email. That is, for example, the email address is incorrect, misspelled or no longer exists.
In the worst case scenario, it may be that the subscriber ireland lists has blocked the brand and does not want to receive any more related information. The emails sent then end up in the Spam or Junk folder. A sad end for those emails that hope to continue attracting users.
These types of problems are more serious, but they can be prevented and depend largely on the sender of the message. Copying an email address incorrectly or losing a subscriber are errors that can be avoided.
Hard bounces that appear in email marketing campaign reports should be fixed as soon as possible. This type of information should be carefully considered as it is a permanent error that can recur if not fixed.
Furthermore, it is a clear example that something within the digital marketing campaign is not being done correctly. If the user blocks the brand, it is because they are not interested in the content, and this fact can be fatal.
Why does a soft bounce or hard bounce occur?
The first action that the person responsible for email marketing campaigns must take is to know the reason for soft bounces and hard bounces, especially when it comes to hard bounces.
Hard bounces can negatively impact a brand’s contact list and damage its reputation. Campaigns with high hard bounce rates are of lower quality and are a complete failure. Such errors can affect the reputation of the entire list and the campaign itself.
Since this is a feedback process, a bad reputation increases hard bounces even more, thus continuing to send more users’ emails to the spam folder.
The importance of Sender Score to avoid soft bounce or hard bounce
Email marketing reputation largely depends on the number of emails that reach the user’s inbox. Thus, soft bounce and hard bounce directly affect email marketing reputation.
But in addition, within reputation, other factors intervene, such as, for example, not being on blacklists, that the mail servers do not block the sending IP, that complaints are not received or that it is not protocolized by the Sender Policy Framework , among others.
The sender score refers to a number, between 0 and 100, that rates the reputation of the email. However, the higher the hard bounce rate, the higher the affected percentage of the sender score . In other words, the higher the soft bounce and hard bounce, the higher the sender score and the worse the reputation of the brand sending the email.
Soft bounce and hard bounce are just one of the factors that are taken into account when calculating the sender score. But they are one of the most significant features. Soft bounce and hard bounce have a very negative impact on email marketing campaigns.
Managing soft bounce and hard bounce
Email marketing campaign managers need to learn how to manage soft and hard bounces .
Email marketing is one of the most complete digital marketing tools that allows easy access to users as well as measuring the interactions that are had with them. Precisely because of its ease and convenience, any email marketing campaign must be tested.
Soft bounce and hard bounce must be managed and the results must be verified in order to improve future campaigns .