Cold emailing has been a go-to strategy for years, especially in the B2B space. But in 2024, it’s harder than ever to get those emails to actually land in your prospects’ inboxes, let alone get a reply. If you’re feeling like your carefully crafted messages are vanishing into a void, you’re not alone. Cold email deliverability has become a constantly shifting challenge, and what worked last year—or even last month—might not work today.

Here’s a breakdown of what’s happening with email deliverability in 2024 and some practical steps you can take to stay ahead. These aren’t just “nice-to-haves”; they’re must-haves if you want to keep your emails effective.

1. Test, Test, and Test Some More: Your Email Infrastructure Matters

When it comes to cold emailing, not all setups are created equal. If you’re sticking to one email provider or setup, you might be missing out on what’s best for your situation. Testing different providers and email sequencing tools can give you a big leg up.

• Try Different Providers: Experiment with traditional options like Google and Outlook, but don’t be afraid to try private setups or SMTP servers.
  
  

• Explore Warm Pools: Think of these as training wheels for your email accounts, helping you ease into higher sending volumes without getting flagged as spam.

Your best bet? Don’t assume someone else’s setup will work for you. Try a few different setups, see what lands, and double down on what works.

2. Make Weekly Deliverability Audits Your New Best Friend

Picture this: you’re sending out emails, but your reply rate is frustratingly low. Is it your message, or is it that your emails aren’t even reaching inboxes in the first place? Without regular audits, you’re left guessing. 

Tools like Email Guard or Smart Lead’s deliverability checker can help you figure out exactly where your emails are landing. If you’re running a cold email agency, or just sending a lot of emails, these weekly checks are non-negotiable. Not only will they help you understand what’s going on, but they’ll also catch issues early on—before they sink your whole campaign.

3. Keep a Reserve of Email Accounts

Here’s the reality: no matter how careful you are, your email accounts will burn out eventually. Even with the best practices, they might only last three to six months before they start getting flagged. And when they go down, you don’t want to be scrambling to get set up again.

To avoid this headache, keep a stash of backup accounts. As a rule of thumb, aim to have 1.5 times the number of accounts you’re actively using, plus a little extra on top. This way, when an account gets flagged or “burns,” you can just pull a new one from your reserve and keep going without interruption. 

4. Say Goodbye to Spintax, and Let AI Handle Your Personalization

For years, people used “Spintax” to personalize emails—basically just rotating a few words to make each email a bit different. But here’s the deal: spam filters are smarter now, and Spintax just doesn’t cut it anymore. Instead, try using AI to create unique, fully reworded messages for each prospect.

The beauty of using AI? It doesn’t just swap out a couple of words; it can rewrite entire sentences while keeping your message consistent. This makes your emails look more like one-on-one messages and way less like spam. Spam filters are less likely to catch on, meaning more of your emails land in inboxes. And if you’re worried about setup, don’t be. There are plenty of tools out there that make this switch easy.

5. Tighten Up Your Targeting with a Narrower Audience

This one might sound obvious, but it’s easy to overlook. The more specific your audience, the less likely your emails will get marked as spam. Google’s tolerance for cold emails is low, and even a few spam reports can get your account flagged. So the key is to make sure every person you email is actually someone relevant to your business.

Use targeting tools like Clay or Apollo to help you filter your list, and keep refining. A narrow list isn’t just better for deliverability—it’s better for business, since it means you’re reaching people who actually want to hear from you.

Wrapping It Up: The Five Essentials for 2024

To keep your cold emails deliverable in 2024, you need to go beyond basic best practices. Test different setups, run regular audits, keep a backup of accounts, let AI handle personalization, and refine your audience. These steps aren’t just helpful; they’re essential to making sure your emails land in inboxes, stay out of spam, and actually get replies.