
Email bounce rate is an essential metric that measures the percentage of undelivered emails to your recipients. It encompasses both hard bounces – permanent failure to deliver because of invalid addresses – and soft bounces because of temporary problems, like full mailboxes.
Some marketers are concerned with total deliverability improvements rather than just tracking bounce rates. They want to ensure that every message reaches its intended destination.
Why it’s important to lower email bounce rates
- Approximately 25% of email campaigns boast a higher than 5% bounce rate.
- Improving bounce rates can improve email deliverability by 35%.
- Companies with well-maintained email lists see their engagement boost by 20%.
- The forecast shows that in 2025, better management of lists and their verification can diminish bounces even further by a further 15%.
A word from an expert from the field
Drilling down on your email bounce rate can help you improve your email campaigns not only in terms of deliverability but also email content and reply rates.
This expertise is excellent because it cuts through the noise and tells you that tracking bounce rates isn’t just about ensuring emails get delivered – it’s about getting insights that can transform your entire campaign. Sharné’s credible background lends real experience to the conversation.
Her quote reminds you that you’re optimizing your deliverability, content, and engagement tactics by getting into the details of bounce rates. It’s a hands-on, in-the-trenches approach showing that you can raise your overall performance if you dig deep enough.
Bouncing into success with real examples
An online merchant was experiencing extremely high email bounces, disrupting their campaigns and damaging their sender’s reputation. With the addition of data cleaning services, the merchant experienced a staggering 50% reduction in hard bounces.
This improvement not only improved their sender score but also resulted in a 20% increase in click-through and total engagement. The clean list allowed them to reach the right customers consistently, eventually producing more revenue from their email programs.
In addition, Firespark, an agile digital agency, wanted to revamp its email outreach campaign to achieve more quality leads. Syncing with Pitchbox, they built a process-driven, highly personalized cold email workflow that automated their follow-ups and maximized overall engagement.
With this, Firespark reported a 35% response boost and a 25% hike in booked meetings. This adjustment enhanced their sales pipeline and showcased the power of accurate, data-driven outreach.
Tackling high bounce rates

A common issue is that old, unverified email lists and improper authentication protocol setup lead to high bounce rates. This also triggers email blacklisting or email graylisting. A single error is all it takes to prevent your emails from being delivered to the inbox, disappointing your entire campaign.
The solution is to invest in list cleaning software and adequately configure your SPF, DKIM, and DMARC settings.
Regular audits and timely remediation will ensure that your sender’s reputation is in the best possible shape, ensuring your emails hit their target each time.
Avoid email bounce rates
- Clean and verify contact lists regularly.
- Implement robust SPF, DKIM, and DMARC authentication.
- Monitor bounce rate metrics continuously.
- Check email content for compliance.
- Segment your list for messaging that resonates.
- Optimize campaigns based on performance reporting.
- Provide continuous training to your team.
- Conduct regular deliverability audits.
Author
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Samantha has over seven years of experience as both a content manager and editor. Bringing contact info to life is the name of her game. Some might say she's a bit 'SaaS-y.'
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