Email Deliverability Glossary

This article clarifies essential terms and acronyms used in ZEPIC. Understanding these terms is essential for optimizing email engagement and ensuring successful delivery to recipients.

1. Records: A DNS record that points a domain to an IP address, crucial for email servers to identify where emails should be delivered.

2. BIMI: Brand Indicators for Message Identification, a standard that enables businesses to display their logos in recipients' inboxes, enhancing email authenticity and brand recognition.
   
   

3. Bot Clicks: Clicks on email links generated by automated bots rather than genuine human engagement, impacting email engagement metrics and analytics accuracy.
   
   

4. Bounce Rate: The percentage of emails that fail to reach recipients' inboxes due to various reasons such as invalid addresses or server issues, affecting email deliverability and campaign effectiveness.
   
   

5. CAN-SPAM Act: Legislation regulating commercial email messages, requiring senders to provide opt-out options, truthful subject lines, and sender identification, aimed at reducing spam and protecting recipients.
   
   

6. CNAME: Canonical Name Record, used to alias one domain name to another, often utilized in email settings for custom tracking domains and branding purposes.
   
   

7. DDOS Attack: Distributed Denial of Service Attack, a malicious attempt to disrupt normal traffic of a targeted server, potentially impacting email deliverability and overall online operations.

8. Dedicated IP Address: An IP address exclusively used by a single sender, offering greater control over reputation management and email deliverability compared to shared IPs.

9. DKIM: DomainKeys Identified Mail, an email authentication method that uses cryptographic signatures to verify email legitimacy and sender authenticity, enhancing email security and deliverability.

10. DNS Records: Data stored in DNS servers containing information about domain names and their corresponding IP addresses, essential for email routing and authentication processes.

11. ESP: Email Service Provider, a company that offers email marketing and delivery services to businesses, facilitating email campaign management and subscriber engagement.

12. GDPR: General Data Protection Regulation, a European Union law governing data protection and privacy for individuals within the EU and the European Economic Area, impacting email marketing practices and user consent requirements.

13. Hard bounce: An undelivered email permanently rejected by the recipient's mail server due to reasons like invalid email addresses or domain issues, indicating critical problems with email lists or sender reputation.

14. IP Address: A numerical label assigned to devices connected to a network, used for identifying and delivering data packets, crucial for email servers to route emails accurately.

15. ISP: Internet Service Provider, a company that provides access to the internet and email services to individuals and businesses, playing a significant role in email deliverability and inbox placement.

16. MX Records: Mail Exchange Records, DNS records specifying the mail server responsible for receiving emails on behalf of a domain, essential for email delivery and routing.

17. Phishing: A fraudulent practice of attempting to deceive individuals into revealing sensitive information such as passwords or financial details through deceptive emails, posing a threat to email security and user trust.

18. Shared IP Address: An IP address used by multiple senders to send emails, potentially impacting deliverability due to reputation issues associated with other senders sharing the same IP.

19. Soft Bounce: A temporary failure to deliver an email to the recipient's inbox due to reasons like a full mailbox or a temporary server issue, typically resolved upon reattempting delivery.

20. SPF: Sender Policy Framework, an email authentication protocol that verifies sender identity by specifying authorized mail servers for a domain, enhancing email security and reducing spam.

21. TXT Records: Text Records in DNS settings used for various purposes including SPF and DKIM authentication, providing additional information about a domain's configuration for email delivery and security.