Troubleshooting Email Issues
EMAIL SYSTEM Troubleshooting Email Issues Common Email Problems and Solutions Email problems can range from simple configuration errors to complex deliverability issues.
This guide covers the most common problems and provides step-by-step solutions to get your emails sending and delivering successfully.
Issue 1: Emails Not Sending If your campaigns won't send, check these common causes: Problem: "Send Failed" Error Step 1: Check that your SMTP provider is connected and active Step 2: In Settings > Email Configuration, verify provider status shows "Connected" Step 3: Test your connection by sending a test email Step 4: If test fails, reconnect your provider and re-enter credentials Step 5: Check provider limits - you may have exceeded daily sending limit Step 6: If using SendGrid free tier, remember 100 emails/day limit Problem: "Invalid Recipient" Error Step 1: Error usually means one or more recipients have invalid email addresses Step 2: In your campaign, click "Validate Recipients" Step 3: Lead Fuel CRM will identify invalid addresses Step 4: Remove contacts with obvious errors (missing @, typos) Step 5: Try sending again to remaining valid addresses Problem: Campaign Stuck in "Sending" Status Step 1: Sometimes campaigns get stuck if the server encounters an error Step 2: Wait 5 minutes - the campaign may complete automatically Step 3: Check your SMTP provider's status page for outages Step 4: If still stuck after 10 minutes, contact Lead Fuel CRM support Step 5: As a temporary fix, you can pause and reschedule the campaign Issue 2: Emails Landing in Spam If recipients are receiving your emails but they're in spam folders, your sender reputation or content needs improvement: Problem: Gmail Spam Folder Placement Step 1: Verify SPF, DKIM, and DMARC authentication records are correct Step 2: Use Google Postmaster Tools to check your sender reputation Step 3: Look for "Not authenticated" warnings in Postmaster Tools Step 4: If emails fail authentication, fix your DNS records and wait 24-48 hours Step 5: Check your email content for spam trigger words (FREE, BUY NOW, URGENT) Step 6: Ensure your unsubscribe link is working and visible Step 7: Ask Gmail users to move your emails to Primary folder to train the filter Problem: Outlook/Hotmail Spam Issues Step 1: Outlook is particularly sensitive to list quality and engagement Step 2: Remove unengaged subscribers (no opens in 6+ months) Step 3: Lower your sending volume initially and increase gradually Step 4: Avoid sending to Outlook addresses on first send of a new domain Step 5: Use a gradual warm-up: day 1 = 10 emails, day 2 = 50, day 3 = 100, etc.
Step 6: Monitor bounce rates - Outlook soft bounces often indicate list quality issues Problem: High Spam Score Step 1: In campaign review, check your spam score (should be green) Step 2: Common trigger: All caps text or excessive punctuation Step 3: Remove or minimize URLs - each link adds to spam score Step 4: Use professional language and avoid hyperbole Step 5: Check image alt text - broken images increase spam score Step 6: Ensure email is not 90%+ images (should be at least 40% text) Step 7: Use Lead Fuel CRM's "Spam Check" tool to identify issues Issue 3: High Bounce Rate If you're experiencing high bounce rates (>5%), your list quality is the issue: Identifying Bounce Types • Hard Bounce: Permanent failure - invalid address, domain doesn't exist.
DELETE these contacts.
• Soft Bounce: Temporary failure - mailbox full, server busy.
Usually resolves.
Retry later.