Checklist for Mailing Success

Every 10 seconds, a mailer buries his head in his hands after committing a senseless mailing error.

Don’t be a statistic.

OK, so I just made that up. But seriously, it’s the simplest of overlooked details that can cause so much unnecessary stress. It doesn’t matter if you just got your mailing operation flowing a few months ago or have been mailing since 1997. All mailers can get tripped up over little things –or big things like fat fingering a drop out to a suppression file.  Even seasoned mailers mess-up when binding IPs or installing software. That’s why having a checklist is so important.

 

In fact, checklists are important enough to have a Ted Talk based on them. Surgeon/journalist, Atul Gawande, shows how even medical doctors can greatly improve quality of care (we’re talking life and death here) just by implementing the daily practice of checking things of a list.

The the doctor’s Ted Talk introduction reads:

Our medical systems are broken. Doctors are capable of extraordinary (and expensive) treatments, but they are losing their core focus: actually treating people. Doctor and writer Atul Gawande suggests we take a step back and look at new ways to do medicine — with fewer cowboys and more pit crews.

Perhaps the mailer version of this wold be: Our bulk mailing systems are broken. Mailers are capable of extraordinary (and time consuming) mailings, but they are losing their core focus; actually getting the mail out. Let the list guide you to success.

Here is, a very practical mailer checklist:

1. Dedicated Server Setup
Hardware Requirements met?
Correct Operating system?

2. IP allocation
Routing in place?
IP’s bound correctly to dedicated server?

3. Software Installation

4. DNS
Forward DNS (A, MX, SPF)
Reverse DNS – To be setup with your ISP

5. Feedback Loops

6. Data

7. Test Link Tracking & Masking

8. Send send send!