Email Deliverability Best Practices: Microsoft domains

Microsoft domains include hotmail.com, outlook.com, live.com, and the numerous private business mail domains powered by Microsoft Outlook.

Follow these guidelines to optimize delivery at Microsoft domains. 

Understand Outlook sender guidelines and how mail is filtered

• Outlook Postmaster: Policies, Practices, and Guidelines
• Outlook Postmaster: Fighting Junk Mail
• Outlook Postmaster: Troubleshooting

Enroll in Smart Network Data Services (SNDS) and the Junk Mail Reporting Program (JMRP)

• Outlook Postmaster: Join SNDS and JMRP

Contacting Outlook deliverability support

• Outlook Postmaster: Troubleshooting - this page contains a link to a support contact form

Achieving good deliverability rates at Outlook by adhering to email best practices. In particular, consider:

• Complaints - These are tracked when a user clicks “Block and Delete” or “Report Spam”. 
• Spam traps and unknown users - These are addresses (in some cases a domain) that have never been signed up to receive any kind of message or have been deactivated after prolonged inactivity by the ISP. Reduce your exposure to spam traps by ensuring you understand how you're sourcing your audience. 
• Sending consistency – Aim to send from the same IP addresses with consistent volumes and frequencies. Spammers tend to “pop up” on an IP and disappear. Infrequent senders who send large volumes once a month or quarterly can trigger filter mechanisms
• Sending frequency - Examine your messaging frequency. What are the user's expectations? 
• Adding text reminding subscribers where they opted-in to receive your e-mail