# Inbox placement and reputation

> Reputation is earned by consistent identity, predictable volume, engaged recipients, and low complaints. Warm new domains gradually. Fix list quality before buying deliverability myths.

- **Course:** Deliverability fundamentals
- **Canonical:** https://sendemails.dev/lessons/inbox-placement-and-reputation
- **Updated:** 2026-06-02

## Objectives

- Plan a domain warmup without fake engagement tricks
- Identify complaint and bounce thresholds that demand a pause
- Separate content problems from infrastructure problems

## Signals that matter

- Hard bounces: remove immediately
- Spam complaints: pause and inspect acquisition source
- Engagement: opens are noisy; clicks and replies are stronger
- Blocklist hits: investigate, do not panic-buy a new domain

## Warmup without theater

Warmup means sending real mail to people who want it, starting small and increasing as positive signals accumulate. Artificial open farms and purchased lists are how domains get buried.

**Content is infrastructure adjacent:** Broken links, misleading subjects, and image-only emails create the same user complaints as a bad IP. Pair design QA with deliverability reviews.

## Checklist

- Role accounts and never-engaged addresses suppressed
- One-click unsubscribe working on commercial mail
- Sudden volume spikes scheduled and justified
- Seed tests used for diagnosis, not as a vanity score

## FAQ

### Do I need a dedicated IP?

Only when volume and consistency are high enough that shared-IP neighbors become the bottleneck. Most early teams should perfect authentication and list hygiene first.

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