You‘ve put hours of work into your WordPress site, carefully crafting content, products, and offers for your audience. But if your emails aren‘t actually reaching people‘s inboxes, all that effort could be wasted.
Consider this: The average WordPress site sends hundreds of emails each week, including crucial messages like:
- New user registration confirmations
- Password reset instructions
- eCommerce receipts and shipping notifications
- Contact form submissions
- Email opt-in confirmations
- And more
Now imagine if even 10-20% of those emails never make it to their intended recipients. Suddenly you have customers wondering where their order confirmation is, leads slipping through the cracks, and new signups who never get a chance to engage with your brand. Email deliverability issues can quietly eat away at your site‘s success.
That‘s why it‘s so important to regularly test your WordPress email functionality and nip any problems in the bud. In this guide, I‘ll show you exactly how to send a test email to make sure your WordPress site‘s emails are working correctly.
Why WordPress Emails Fail: 3 Common Issues
First, let‘s look at a few of the most common culprits behind WordPress email failures:
Server limitations: Many shared hosting plans have strict sending limits and require authentication to combat spam. Your emails could be blocked if you exceed the limit or don‘t have the proper credentials in place.
Incorrect sending method: Out of the box, WordPress sends emails using the PHP
mail()function, which is not always reliable. Configuring WordPress to send via SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) can greatly improve delivery rates.Missing authentication: If you haven‘t set up proper SPF and DKIM records for your email domain, your messages could get flagged as spam and never reach the inbox. These records prove you‘re authorized to send emails from your domain.
By identifying which of these issues apply to your site, you can take proactive steps to fix email deliverability problems before they impact your business.
How to Easily Test WordPress Email Deliverability with WP Mail SMTP
The quickest way to verify if your WordPress emails are sending properly is by using a plugin like WP Mail SMTP.
WP Mail SMTP routes your site‘s emails through an external SMTP provider to improve reliability. It also includes handy email logging and testing tools to help you diagnose any issues.
Here‘s how to send a test email with WP Mail SMTP in just a few clicks:
Install the plugin: You can download the free version from WordPress.org or purchase the premium plugin for additional features like email logging and access to the White Glove Setup service.
Choose your mailer: WP Mail SMTP provides integrations with popular email services like Google Workspace, Microsoft 365, Sendinblue, and more. You‘ll need to enter the SMTP credentials provided by your mailer.
Send a test email: Navigate to WP Mail SMTP > Tools and click on the Email Test tab. Enter the email address you want to send the test to (make sure it‘s one you have access to). Leave the HTML setting enabled unless you specifically want to test a plain text email, then click the Send Email button.
- Review the results: After a moment, WP Mail SMTP will display a success message if the email was sent properly. Check your inbox for a message with the subject line "WP Mail SMTP: Test Email". If the test failed, you‘ll instead see an error message like "SMTP connect() failed" which indicates an issue with your mailer configuration.
By going through this quick test, you can verify that your WordPress site is able to send emails as expected. If the test fails, you‘ll have a starting point to troubleshoot the problem, like double-checking your SMTP credentials or reaching out to your web host.
Boost Deliverability with Proper Email Authentication
Sending a test email is an important first step, but to really optimize email deliverability, you‘ll also want to set up proper authentication records for your sending domain. According to a study by Valimail, only 1.1% of email domains worldwide are properly authenticated, meaning the vast majority are vulnerable to spoofing and phishing attempts.
Two key email authentication methods are SPF (Sender Policy Framework) and DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail):
SPF lets you specify which servers are allowed to send email on behalf of your domain. This prevents spammers from spoofing your domain to send unauthorized emails.
DKIM adds a digital signature to your emails to verify they actually came from you. It uses cryptographic authentication to detect forged sender addresses.
Setting up SPF and DKIM records for your email domain is a bit technical, but well worth the effort to keep your messages out of people‘s spam folders. Some email services like Google Workspace will automatically configure them for you, while others provide step-by-step guides.
After sending a test email with WP Mail SMTP, be on the lookout for a notification about your domain settings. If the plugin detects any missing authentication records, it will flag them for you and link to instructions for how to set them up.
Taking the time to properly authenticate your email domain can have a big impact on deliverability. In one case study by MailerLite, a business increased its email open rates by 15% and click rates by 17% after implementing SPF and DKIM. Don‘t skip this crucial step if you want your WordPress emails to actually reach people‘s inboxes!
Start Building Your Email List the Right Way
Once you‘ve verified your WordPress site‘s email deliverability, it‘s time to start growing your email list. According to recent data, email has an ROI of $36 for every $1 spent – that‘s higher than any other marketing channel.
But before you start blasting out emails, it‘s important to build your list the right way by getting explicit permission from each and every subscriber. Not only is this required by laws like GDPR and CAN-SPAM, but it also ensures you‘re emailing people who actually want to hear from you.
Some effective ways to encourage email signups include:
- Offering a valuable lead magnet in exchange for an email address, like an eBook, checklist, video series, or free trial
- Adding opt-in forms to high-traffic pages on your site, like your homepage, blog posts, and product pages
- Allowing people to sign up during the checkout process if you run an eCommerce store
- Running a contest or giveaway where an email address is required to enter
The key is to make your email content genuinely valuable so people look forward to seeing it in their inboxes. Segment your list based on subscribers‘ interests and behaviors so you can send them the most relevant information.
Finally, always include an easy way to unsubscribe in every email you send. Not only is this required by law, but it also helps maintain a clean, engaged list of people who want to keep hearing from you.
Wrapping Up
Managing a successful WordPress site means making sure crucial functions like email are working smoothly in the background. Sending a test email with a tool like WP Mail SMTP can quickly reveal any deliverability issues so you can resolve them before they cause bigger problems. Plus, taking a few extra minutes to properly authenticate your email domain can keep more of your messages out of the dreaded spam folder.
Is your WordPress site sending emails successfully? Have you implemented any additional strategies to improve email deliverability? Let me know in the comments!
