---
title: "Improve Email Deliverability"
label: "Email deliverability"
description: "Ensure job alert emails reach subscriber inboxes instead of spam folders."
publishedAt: 2026-02-10
updatedAt: 2026-11-07
order: 4
status: "published"
faqs:
  - question: Why are my job alert emails going to spam?
    answer: "Mailbox providers evaluate many signals, including authentication, reputation, recipient behavior, and message content. Ask the subscriber to check spam and add the sender to their contacts, then verify their status, filters, and your sender-domain setup rather than assuming one cause."
  - question: Can I send job alerts from my own domain?
    answer: "Yes, on Advanced and Enterprise. Configure and verify a sender under Settings → Email domain. Until it becomes Active, board email continues through Cavuno's default authenticated sender."
  - question: How do I know if emails are being delivered?
    answer: "Monitor your subscriber list for pending confirmation or inactive subscribers. If subscribers report missing alerts, ask them to check spam, junk, and promotions folders."
  - question: Does cookie consent affect email deliverability?
    answer: "No. Cookie consent controls analytics tracking on your board, not email delivery. Job alerts are sent based on subscriber opt-in, which is separate from cookie consent."
---

Job alert emails give subscribers a direct way to return to matching jobs. Inbox placement is controlled by each mailbox provider, so diagnose delivery from subscriber state, authentication, filtering, and the evidence available from your sending provider.

## How Cavuno sends emails

Cavuno handles the sending pipeline. The default sender is authenticated, and normal public alert signup uses double opt-in before digests begin. Imported subscribers confirm too: their digests start once they confirm their existing sign-up. If you configure a [custom email domain](/docs/board-setup/custom-email-domain), you add the SPF and DKIM records Cavuno provides.

## Help subscribers receive alerts

Even with proper authentication, individual email providers may filter automated emails. These steps reduce filtering.

### Ask subscribers to allowlist your sender

Include a note on your subscription confirmation page or in the first digest asking subscribers to add your board's sending address to their contacts. This can help with individual mailbox filtering, but no single action guarantees inbox placement.

### Encourage engagement

Mailbox providers weigh recipient behaviour when deciding where to place your mail. Write clear subject lines that match subscriber expectations, ensure alert filters are well-configured so subscribers only receive relevant jobs, and keep a consistent weekly schedule so recipients know when to expect your emails.

### Clean your subscriber list

Bounces and complaints can affect sender reputation. Periodically review the **Email subscribers** page and your available delivery data, and remove addresses that hard bounce or complain. Cavuno does not track whether an individual recipient opened a digest, so subscriber status, bounces, complaints, and unsubscribes are the signals to act on.

## Diagnose delivery issues

If subscribers report missing alerts:

1. Check their status in **Email subscribers** and confirm it shows **Active** (not Pending confirmation or Unsubscribed)
2. Ask them to check spam, junk, and promotions folders (Gmail particularly routes automated emails to the Promotions tab)
3. Verify their preference filters match jobs that have been posted recently (if no jobs match, no digest is sent)
4. Use the **Resend confirmation** action if their original confirmation email was lost

## Best practices

Do not import purchased email lists. High bounce rates and spam complaints can damage sender reputation, and the addresses may not have agreed to hear from you. Honor unsubscribes immediately; Cavuno processes the link in every digest. Keep content and cadence consistent with what subscribers were told, and investigate delivery changes using actual bounce, complaint, and engagement evidence rather than list size alone.

## Example diagnosis

| What you observe | Evidence to check | Likely next action |
|---|---|---|
| One person misses an alert | Subscriber status, spam folders, and saved filters | Resend confirmation if pending; otherwise confirm that recent jobs match |
| Many people at one domain miss alerts | Custom sender status and the DNS values shown under **Settings → Email domain** | Correct the exact missing record and wait for DNS verification |
| Digests send but engagement falls | Job relevance, subject-line expectations, unsubscribes, and available provider data | Tighten alert relevance before changing cadence or removing subscribers |

## Next steps

Use [Manage subscribers](/docs/job-alerts/manage-subscribers) to inspect an affected address. If you send from your own domain, verify the records in [Custom email domain](/docs/board-setup/custom-email-domain). Contact support with the subscriber state, approximate send time, and affected domain if those checks do not explain the issue.