Alexis Kestler
Hey there! As a fellow data geek, I know the pain of dealing with messy email lists. Invalid addresses and spam traps aren‘t just annoying – they can completely tank your email marketing metrics.
The good news is email verification tools make it super easy to clean your lists. I want to share my perspectives as a data analyst on why you need to verify emails, and review some top services to help.
Why You Absolutely Must Verify Emails
I‘ve consulted with dozens of companies on optimizing their email marketing performance. In almost every case, properly verifying their lists provided a quick win.
According to a 2021 Validity study, the average unverified list is 11% inaccurate. Just think – 1 out of every 10 emails you‘re sending is essentially going into the void!
Here are three key benefits I‘ve observed from verifying emails:
Dramatically lower bounce rates – Industry average is around 5%, but unverified lists often bounce 15% or more. Verification tools catch typos, deactivated accounts, and other bounces waiting to happen.
Higher inbox placement – Spam traps and toxic senders lurking in your list hurt your sender reputation with ISPs. Cleaning your list helps land in the primary inbox.
Better data for segmentation – You can‘t effectively segment and target if a chunk of your data is wrong. Verification provides accurate info to split and personalize campaigns.
The impact is enormous. According to Validity research, verification improves email metrics like:
- Open rates by up to 26%
- CTRs by up to 32%
- Conversion rates by up to 40%
For a 1000 person list, that could mean tens of thousands in added revenue!
Simply put, taking the time to verify emails is one of the highest ROI activities in email marketing. Now let‘s explore some great tools to help.
Top Email Verification Services for 2022
There are dozens of email verification tools out there, but I want to spotlight the top services trusted by major brands and proven to generate results:
1. ZeroBounce
ZeroBounce is my top choice for most use cases. Their verification process thoroughly validates formatting, mail server records, and inbox placement to maximize accuracy.
The platform verifies over 4 billion mailboxes across 191 countries for broad international reach. Customers include big brands like Airbnb, Microsoft, and Amazon.
I like how ZeroBounce provides more than just a valid/invalid flag. Their system categorizes addresses as Deliverable, Risky, or Undeliverable based on extensive deliverability diagnostics. This helps inform your re-engagement strategy.
ZeroBounce also catches spam traps and offers integrations to seamlessly clean CRM and email service provider data.
Pricing is volume based and they offer a free trial to test it out. For high-volume senders, annual plans can reduce costs significantly.
2. MailboxValidator
MailboxValidator is a great real-time verification API for developers. They make it super easy to integrate email validation right into your website and app forms to catch bad addresses before they even enter your system.
The API checks everything from basic syntax to actual mailbox existence to catch the trickiest invalid addresses.
I‘m impressed by MailboxValidator‘s infrastructure scalability and uptime – their platform processes billions of verifications with minimal latency.
Their pricing is exclusively usage-based, so you only pay for what you need. If you‘re looking to validate during lead gen workflows, definitely check them out.
3. Hubuco
Now Hubuco takes an interesting approach. Rather than just automated verifications, they use a crowdsourced team to manually verify each email.
I know – that sounds crazy expensive. But for targeted B2B prospecting and outreach, having real people validate tricky role-based emails like [email protected] provides unmatched accuracy.
The manual approach does mean a slightly slower turnaround vs other tools. But fewer wasted cold emails and higher response rates are worth it.
Hubuco uses tiers based on volume, and offers some cool rewards for active users like referral bonuses and volume discounts. For precision prospecting, it‘s worth exploring.
Honorable Mentions
A few other services deserve a shoutout:
- DeBounce – Leading enterprise-scale verification trusted by major ESPs.
- Kickbox – Robust real-time API with awesome documentation and support.
- MailTester – One of the most affordable options out there.
- Proofy – Great for verifying international contacts.
- The Checker – Used by banks and insurance providers who demand precision.
Take a quick look at each to find the best fit for your needs and budget!
Add Email Verification to Your Routine
Whew, that was a lot of data! But I hope this breakdown gives you some ideas on how to step up your email marketing game through verification.
Fixing your list might not be the sexiest work, but it delivers incredible ROI. And you have tons of great tools to automate and simplify the process.
I‘d love to hear what email verification service you decide to try out! Feel free to reach out if you have any other data-related questions. Now get out there and start cleaning those lists!
