Blackout: In The dark about email blacklists? Not sure if you're on any?
“Am I blacklisted?” “How can I find out if my email is being blocked?” These are common, frustrating, and perplexing questions. Often people want to know whether their email server (the computer from which their email is sent) is listed on a blacklist (sometimes known as a “blocklist”), and that is a good place to start.
But how can you check to see if your email or another website have been blacklisted?? There is an easy, free way to check the blacklists!
• Go to either 1) For Domains: MX Toolbox for Domains 2) For Emails: IP Address Look/Check or MX Toolbox for Emails
• Enter the domain of the site you are interested in in the look-up box and select the button [MX Lookup]
• You’ll now see results including: Preference, Host Name, IP Address, TTL, and you’ll see two buttons (Diagnostics & Blacklists)
• Click on the Blacklists button and you’ll see a screen with the site’s IP address in a box.
• Click the [Blacklist Check] button
What you’ll see is the IP address checked against 122 known blacklists. If the status is OK, then there are no problems. If it's not OK, there should be an explanation of why you're there.
There will be links to all of the Blacklists, and if for some reason you or your site has mistakenly been added, there are usually explanations on their sites of how to remove yourself. Check out the other articles on our newsletter to see how to remove yourself from a blacklist and what you may be doing that is getting your put there, as well as email marketing best practices.
