Deliverability glossary · Updated 2026-08-10
Sending reputation
Also called: Domain reputation
Sending reputation is the trust score mailbox providers assign to your domain and IP based on complaint rate, bounce rate, engagement and authentication history. It determines inbox placement.
Reputation attaches to both the domain and the sending IP, and the domain half is the one that follows you. Change platforms and the IP reputation resets; the domain reputation does not, which is why a domain burned by one bad campaign stays difficult long after you have moved tools.
It is asymmetric. Reputation is built slowly through consistent volume and positive engagement, and destroyed quickly by a spike in bounces or complaints. A single import of a stale list can undo months of careful warming in a few days.
On shared sending infrastructure, IP reputation is a shared resource. Your placement is influenced by the behaviour of every other sender on that infrastructure, and you have no visibility into or control over it. On your own identity, the reputation you build and the damage you avoid are both yours.
The practical implication is that reputation is an asset with a balance sheet. Every send either deposits or withdraws, and the withdrawals clear faster.
How Raechly handles it
Sending runs through your own verified Amazon SES identity in your own AWS region, so the reputation accrues to an identity on your account. Per-mailbox, per-domain and per-campaign caps, plus a hard 30/day ceiling, exist to keep withdrawals small.
Related terms
Inbox placement
Inbox placement is the share of delivered messages that reach the primary inbox rather than spam or a promotions tab.
Email warmup
Email warmup gradually increases sending from a new mailbox while generating positive engagement, so mailbox providers build a reputation for the address before it sends cold volume.
Hard bounce
A hard bounce is a permanent delivery failure — the address does not exist or the domain rejects it outright.
Back to the full deliverability glossary, or read how these pieces fit together in how Raechly protects deliverability.