New research from email security provider EasyDMARC found that 25% of e-commerce retailers expect to see a notable drop in email deliverability following Yahoo and Google’s email authentication policy changes in February 2024.
Both Yahoo Mail and Google Gmail released statements confirming that beginning February 2024, bulk senders must deploy measures, including the Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting, and Conformance (DMARC) standard to ensure continued email deliverability. The measure better prevents phishing and spoofing attempts by automatically identifying and disposing of emails that impersonate sender domains by sending them to junk or rejecting them altogether.
Both Google’s sender guidelines and Yahoo’s sender requirements & recommendations have stated that failure to comply with the new sending standards could negatively impact email delivery.
For e-commerce providers that rely on email as a marketing and customer communications channel, such measures could negatively affect customer engagement and sales.
With four billion daily email users and an ROI of up to $42 for every $1 spent, email marketing remains one of the most popular and successful marketing strategies for retail organizations. To determine how retailers are protecting this valuable revenue driver in light of the new guidelines, EasyDMARC reviewed the DMARC policies of the top 1,000 global online stores. It found that only 75% had deployed the security protocol.
Poor email deliverability can affect not just customer awareness but also the trust in and financial performance of e-commerce platforms. Emails missing inboxes can erode customer trust and directly impact sales, highlighting an important future link between cybersecurity compliance, brand reputation, and an organization’s bottom line.
Yahoo has indicated that the full impact of the roll-out is yet to be felt, stating before February, ‘enforcement will be gradually rolled out, as we monitor compliance through the first half of the year.’ As a result, businesses may have some leeway to adjust and fully implement DMARC standards before feeling the full effects of poor deliverability.
Gerasim Hovhannisyan, EasyDMARC CEO and co-founder, said: “Many people view DMARC and email authentication measures through the lens of security, seeing them primarily as tools to guard against malicious actors. However, while it is an effective way of fending off phishing and spoofing, the stakes extend far beyond security alone for retailers.
“Adopting these measures is crucial for staying competitive, safeguarding revenue, and maintaining vital customer connections. It’s not just about protection; it’s about ensuring uninterrupted engagement and preserving the trust that fuels relationships and revenue.”
Photo by Brett Jordan on Unsplash
