White Label Policy
parcelLab uses white-labeling and industry best practices for authentication and encryption to maintain high email deliverability rates.
Overview
parcelLab implements best practices for email server configuration and DNS settings to ensure secure and reliable email delivery.
By following the best practices outlined in this article, we ensure that our email server operations are secure, reliable, and aligned with industry standards. This helps maintain a strong sender reputation and improves the overall effectiveness of our email communications.
In addition to these best practices, we also monitor engagement-based deliverability metrics (like open and click rates) to stay proactive with inbox placement. This approach allows for continuous optimization and high-quality email performance.
White-Labeling at parcelLab
White-labeling makes the email marketing campaigns parcelLab sends on your behalf appear as if they are being sent directly by you, the retailer.
The most important factor in email marketing success is maximizing the email delivery rate (that is: deliverability). Inbox providers like Google (Gmail) and Microsoft (Outlook.com) work hard to protect their users from spam and phishing emails by reviewing message headers and message content for indicators that the sender is unreliable.
Therefore, white-labeling domains increases the deliverability and trust of emails sent from parcelLab.
Authentication and Encryption
To ensure our server is authorized to send emails on your behalf, parcelLab implements the following key authentication and encryption methods:
Sender Policy Framework (SPF)
We publish an SPF record in our DNS settings that specifies which IP addresses are authorized to send emails from our domain. This mechanism helps recipient servers verify that our emails are sent from legitimate sources, reducing the risk of spoofing and improving email deliverability.
To maintain the integrity and effectiveness of our SPF records, we regularly update the list of authorized IPs and ensure these IPs are exclusively used for sending emails from our domain.
Additionally, we guarantee that reverse DNS (that is: DNS PTR) lookups on every listed IP point back to our domain, further reinforcing the legitimacy of our email sources.
By keeping our SPF record current and accurate, we protect our domain against email spoofing and ensure that our legitimate emails reach their intended recipients.
It is recommended to use subdomains, so that only parcelLab is enabled to send delivery notifications on your behalf.
parcelLab will provide our recommended DNS entries to be implemented for your setup.
Domain Keys Identified Mail (DKIM)
We digitally sign our outgoing emails with a DKIM signature. This adds a cryptographic signature to the email header, which recipients can verify using our published DKIM public key found in the DNS. This verification process ensures that the content of the email hasn't been tampered with during transmission.
We utilize the secure RSA-SHA256 encryption method with a robust 2048-bit key for signing emails. To maintain the effectiveness of this security measure, our infrastructure provider performs regular key rotations at appropriate intervals. This practice helps mitigate the risk of compromised keys and strengthens email security.
By implementing DKIM, we enhance recipient trust in our emails and improve overall email deliverability.
Domain-Based Message Authentication, Reporting & Conformance (DMARC)
We use DMARC to provide instructions to recipient servers on how to handle emails that fail SPF or DKIM checks. This helps prevent unauthorized use of our domain in phishing emails and provides us with reports on authentication failures for further analysis.
Brand Indicators for Message Identification (BIMI)
Where supported by mailbox providers, parcelLab can also implement BIMI for your sending domain. BIMI allows your verified brand logo to be displayed next to your messages in compatible inboxes. This reinforces brand recognition and further boosts recipient trust in your emails, enhancing overall deliverability.
Reputation and Monitoring
To ensure the best deliverability and maintain a positive sender reputation, we adhere to the following practices:
Additionally, we track real-time engagement data (for example: opens, clicks, and complaints) in our dashboards to identify deliverability trends early and maintain strong inbox performance. Our monitoring system helps us detect and adjust for any dips in send health.
Dedicated IPs
We send emails using dedicated IP addresses. This means that these IPs are exclusively used by our company and are not shared with other entities. Having dedicated IPs allows us to control our sending practices and ensure that our emails adhere to our stringent guidelines, avoiding issues caused by shared IPs being blacklisted due to misuse by others.
IP Warm-Up
When we start using new IP addresses, we follow a structured IP warming process. IP warming involves gradually increasing the volume of sent emails over a period of time to build a positive reputation with Internet Service Providers (ISPs). This process helps avoid triggering spam filters and ensures that the new IP addresses are recognized as reputable senders.
During IP warm-up, we also monitor engagement metrics and bounce data in real time. If any anomalies occur, our system adjusts sending rates or schedules to preserve a healthy sender reputation.
IP Reputation Monitoring
We continuously monitor the reputation of our IP addresses. This involves tracking metrics such as bounce rates, spam complaints, email delivery rates, and engagement levels. By keeping a close eye on these metrics, we can identify and address issues that may affect our IP reputation, ensuring that our emails are delivered successfully to recipients.
We also implement concurrency control on our sending infrastructure to protect against sudden spikes or misconfigurations. This helps maintain a stable sending pattern that ISPs recognize as trustworthy.
Bounce Handling
We monitor email bounces to keep our mailing list clean and up-to-date. Handling bounces effectively helps reduce the number of undeliverable emails, which can negatively impact our sender reputation and email deliverability.
Furthermore, parcelLab integrates with ISP Feedback Loops (FBL) to manage spam complaints. When an ISP notifies us of a complaint, we automatically suppress that recipient from future mailings to avoid repeated issues.
Automatic Bounce Classification
parcelLab applies a robust classification process to all incoming bounce notifications. Each bounce is automatically categorized based on its type and reason code:
Soft bounces – indicate temporary issues (for example: mailbox full). These addresses are retried for a limited period before further action is taken.
Hard bounces – signal permanent issues (for example: invalid recipient). Once flagged, these addresses are suppressed to avoid repeated sending attempts.
Spam complaints – if an ISP reports a user complaint, we promptly remove the address from future mailings to maintain a positive sender reputation.
By automating these classifications, we address deliverability concerns as soon as they arise, keeping your email lists clean and engagement-driven.
Suppression Lists
In addition to bounce handling, parcelLab uses suppression lists to help keep your recipient data up-to-date and protect your sender reputation. When a recipient address is consistently undeliverable or has generated a spam complaint, it is moved to a suppression list to prevent further sending attempts. This process:
Stops repeated sends to invalid or inactive addresses.
Reduces the likelihood of future bounces or spam complaints.
Helps maintain a clean and accurate mailing list, which contributes to higher deliverability rates.
By automatically managing these suppression lists, we ensure that problematic addresses are removed from your active send pool, making your email campaigns more efficient and less likely to be flagged as spam.
Reporting and Insights
To help you stay informed about sending performance, parcelLab provides detailed reporting within our dashboard and through data exports. You can monitor:
Delivery rates – track successful deliveries in near real-time.
Opens and clicks – measure recipient engagement by viewing which emails and links receive the most interaction.
Bounce trends – see breakdowns of soft and hard bounces, helping you quickly identify and address any issues.
Complaint rates – understand if spam complaints are spiking on particular campaigns or sender addresses.
Domain-by-domain analytics – pinpoint how different mailbox providers handle your emails so you can tailor your approach or investigate domain-specific issues.
These insights give you a granular view of your send health and highlight opportunities to optimize your campaigns.
Unsubscribe Options
We prioritize user preferences and compliance with email regulations by providing clear unsubscribe options.
Unsubscribe Header
Every email sent from parcelLab includes an unsubscribe header. Although this header is not visible to end users, it is recognized by email clients such as Gmail, Yahoo, and Outlook, which use it to facilitate easy cancellation of email subscription. Depending on the domain, email clients determine if an unsubscribe option will be displayed in the email header to email recipients.
Unsubscribe Link
In addition to the unsubscribe header, we offer an additional unsubscribe link that can be included in the email content. This link is customizable via our Journey Manager, giving you full control over its placement and presentation within the email.
Security and Compliance
parcelLab is committed to maintaining high standards in data security and privacy. Our platform and processes adhere to the following certifications and regulations:
SOC 2 Type II — we employ independently verified controls for data security, availability, and confidentiality that meet recognized industry standards for risk management.
GDPR — we encrypt data at rest and in transit, storing it only in authorized AWS regions. With ePrivacy GmbH as our DPO, we uphold strict EU privacy requirements.
HIPAA — we are HIPAA-compliant, using stringent physical, network, and process security safeguards to protect PHI throughout its lifecycle.
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