Most people think deliverability is binary. Inbox or spam. Good or bad. Working or broken. That framing is wrong. Deliverability is a **feedback loop**. And once you understand that, the system stops feeling mysterious. > **Deliverability:** *The system’s ability to place the right message in the inbox (rather than spam) of the right person, at the right time, consistently and predictably.* # What Providers Are Actually Optimizing For Email providers like Gmail and Yahoo aren’t trying to punish you. They’re trying to protect their users. Every decision they make is based on one question: > “How likely is this message to be wanted _right now_?” They infer the answer from behavior. Not what you might have indented when sending the message. Not the effort you put in to crafting your message. Not reputation alone. Behavior. # The Loop in Plain Terms Here’s the loop: 1. Messages get delivered 2. Users react (or don’t) 3. Providers adjust future delivery That’s it. But the loop **compounds.** Positive signals like: - Replies to the emails you send - Clicks on the links in your email body - Time spent reading your emails - Consistent interaction All those things *increase trust.* Negative signals: - Ignoring what you send - Deleting without reading - Marking your emails as spam - Inactivity in general Reduce it. Every send nudges the system. ![[Provider loop.png]] # Why Broadcast Breaks the Loop > **Email Broadcast:** *Sending the same email to all your subscribers all at once* Broadcast treats everyone the same. Same message. Same timing. Same *frequency.* That guarantees: - Mixed engagement - Averaged signals - Gradual trust decay Providers don’t average behavior kindly. They penalize inconsistency. # Why Suppression Is a Feature, Not a Failure One of the most counterintuitive ideas in deliverability is this: > Not sending is often the best optimization. Yes I know, it sounds crazy. But suppressing: - Cold subscribers - Recently inactive users - Mismatched segments Improves outcomes for everyone else who has better potential to be your customer. This feels wrong at first. It feels like *leaving money on the table.* It’s actually **protecting the table.** # Engagement Creates Engagement Once the loop stabilizes, something flips. Better delivery → more engagement More engagement → better delivery At that point: - Opens become predictable - Clicks stabilize - Revenue smooths out Once you get to this point, email stops feeling like something fragile that you need to take care of. Not because volume increased, but because the system learned from you and your behaviors. # Why This Can’t Be “Set and Forget” Feedback loops require: - Observation - Adjustment - Decision-making Static systems don’t adapt. They decay. That’s why: - Old lists underperform - Legacy sequences rot - Previously “great” funnels stop working Nothing broke. The loop just stopped learning because you stopped giving it the attention and care that it requires. # What This Unlocks Downstream Once deliverability is treated as a loop: - Automation becomes adaptive - AI decisions get better data - Revenue assets become reliable This is the turning point in the blueprint. From here on, we’re no longer protecting the system. We’re **leveraging** it. In the next section, we’ll talk about: **Where AI Actually Belongs in This Stack** Not as a magic fix, but as a multiplier that only works _after_ the loop is already healthy. **UP NEXT:** [[7 - Where AI Actually Belongs in This Stack]]