How We Increased Email Deliverability from 55% to 85% for a Mid‑Size Skincare Brand

Imagine launching a major Q4 sale… only to find half your emails never hit the inbox. That’s what was happening to our skincare client.

I’ve seen firsthand how critical email deliverability is for brands. Without strong deliverability, even the best strategy falls flat. When a U.S.-based skincare brand with $12M in annual revenue came to us, their email campaigns were underperforming—not because of poor content or bad timing, but because their emails simply weren’t reaching inboxes.

Here’s the breakdown of what we discovered, what we did, and how we helped them increase email deliverability from 55% to 85% just in time for Q4.

Let’s dive into that.

The Problem: Low Email Deliverability Was Stalling Growth

When we began the audit, the numbers spoke for themselves. Their email deliverability was sitting at just 55%, which meant almost half of their email traffic was being filtered out or blocked entirely. This wasn’t just a lost communication channel—it was lost revenue.

We found that their emails were frequently hitting the spam folders of iCloud, Yahoo, and even Gmail users. The bounce rate was unusually high, and a deeper investigation revealed their shared IP was blacklisted on several major spam databases.

In addition to the technical issues, their Klaviyo setup presented serious strategic flaws. Their flows were firing too often—so much so that some subscribers received up to three emails per day, not counting campaign sends. This was overwhelming, especially for mobile users, and the unoptimized mobile templates weren’t helping.

Worse, there was virtually no segmentation. Regardless of purchase behavior, engagement level, or lifecycle stage, everyone received the same messaging. For a brand of their size, that lack of audience targeting was both a red flag and a major revenue leak.

The Fix: A Complete Email Deliverability Restoration Plan

To turn things around, we developed a 360° deliverability recovery roadmap. This involved both technical remediation and strategic email marketing adjustments.

1. Redesigning the Flow Structure with Strategic Prioritization

We started by auditing and restructuring their Klaviyo flows. Instead of multiple emails triggering simultaneously, we built a clear customer journey map and adjusted flow logic to prevent overlapping. Priority was given to the most critical automations, and the rest were filtered based on engagement and timing rules.

This significantly improved the user experience and reduced subscriber fatigue—an often-overlooked factor in email deliverability.

2. Cleaning Up the IP Reputation

Our next step was to address the blacklisted shared IP. We contacted Klaviyo support to request a shift to a cleaner shared IP pool as a temporary fix. Simultaneously, we prepared for a transition to a dedicated IP, which made sense given the brand’s sending volume and frequency.

A clean IP is foundational to strong email deliverability. Without it, even perfectly optimized campaigns can land in spam.

3. Validating and Cleaning the Email List

We used a combination of third-party validation tools and Klaviyo’s built-in filters to clean their subscriber base. We removed invalid and risky addresses, re-engaged lapsed but high-value subscribers, and created suppression rules for unengaged contacts.

This alone improved bounce rates and raised their sender reputation across ISPs—an essential step for improving email deliverability.

4. Segmenting and Documenting for Long-Term Success

To ensure targeted and relevant messaging, we implemented a robust segmentation system based on:

• Purchase history
• Engagement metrics
• Product preferences
• Lifecycle stages

Every campaign was sent to carefully selected segments, avoiding unengaged users and maximizing engagement signals.

We didn’t stop at execution. We built detailed documentation and trained their in-house team to manage and evolve the segmentation strategy post-project—ensuring sustained email deliverability performance.

5. Warming Up a Dedicated IP Before Peak Season

With the new dedicated IP in place, we launched a 30-day warm-up strategy ahead of Black Friday. This was one of the most crucial phases.

We began by sending only to the most engaged subscribers—those who had opened or clicked in the last 30 days. Volume was gradually increased, and we carefully monitored bounce rates, complaint reports, and inbox placement daily.

We made on-the-fly adjustments to sending segments and refined contact selection throughout the month to maintain positive sender signals.

By the end of the warm-up phase, their email deliverability had stabilized and was trending upward—exactly what we needed to confidently launch high-volume Black Friday campaigns.

Why Email Deliverability Is Your Hidden Revenue Driver

Improving email deliverability isn’t just about avoiding spam filters. It’s about unlocking the full revenue potential of your email list.

This skincare brand had a strong product, loyal customers, and a decent content strategy—but they were missing inbox placement. Once we solved the technical issues and realigned the strategic components, their emails reached the right people at the right time.

And the result? Their email became a major revenue driver again, especially during Q4.

The Results: A 30-Point Increase in Email Deliverability

Here’s how the numbers shifted:

Thanks to improved email deliverability, Black Friday became one of their most successful campaigns. And perhaps more importantly, we laid the groundwork for consistent inbox placement and scalable growth for the year ahead.

Actionable Steps to Improve Your Own Email Deliverability

If your campaigns aren’t performing, don’t rush to rewrite your subject lines. Start by looking at these deliverability fundamentals:

• Review your email flow logic to avoid duplicate messages
• Clean and validate your contact lists regularly
• Switch to a dedicated IP if your volume justifies it
• Segment your audience by behavior and lifecycle
• Optimize for mobile—over 60% of opens happen on phones
• Warm up any new IP slowly and strategically

Useful articles for your email deliverability boost:

1. How to improve deliverability in 2025.
2. Segmentation strategies in 2025.
3. A complete guide for email marketing strategy.
4. How to develop a strategy in email marketing that converts.

If this sounds overwhelming, we offer a free email deliverability audit and strategy call to help you identify exactly where the problem is — and how to fix it.

Final Thoughts

Deliverability is foundational. Without it, you’re essentially running ads that never show up, or launching products that no one hears about. It’s one of the most overlooked levers in Klaviyo—and one of the most impactful.

By prioritizing email deliverability, we helped a struggling brand turn their email program into a high-performance channel again.

And if it worked for them, it can work for you too.