Definition:
Soft bounce isa term used in email marketing campaigns and refers to all messages sent by email that have not been able to reach their destination due to a temporary problem with a valid email address.
Reasons why a soft bounce may occur
There are many reasons why an email marketing campaign can suffer a soft bounce. Mainly it is usually due to an error or with the inbox or with the receiver’s server.
We list some of the most common assumptions for a soft rebound to occur:
- The mailbox is full.
- The mailbox is not configured correctly.
- The mailbox is inactive.
- The recipient’s email server has gone down or is offline.
- The recipient’s email server has received too many emails over a period of time.
- The email message is too large to be sent.
- The domain name does not exist.
- The e-mail message has been blocked because of the content.
- The e-mail message does not comply with the policies of the recipient’s server.
- The e-mail message does not comply with the anti-spam policy of the recipient server.
- The e-mail message does not meet the sending requirements of the recipient’s server.
- E-mail cannot be transmitted between mail servers.
- Email cannot be transmitted for unknown reasons
What happens next?
When a soft bounce occurs, several things can happen:
- Shipments will arrive late in the recipient’s inbox, once the problem has been resolved.
- If the problem persists after 72 hours, the sends will return to the sender of the emails. This is what is known as a hard bounce.