When customers say they never got your email, the message usually went to their spam folder, bounced without you noticing, failed authentication, or was sent by a tool that isn't authorised to send as your domain. Work through the checks below in order. Most problems show up in the first six.
Run the free email checkRequest a repairBefore working through the checklist, answer three questions. They tell you where to look first.
Who is affected? One customer points to their mailbox or their workplace filters. Everyone on Gmail, or everyone on Outlook, points to your domain's authentication or reputation. Everyone everywhere points to your sending setup.
Which emails? Normal replies from your inbox, or automated mail such as quotes, invoices, booking confirmations and website form notifications? Automated mail usually comes from a different system with its own settings.
Since when? If it started on a particular day, something changed that day: DNS, the website, a new tool or the domain itself.
In the headers of your test message, a healthy result looks like spf=pass, dkim=pass with your own domain after d=, and dmarc=pass. Common problems include spf=fail or softfail because a sending service isn't listed in your SPF record, DKIM signed by the tool's own domain instead of yours, or no DMARC record at all.
Gmail, Outlook and Yahoo have tightened their sender requirements, so mail that once got through with weak authentication is now more likely to go to spam or be refused. The SPF, DKIM and DMARC help page explains each record, and the spam folder guide covers what else affects filtering.
Many small businesses find that their own inbox works fine and the missing emails are the automated ones. A website form, invoicing app, booking system or newsletter platform sends "from" your address using its own servers. If those servers aren't included in your SPF record, and the tool isn't signing with DKIM for your domain, receivers see a message that claims to be you but can't prove it.
Most reputable tools have a domain authentication or custom sending domain section in their settings. It gives you DNS records to add. Add them to your existing records, never as a second SPF record. If the problem is a form on your website, the contact form guide walks through the common fixes.
A blocklist is a list of domains or servers that some receivers treat with suspicion. Being listed is possible, especially after a compromised account sent spam, but for most small businesses it's less likely than an authentication gap. If you're on a major list, fix the cause first, then follow that list's own removal process.
Content matters less than authentication but still counts. Very large attachments may be refused outright by some receivers, so a shared link from a reputable storage service is often safer. Shortened links and messages that are mostly images look like marketing, and marketing gets filtered more heavily.
If you've worked through the list and still can't see where the mail goes, start with the free public email check. It reads your domain's MX, SPF and DMARC records in seconds. AIVIQ, based in Vancouver and working remotely across Canada, offers a sending or receiving repair from CAD $89 for one incident, and authentication and deliverability repair from CAD $149 for SPF, DKIM and DMARC across up to three legitimate sending services. Existing DNS is recorded before any change, and no one can honestly guarantee inbox placement, so we don't.
Every receiving provider filters differently. A problem that only affects one company usually points to that company's filters. A problem that affects everyone on Gmail or Outlook usually points to your authentication or reputation.
No. A refused message normally produces a bounce, but a message filtered to spam or quarantined usually doesn't. That's why a silent failure needs testing, not just waiting for an error.
In Gmail, open the message and choose Show original. In Outlook, look for the message details or properties view. Search for the Authentication-Results line to see the SPF, DKIM and DMARC results.
Possibly, but it's less common than an authentication problem. Run a reputable blocklist lookup for your domain and sending server. Many small businesses send through a shared provider, which manages its own listings.
No one can. The receiving provider makes the final decision. What can be done is to make sure your domain is correctly authenticated and your setup follows the providers' published requirements.
Send us the domain, the provider, who's affected and a redacted bounce or header. Never a password. We'll confirm the scope and price before touching anything.
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