system-prompts-and-models-of-ai-tools/dealix/docs/ops/EMAIL_DELIVERABILITY.md

Email Deliverability — Dealix Operations

Practical checklist to keep Sami's Gmail (and later @dealix.me) inbox-trusted.

Phase 1 — Personal Gmail (now)

Limits Google enforces on a personal Gmail address:

• ~500 messages/day soft cap
• 2,000 messages/day for Workspace
• Bulk sender rules apply at ~5,000+ messages/day to consumer inboxes (one-click List-Unsubscribe required, spam rate < 0.3%)

What Dealix already enforces

• Default DAILY_EMAIL_LIMIT=50 (well under 500)
• Default EMAIL_BATCH_SIZE=10
• Default EMAIL_BATCH_INTERVAL_MINUTES=90
• List-Unsubscribe header (RFC 8058 one-click) on every send
• Plain-text opt-out line at the bottom of every Arabic body
• Bounce auto-suppress: any 4xx/5xx send → recipient added to suppression list
• STOP/إيقاف reply auto-suppresses

What Sami should monitor weekly

• Gmail Postmaster Tools → reputation: keep IP and domain at "High"
• Spam-reported rate: keep under 0.1% (Google enforces 0.3% cap)
• Bounce rate: keep under 5%; if >10% → Dealix auto-pauses sends

Phase 2 — Move sender to @dealix.me (after first 3 paid pilots)

Once you have proof, switch to a domain you control. Better trust + survives any single Gmail action.

Required DNS records

Type	Name	Value	Why
TXT	dealix.me	v=spf1 include:_spf.google.com -all	SPF — declares Google as authorized sender
TXT	default._domainkey.dealix.me	(paste DKIM key from Workspace/SendGrid)	DKIM — cryptographic signing
TXT	_dmarc.dealix.me	v=DMARC1; p=quarantine; rua=mailto:dmarc@dealix.me; pct=100	DMARC — alignment policy
TXT	_dmarc.dealix.me	After 30 days clean: p=reject	Stricter policy once stable
MX	dealix.me	Workspace MX 10 priority	If using Google Workspace

Verification

• dig +short TXT dealix.me
• dig +short TXT default._domainkey.dealix.me
• dig +short TXT _dmarc.dealix.me
• mxtoolbox.com/SuperTool.aspx — paste domain → "SPF/DKIM/DMARC Lookup"

Phase 3 — Move outbound to SendGrid / Postmark (after 5+ paid)

Personal Gmail is fine for review-and-send; transactional volume needs proper ESP.

	SendGrid	Postmark
Free tier	100/day forever	None — $15/mo for 10K
Saudi inbox delivery	OK	Excellent
Setup time	30 min	30 min
Recommended	Use after 50+ daily sends	If deliverability is critical

After ESP setup:

1. Add SPF entry: include:sendgrid.net or include:spf.mtasv.net (Postmark)
2. Verify DKIM in ESP dashboard
3. Add SENDGRID_API_KEY (or POSTMARK_API_TOKEN) to Railway env
4. Implement a thin adapter alongside Gmail in auto_client_acquisition/email/sendgrid_send.py
5. Enable for low-risk emails only (P0/P1 leads, no personal-domain recipients)

Bounce + spam-complaint handling

Already wired:

• EmailSendLog.status='bounced' → data_suppression_list row created
• Reply with "STOP" / "OPT OUT" / "إيقاف" → auto-classified as unsubscribe → suppression list

Manual additions (when needed):

POST /api/v1/data/suppression
body: {"email": "x@example.com", "reason": "manual_complaint_2026_05"}

Anti-patterns (never do)

• ❌ Send 500 emails in one hour (rate limit + spam folder)
• ❌ Use generic "Dear Sir/Madam" copy at scale
• ❌ Send the exact same body to 50 recipients — Gmail dedups + flags as bulk
• ❌ Skip the opt-out line "to feel more personal"
• ❌ Send to scraped LinkedIn emails
• ❌ Reply to STOP requests with "Please confirm" — STOP is final

Daily monitoring (automated)

/api/v1/email/status returns:

• sent_today
• remaining_today
• gmail_configured

If sent_today > 40 and it's before noon → pause sends until tomorrow (likely spam-trap risk).

Quarterly: rotate sender names

Saudi B2B prefers consistent senders. Don't rotate email addresses, but DO rotate:

• Subject line patterns (A/B test 3 lines per quarter)
• First-paragraph templates (tracked in automation/score-tuner/run)
• Send-time windows (test 9am vs 11am vs 2pm Riyadh)