In email marketing, a “permanent bounce” refers to the situation where an email cannot be delivered to a particular recipient, and the failure is considered permanent. This typically happens when the email address is invalid, no longer exists, or is consistently rejecting the messages. Permanent bounces are also known as “hard bounces.”
There are various reasons why an email might permanently bounce:
- Invalid Email Address: The email address provided is not correctly formatted or does not exist.
- Domain Does Not Exist: The domain part of the email address (after the “@” symbol) does not correspond to a valid domain on the internet.
- Mailbox Does Not Exist: The email server cannot find a mailbox associated with the given email address.
- Mailbox Is Full: The recipient’s mailbox has reached its storage limit, and no more emails can be accepted.
- Blocked by Server: The email server or spam filter at the recipient’s end has blocked the email.
It’s important for email marketers to regularly clean their email lists by removing addresses that result in permanent bounces. This helps improve email deliverability rates and ensures that future email campaigns reach the intended audience.