Throttling controls when your emails are sent and how many go out per hour. It helps you build a positive sender reputation and avoids sending patterns that look like spam. We recommend throttling all of your single send campaigns and journeys.
Sending to your whole audience in one go, known as blast sending, can harm your IP reputation and put you at risk of being blocked by providers such as Microsoft, who watch sending patterns closely.
How Do I Throttle My Single Send Campaigns?
Start by creating your campaign, using the paper plane icon at the top of your dashboard.
Create your campaign in the normal way. When you reach Campaign Schedule, this is where your throttle needs to be added in.
Don’t leave the schedule on the default timings. The default assumes no throttling at all, because the right rate is different for every sender, so sending on it is still classed as ‘blast’ sending and will negatively affect your sender reputation.
To set your throttle, select ON as shown below. You can then choose how many emails to send per hour, on what days, and at what times. Keep your throttle settings consistent from send to send, and only increase your rate gradually.
Not sure what rate to use? As a rule, send as slowly as you can while still meeting your deadline. See Why Throttling Rates Aren’t One Size Fits All for more help.
How Do I Throttle Within My Journey?
To throttle in a journey, add a delay component. You will then have 3 options to choose from:
Delay for a certain number of days/hours/minutes
Not before a certain date or time
Send windows
Send windows are where the throttling comes in. Select Send windows, then set the days and times for each window.
Each send window has a throttling box ("Max _ contacts per hour"). Tick it and enter the maximum number of contacts to send per hour to throttle.
You can add more than one send window, with different intervals across the day. For example, you could send from 9am to 10am, 12pm to 2pm and 6pm to 7pm, so your sends are spread out. Spreading your sends across the day like this keeps your hourly volume low and steady. Once you’ve settled on a pattern, try to keep it consistent.
Learn More
Choosing a rate: Why Throttling Rates Aren’t One Size Fits All
Why consistency matters: The Importance of a Consistent Sending Pattern and How to Maintain One
Our Founder, Adam Oldfield, talks through how to think differently about deliverability: Masterclass Week 2: Think Differently, Deliverability
If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to us through the live chat function at the bottom right of your Force24 platform. Our team is happy to help.