October 2016 Summaries

The Postmark product update for October 2016 includes several major features such as domain verification, link tracking, and new templates. Domain verification allows users to verify the domains they send emails from, improving deliverability and authentication. Link tracking enables users to track link clicks within emails, providing valuable insights into email performance. New templates have been added, including best practices guides and starter templates that can be used in Postmark or elsewhere. The update also includes performance improvements, such as upgrading RabbitMQ to v3, which has boosted response times and stability. Additionally, bug fixes have been addressed, including issues with inline images and tracking pixel display in Gmail. Future plans include advanced permissions, 2-factor authentication, and enhancements to bounce webhooks, among other features.

The Postmark team has announced the release of its Link Tracking feature, which allows users to track clicks on links sent through their transactional emails. This feature provides insights into which links are clicked, enabling users to troubleshoot issues and improve their email campaigns. The link tracking data is secured by TLS and implemented in a way that ensures maximum privacy and data integrity. Users can enable link tracking at the server or individual email level, and the feature supports both HTML and plain text emails. The Postmark API has also been updated to support the new capabilities, allowing users to interact with the link tracking features programmatically.

We've established a product vision and roadmap for our company, Postmark. We've made progress in implementing it, but there are challenges such as delays, bug fixes, and finding the right tools for communication and task management. Our approach to overcoming these challenges includes focusing on quality over speed, building feedback loops, using OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) for goal-setting, a Kanban board for roadmap tracking, Jira for task management, and a combination of Slack, Paper (Dropbox), and Honey for company communication and video conferencing. We're still refining our processes to make decisions faster, find the right balance in communication, and improve our toolset. Our ultimate goal is to create a seamless product development lifecycle as a remote team.

To reduce spam complaints in transactional emails, it's essential to put yourself in the shoes of the message recipient and provide value to them. Setting frequency expectations and allowing recipients to control how often they receive messages can help prevent unwanted messages and spam complaints. Making it clear who is sending the email and why, using accurate and descriptive subject and metadata, and ensuring that the content matches the expectation set by the subject line are also crucial. Following best practices for email design and content, testing messages for spam and design problems, protecting forms against spambot abuse, and monitoring spam complaints across your entire domain can also help reduce spam complaints. By implementing these strategies, businesses can improve their deliverability, provide a clear and happy experience for their customers, and avoid getting marked as spam.