I'm new to using AWS and I'm having some trouble getting SES (Simple Email Service) to work for a client of mine who wants to send out email newsletters to their customer base. The client is a well-established company that has been in the adult education sector for over 10 years, and they collect all their email subscribers with proper consent, following GDPR guidelines. They send out about 1,000 to 3,000 emails weekly, so it's crucial for their business. I've set everything up correctly, including suppressing bounced emails, but I've run into issues with SES production. Does anyone have suggestions on what might be going wrong? Thanks for your help!
4 Answers
I’d recommend checking out some SES horror stories before continuing with it. The process to get out of the SES sandbox can be confusing and it often feels random who gets approved. If AWS is skeptical about your consent process or your bounce handling methods, that could be a red flag for them. They prioritize confirmed opt-ins and strict automation around keeping bounce rates low—ideally under 2%.
Have you tried submitting your request again? We usually face denial the first time, and after we provide more details, we tend to get approved.
Did you start out in the SES sandbox? It’s important to follow all the prerequisites. Sometimes you have to really advocate your case with AWS support to get through.
It sounds like you might be facing the typical SES gatekeeping. They often throttle accounts with high bounce or complaint rates. Make sure to pull up recent bounce and complaint reports and clean out any bad addresses from your list. Also, ensure that your domain is set up with SPF and DKIM records. Starting with a small batch to warm your IP can help prevent issues too.
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