iOS 18: Changing the Email Delivery Game

For over a decade, Gmail users online and in mobile devices have been using the “Promotions” tab. With the release of iOS 18, Apple device users will now have a similar experience in the Apple Mail application.

Apple Mail introduces Categories

With iOS 18, Apple Mail will categorize all incoming email into four separate buckets:

  • Primary: Most important messages from contacts and time-sensitive mail
  • Transactions: Receipts and order confirmations
  • Updates: Newsletters, social notifications, and all other messages
  • Promotions: Marketing and sales emails

In addition, the Apple Mail client will adopt BIMI support to append icons to DMARC and BIMI compliant email and provide extended Snippets to allow users to get a more in-depth, quick view of the email content.

BIMI icons and extended Snippets in iOS18

How does this affect Senders?

Around 55% of iOS users manage their email in Apple Mail, while around 30% use the Gmail application. In addition, historically the majority of iOS users adopt the latest operating system upgrades quickly. Senders can expect near immediate adoption of the new Apple Mail meaning changes to (probably reductions of) Open Rates, Click Through Rates and probably increased Unsubscribe Rates. Email Senders, especially marketers, will have a new landscape to navigate. Making the Inbox may no longer be sufficient to get your message across – “Primary” may be the new goal.

What can Senders do?

  • Adopt DMARC – You message has low chance of making the Inbox without DMARC
  • Get your DMARC to a Reject posture – Adopting DMARC is not enough. You need to actively manage your email senders and get your email in a position so that a Reject policy protects your brand.
  • Adopt BIMI – The new Apple Mail application will feature BIMI support. Having your company’s icon/logo next to your email will give customers comfort and trust, making them more likely to open it.
  • Stop Cold Outreach Email – Our article, The Days of Unsolicited Email are Over, goes into detail about why this practice will destroy your ability to send email.
  • Improve your email targeting and content – Learn more: Does email content affect your email delivery? | MxToolbox Blog.
  • Use separate subdomains for marketing and transactional email – This can help Apple Mail and Google classify your email better. You want your users to find your Transactional email in the Transactions folder and your Promotions in Promotions. This gives them comfort and will cut back on Unsubscribes.

How can MxToolbox help?

MxToolbox Delivery Center is our suite of tools and monitors to actively manage your email deliverability across all Inbox Providers. We enable you to:

  • Setup DMARC quickly and easily
  • Actively manage your response to DMARC reports and DMARC compliance rates to help you make the Inbox
  • Migrate to a DMARC Reject policy
  • Adopt BIMI
  • Monitor and alert on Spam Rates to protect your email delivery
  • Proactively test your email for Inbox Placement issues
  • Parse your message for common issues like spammy content, broken links and link shorteners
  • And much more…

If managing your email delivery sounds complicated… We even over a Managed Services option. We’ll work with you, make suggestions, help with configuration and proactively monitor your email delivery to enable you to concentrate on your business.