Email Verification Before Campaigns

What it does

A pre-send routine: run the list through a verifier, split addresses by result and only send to the valid ones. Doubtful addresses go in a separate batch or get dropped. That protects the reputation of your domains and mailboxes.

When to use it

• Before uploading any list to your sending tool.
• When a list is more than a few months old.
• When a campaign shows high bounces.

Steps

1. Remove duplicates, whitespace and obvious typos.
2. Run the list through an email verifier.
3. Split into valid, invalid, catch-all, risky and disposable.
4. Send to valid only; catch-alls in small batches or not at all.
5. Drop role addresses (info@, sales@) if the campaign is personal.
6. Store the result and verification date per contact.

The skill

---
name: email-verification
description: Routine to verify and segment an email list before a campaign (valid, invalid, catch-all, risky, disposable, role) and decide who to send to. Use before loading any list into a cold email tool or when bounces run high.
---

# Email Verification Before Campaigns

## Why
Every bounce tells Gmail and Outlook you do not look after your list. Lots of bounces = your mail goes to spam or your mailbox gets suspended.

## Step 1. Basic cleanup (before spending credits)
- Remove duplicates (case-insensitive).
- Strip spaces, commas and stray characters.
- Fix obvious domain typos only when certain (gmial.com → gmail.com) and flag them.
- Remove anyone who opted out and your current clients.

## Step 2. Verifier
Use whatever verifier the user has (MillionVerifier, NeverBounce, ZeroBounce, Reoon or another). Never "verify" by sending test emails from your sending domains.

## Step 3. Segment by result
| Result | Action |
|---|---|
| Valid | Send |
| Invalid | Drop, and flag in the CRM |
| Catch-all / accept-all | Separate: small batch at the end, or skip |
| Risky / unknown | Do not send; re-verify in a few days |
| Disposable | Drop |
| Role (info@, sales@) | Only if the campaign is written for shared inboxes |

## Step 4. Sending rules
- Send to valid only, from warmed-up mailboxes.
- If early sends bounce, pause the campaign and review the list before continuing.
- Re-verify lists older than 90 days.

## Deliverable
- File with `verification_status` and `verified_on` columns.
- Summary with the real counts per category (as the verifier reports them, no rounding or guessing).
- Recommendation: which segment gets sent and which does not.

For Claude Code, save it as ~/.claude/skills/email-verification/SKILL.md. In Cursor, ChatGPT or another assistant, paste it as project instructions.

Works with