If Your Website Doesn’t Have This, You Could Be Losing Valuable Leads

The Silent Killer of Leads: Email Deliverability Failure

You installed a form on your website. People are submitting it. But you’re not getting the emails. And that means you’re losing leads—and potentially customers—without even knowing it.

TL;DR: If You’re Not Using a Reliable SMTP Service, You’re Missing Leads

Your website forms might be working technically — but if those lead emails are quietly landing in your spam folder (or not being delivered at all), you’re losing potential business.

Problem: Emails sent from standard web servers often get flagged as spam or blocked entirely.
Pain: You don’t know it’s happening until it’s too late — and that could mean lost sales, missed opportunities, or frustrated clients.
Solution: Use a dedicated SMTP provider like SMTP2GO to protect your email deliverability, improve reliability, and make sure every form submission actually reaches you.

If you’ve ever asked yourself, “Why am I not getting leads from my website?” — this article is for you.

Why Email From Your Website May Not Be Delivered

Here’s the thing: just because someone fills out your contact form doesn’t mean their message will reach your inbox. In fact, it often doesn’t. Emails sent directly from your website’s server—especially on shared hosting—are commonly flagged as spam, rejected entirely, or silently dropped due to authentication failures like missing SPF/DKIM records or blacklisted IPs.

According to SMTP2GO, email deliverability can drop as low as 50% when websites rely on default mail functions instead of authenticated SMTP delivery. That means 1 in 2 leads might never reach you.

Your forms appear to be working. But are they?
Emails sent from your website (contact forms, orders, notifications) look like they’re being delivered — but they may be getting flagged as spam or dropped altogether.

According to Validity’s 2023 Email Deliverability Benchmark Report, the average inbox placement rate globally is 79.6%, meaning over 20% of legitimate emails never reach inboxes.

Why It’s Worse Than You Think

Even if emails were getting through last month, they may not be now. Deliverability changes fast. That’s why my team at Webstix runs weekly tests on contact forms for our clients—and we consistently see problems for sites not using SMTP2GO.

You might lose the lead that would have become your best customer.
It’s often intermittent: emails go through for a while, then suddenly stop.
Spam filters are constantly evolving. What worked last month may now be flagged.

???? “We test forms weekly at our agency — and most email problems are invisible to the business owner until it’s too late.” – Tony Herman

Here are some real-world examples:

Client form leads were being junked after an email host blacklisted their VPS IP.
A host updated security rules and started silently dropping unauthenticated messages.

What’s causing email delivery problems from your website?

Your web host’s IP address may be on a blacklist.
The server doesn’t include essential email authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC).
Google and Microsoft have tightened delivery policies for bulk and unauthenticated mail.
PHP mail() and similar methods don’t provide logs or diagnostics.

Why Default Web Hosting Email Is Not Reliable

Shared hosting IPs are often blacklisted.
SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records are often not properly configured.
No delivery logs or bounce tracking means troubleshooting is near impossible.

It’s just way too easy right now for emails to work one day and then not work the next. The problem is, you probably won’t know you’ve lost leads until it’s too late. Often, weeks or even months pass by without someone checking.

One way to help is to assign someone to login into the website each week and check the leads recorded there and make sure they’ve all been received. That only works if your website is set up correctly to keep (almost like a backup) all the leads that come through your forms. And, this only works if the person assigned to check actually does their job.

You’ve invested all this time and money in your website, and if you don’t check to make sure you’ve received all your leads, it’s like burning the money you’ve invested. So what do you do?

The Simple Fix: Use a Reliable SMTP Service Like SMTP2GO

A great fix is to use a free service (up to a certain amount, which is plenty for most companies) that handles emails to help make sure they get delivered. It’s called SMTP2GO. SMTP stands for Simple Mail Transfer Protocol. In plain English, it’s and email sending server. There are typically 2 kinds of servers involved with email: the sending server (SMTP) and the receiving server (IMAP or POP3 – usually IMAP now).

Here are the benefits of adding SMTP2GO as your website’s sending server:

SMTP2GO routes your messages through a clean, monitored IP infrastructure.
It provides logs, bounce tracking, and status reports.
Works with any CMS — especially critical for WordPress contact forms.

SMTP2GO is a dedicated outbound email service that solves all these issues. It authenticates your mail, provides logging and analytics, and drastically improves delivery rates.

What You Get with SMTP2GO:

Authenticated email delivery with SPF, DKIM, and DMARC support
Detailed delivery logs and bounce reports
Blacklist monitoring to keep your domain/IP in good standing
Responsive support from real humans
Easy integration with WordPress via plugins like WP Mail SMTP

Bonus: You get peace of mind, and so do your clients.

Why We Recommend SMTP2GO (and Use It Ourselves)

We’ve been using SMTP2GO for years and haven’t had the kinds of problems we used to see when clients relied on default web server email functions.

Affordable and scalable (free tier available)
World-class deliverability and uptime
Easy setup with WordPress and cPanel
Dashboard shows delivery status and open tracking
You can finally stop wondering, “Did that form submission go through?”

???? We haven’t seen deliverability issues with any site using SMTP2GO.

How to Set It Up in Under 10 Minutes

Sign up at SMTP2GO.com
Add and verify your domain (add some CNAME records to your DNS)
Add SPF and DKIM records (they give exact instructions)
Update your site to use their SMTP credentials via a plugin or cPanel config

Final Thoughts: Don’t Let Leads Slip Through the Cracks!

If your website depends on email — and it does — you need to take control of deliverability. One missed lead could cost thousands. Protect yourself now with SMTP2GO.

Your website could be generating leads right now—but if they never hit your inbox, you’ll never know. Switch to a solution that gives you full visibility and control. Try SMTP2GO today and make sure your site is delivering on its promise.

FAQs About Email Deliverability

Q: Why aren’t lead emails from my website getting to me?

A: This is often caused by poor email deliverability. When your site sends email using the web host’s built-in mail server (like PHP mail), those messages often fail SPF/DKIM checks or get flagged by spam filters. The result? No inbox, no spam folder — they simply vanish. Using a dedicated SMTP service like SMTP2GO ensures those emails are authenticated, logged, and much more likely to be delivered.

Q: How can I tell if my website’s contact form emails are going through?

A: You typically can’t — unless you’re checking every form weekly (like we do for clients). Without proper logging and bounce reports, you’re flying blind. SMTP2GO gives you a dashboard showing delivery status, open rates, and bounce details for each message sent.

Q: My email was working before — what changed?

A: Email filters evolve constantly. Your server’s IP might now be on a blacklist. Your domain’s SPF or DKIM records may have expired or been updated. Or, changes at your hosting provider could have altered how mail is sent. That’s why proactive email deliverability management is essential — not optional.

Q: Can I use SMTP2GO with WordPress?

A: Absolutely. It works perfectly with WordPress using SMTP plugins like WP Mail SMTP or FluentSMTP. Just drop in your SMTP2GO credentials and you’re done.

Q: Does using SMTP2GO help with SEO?

A: Indirectly, yes. When your contact forms work reliably, you’re more likely to capture and convert leads — and that means more engagement and value from your traffic. No leads = lost opportunity.

Q: What is email deliverability?

A: It refers to how successfully your email reaches your recipient’s inbox — not just if it’s sent, but if it’s seen.

Q: Can I still use Gmail or Outlook with SMTP2GO?

A: Yes. SMTP2GO works alongside your existing email provider to send messages — especially from your website. You can even use it as your sending server for your email that comes from your computer to make sure those emails get delivered.

Q: Is SMTP2GO better than my hosting’s email?

A: Yes. Hosting email is often unreliable, especially on shared servers. SMTP2GO specializes in clean email delivery.

Q: Will I need to update DNS records?

A: Yes, adding SPF and DKIM records is recommended for best results. You also need to add some CNAME records for it to work properly. SMTP2GO provides step-by-step guides for this. Their support is also top-notch (I’ve used it).

More Resources:

Google Postmaster Tools – Bulk Sender Guidelines
→ Explains best practices to avoid spam folders, how email authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) affects deliverability, and sender reputation.

Cisco Talos – Reputation Center
→ Helps users understand how IP addresses and domains are scored and why reputation matters for email delivery.

Mailchimp: Email Deliverability Explained
→ A beginner-friendly breakdown of what impacts email deliverability, including content, sender reputation, and authentication protocols.

Return Path (Now Validity) Email Deliverability Benchmarks
→ Offers industry-wide benchmarks on inbox placement, spam rates, and trends across sectors.

Spamhaus: What Makes Email Get Blocked
→ Details how spam filters and blocklists work—crucial for explaining why unmanaged servers often end up blocked.

Campaign Monitor: 2023 Email Marketing Benchmarks Report
→ Includes stats on open rates and engagement, plus insight into how sender reputation affects performance.

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