Segregating Email Hard Bounces in Pardot due to DMARC Policy

While implementing Pardot, we have all configured Domain Management settings. While setting up the Email Sending Domains, we add a basic few domains, whereas, we might be using a few more while making regular email sends. 

One such incident happened with one of my clients. They decided to set up an organizational level domain in the Email Sending Domains while they also used a regional sub-domain for sending emails.

Image: Domain Management Setting

The problem arose when, in one of their Email Templates, instead of using the organizational level domain, they set a regional sub-domain as the sender. Hence, when they sent an email, it bounced back from the recipient’s system as it did not recognize Pardot as an authorized sender for that sub-domain. The reason for these hard bounces was listed as a DMARC authentication error with the text, DMARC policy; 'sub-domain' domain; Unauthenticated email', etc,. So the option was to either change the Sender email or to get the sub-domain added in the Email Sending Domain setting to resolve this.

Image: Email template Sender Option

After the root cause of the hard bounce was fixed, the next question was how to make these prospects mailable again. To do so, we had to weed out the prospects which had hard bounces specifically due to this reason. There is no option in the Automation Rules in Pardot that I could use for this. The workaround for this was as follows:

1. To create new Custom Formula fields on Lead and Contact objects to store the reason for the hard bounce. I named the fields 'Hard Bounce Reason - Lead' and 'Hard Bounce Reason - Contact' and set them up to store the value of a backend field called EmailBouncedReason. Now, this value was available for use in SF and Pardot.

Image: SF Formula Field Setting
      

2. To create two Pardot Custom fields to store the hard bounce reason in Pardot; one for Leads and one for Contacts. I then mapped them to their respective SF fields.

3. Next, I used a Dynamic List in Pardot to filter prospects for which these fields had the text value of DMARC policy; sub-domain name; Unauthenticated email', etc,. I then copied these prospects into a Static list that could be used for my next action.

Image: Dynamic List Rule

The list of prospects was now ready, so I got in touch with Pardot Support, explained to them the genuine reason for which I wanted these prospects to be made mailable again and supplied them with this Static list. They helped me clear the bounces on these prospects. For a few prospects, this did not turn the Do Not Email field to False. Support had to specifically clear them out and make them mailable as well.

Though it is possible to reset soft and hard bounces on individual prospects, to get it done for a mass of prospects for a genuine reason, it is best to seek the help of Pardot Support.

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