Mail merge - does it go through education firewalls?

Question

I work for an edTech company, and am wondering if I mail merge via outlook, will schools filter out via their firewall my mail merge?

I'd heard that due to the firewall, any email with more than 20 recipients won't get through - is this true? Is there a way around it?

Thanks

Answer 1

Hi Sarah,

Exchange and Outlook wouldn't limit you to 20 unless your IT department has restricted the number of recipients. You would need to ask the Exchange admin if they have restricted the number of recipients for an e-mail.

Another option is to put 21 e-mail addresses into an e-mail and send it, also note the limits could be different for internal and external, depending on if they use a 3rd party for mail filtering etc.

also, if you're sending it and are worried about schools receiving it, I doubt it's true as schools will receive e-mails from various organisations using mailing lists. (they can also white list)

hope this helps.

Tesh

Answer 2

Hi @Sarah Moon

Welcome to our forum！

will schools filter out via their firewall my mail merge?

School firewalls and spam filters can indeed block emails that appear to be mass mailings. This can happen if the email contains too many recipients, or if the content triggers spam filters. More information: Mail Merge limitations and restrictions - Microsoft Community 

any email with more than 20 recipients won't get through- is this true?

Many email providers, including Outlook, have limits on the number of recipients per email. For example, personal accounts might be limited to 10-20 recipients per email to avoid being flagged as spam. Business accounts typically have higher limits, but it's still a good practice to send emails in smaller batches.

Here are some suggestions you may want to refer to:

• Batch Sending: Break your email list into smaller groups and send them in batches. This reduces the likelihood of being flagged as spam.
• Personalization: Use mail merge to personalize each email. Personalized emails are less likely to be flagged as spam.
• Content Quality: Ensure your email content is relevant and not overly promotional. Avoid using too many links or attachments, which can trigger spam filters.

Hope it helps! 

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