Why Did My Email Send Successfully but Not Arrive in the Inbox?

Use this article when a recipient says they did not receive an email, but the message appears to have been sent or delivered from Patch.

In this article

• Start with the most important distinction
• Step 1: Confirm the recipient email address
• Step 2: Check spam, promotions, and other folders
• Step 3: Check whether the contact opted out
• Step 4: Look for bounce or delivery events
• Step 5: Ask the recipient to allowlist your sender
• Step 6: Compare one recipient to the full send

Start with the most important distinction

A successful send means Patch attempted to send the email. A delivered status means the receiving email system accepted it. Neither status guarantees that the message appeared in the recipient’s main inbox.

The recipient’s mailbox provider, company firewall, spam filter, or personal inbox rules may still move, delay, quarantine, or hide the email.

Step 1: Confirm the recipient email address

1. Open the contact profile in Patch.
2. Check the email address for typos.
3. Confirm the recipient is checking that exact inbox.
4. If the contact has multiple email addresses in other systems, confirm which one Patch used.

Common issues include missing letters, old domains, shared family emails, or a work email blocking marketing messages.

Step 2: Check spam, promotions, and other folders

Ask the recipient to search their mailbox for your business name, the subject line, or the sender name. They should check:

• Spam or junk
• Promotions
• Updates
• Clutter or Other inbox
• Deleted items
• Company quarantine or security portal
• Inbox filter rules

Company and school email systems often filter marketing email before it reaches the visible inbox.

Step 3: Check whether the contact opted out

1. Open the contact profile in Patch.
2. Review the contact’s email subscription or opt-out status.
3. If the contact is opted out, do not manually send marketing email to bypass that preference.
4. If the contact wants to receive emails again, follow your approved opt-in process.

Opt-out status should be respected even if the customer asks why the email did not arrive.

Step 4: Look for bounce or delivery events

If available, review the email activity or message performance details.

• Bounced: The address may be invalid, closed, or blocked.
• Delivered: The receiving system accepted the email, but it may still be filtered locally.

If one domain is affected, such as a company or school domain, the issue may be with that domain’s filtering rules.

Step 5: Ask the recipient to allowlist your sender

If the recipient wants future emails, ask them to add your sender email address or business domain to their contacts or safe sender list. For company email addresses, they may need their IT team to allowlist the sender.

This is most useful when a specific business, school, or organization domain is filtering the message.

Step 6: Compare one recipient to the full send

If only one person did not receive the email, troubleshoot that contact and inbox. If many people at the same domain did not receive it, check for domain-level filtering. If many unrelated domains did not receive it, review the audience, content, and account sending health.

When contacting Patch Support, include the campaign name, recipient email address, send date/time, what the recipient already checked, and videos/screenshots. 

Customer Support

If you need help or are not sure which step to take next, contact Patch Customer Support at success@patchretention.com or 888.605.4429.