sales-zerobounce

What this skill does

# ZeroBounce Platform Help

Help the user with ZeroBounce platform questions — from email validation and list cleaning through AI scoring, activity data, inbox placement testing, blacklist monitoring, DMARC monitoring, email warmup, API integration, and email finder.

ZeroBounce is an email validation and deliverability platform with 99.6% accuracy across 30+ email status types. SOC 2 Type 2 and ISO-27001 certified, GDPR/HIPAA/CCPA compliant. Core strengths: bulk and real-time email validation, AI-powered catch-all scoring, activity data for engagement tracking, inbox placement testing, blacklist monitoring, DMARC monitoring, and email warmup.

## Step 1 — Gather context


If `references/learnings.md` exists, read it first for accumulated knowledge.

Ask the user:

1. **What area of ZeroBounce do you need help with?**
   - A) Email Validation — bulk list cleaning or real-time API verification
   - B) Email Finder — B2B email discovery by name + domain
   - C) Email Scoring (AI) — catch-all validation and engagement scoring
   - D) Activity Data — subscriber engagement tracking
   - E) Inbox Placement Testing — test email configs and inbox vs. spam placement
   - F) Blacklist Monitoring — IP/domain blacklist checks across 200+ providers
   - G) DMARC Monitor — domain authentication monitoring and policy setup
   - H) Email Warmup — domain/IP reputation building
   - I) API & SDKs — programmatic access, automation
   - J) Integrations — HubSpot, Salesforce, Mailchimp, Zapier, etc.
   - K) Account & Billing — credits, pricing, plans
   - L) Something else — describe it

2. **What's your role?**
   - A) Sales rep / AE / BDR
   - B) Sales manager / team lead
   - C) RevOps / Sales Ops
   - D) Marketer / Email marketer
   - E) Admin / IT
   - F) Founder / solo seller
   - G) Other

3. **What are you trying to accomplish?** (describe your specific goal — e.g., "clean 100K contacts before a HubSpot campaign", "set up blacklist monitoring for 5 sending IPs", "validate catch-all addresses with AI scoring")

**If the user's request already provides most of this context, skip directly to the relevant step.** Lead with your best-effort answer using reasonable assumptions (stated explicitly), then ask only the most critical 1-2 clarifying questions at the end — don't gate your response behind gathering complete context.

## Step 2 — Route or answer directly

If the request maps to a specialized skill, route:
- General deliverability strategy (SPF/DKIM/DMARC, warmup planning, inbox placement strategy) → `/sales-deliverability`
- Enrichment strategy across tools (waterfall enrichment, CRM hygiene) → `/sales-enrich`
- Building prospect lists / ICP definition → `/sales-prospect-list`
- Connecting tools via Zapier/webhooks generically → `/sales-integration`

Otherwise, answer directly from platform knowledge using the reference below.

## Step 3 — ZeroBounce platform reference

**Read `references/platform-guide.md`** for detailed module documentation, pricing, integrations, and data model.

*You no longer need the platform guide details — focus on the user's specific situation.*

## Step 4 — Actionable guidance

Based on the user's specific question, provide step-by-step instructions:

### Bulk list validation workflow
1. **Prepare your list**: Export contacts as CSV with one email per row. Remove duplicates to save credits.
2. **Upload**: Log in to ZeroBounce → Bulk Email Validator → upload your CSV file. Or use `POST /v2/sendfile` via the API.
3. **Wait for processing**: ZeroBounce processes the list asynchronously. Check status via the dashboard or `GET /v2/filestatus`.
4. **Review results**: Download results via the dashboard or `GET /v2/getfile`. Review the breakdown by status (Valid, Invalid, Catch-All, Spam Trap, Abuse, Disposable, Unknown, Do Not Mail).
5. **Handle catch-all addresses**: Run AI Scoring on catch-all results. Set a score threshold (7+ recommended) for inclusion.
6. **Download clean list**: Export Valid emails (and high-scoring catch-all) for campaigns.
7. **Import to your campaign tool**: Upload the clean list to your ESP, CRM, or campaign platform.
8. **Re-verify regularly**: Re-validate every 3 months or before any major campaign.

### Real-time API validation setup
1. **Get your API key**: Log in to ZeroBounce → API settings → copy your API key.
2. **Choose your region**: Default (`api.zerobounce.net`), US (`api-us.zerobounce.net`), or EU (`api-eu.zerobounce.net`).
3. **Integrate**: Call `GET /v2/validate?api_key=YOUR_KEY&[email protected]` for single validation, or `POST /v2/validatebatch` for up to 200 at once.
4. **Handle responses**: Check the `status` field — route Valid emails to your system, reject Invalid/Spam Trap/Abuse/Disposable, and flag Catch-All for AI Scoring.
5. **Use an SDK**: ZeroBounce offers 13 official SDKs — use the one for your language instead of raw HTTP calls.
6. **Monitor usage**: Check credits with `GET /v2/getcredits` and usage with `GET /v2/getusage`.

### Blacklist monitoring setup
1. **Add your IPs and domains**: In ZeroBounce → Blacklist Monitor → add all sending IPs (IPv4 and IPv6) and domains.
2. **Configure alerts**: Set up email or webhook notifications for blacklist events.
3. **Review initial scan**: ZeroBounce runs an initial check — review any existing blacklist entries.
4. **Act on alerts**: When you receive a blacklist alert, identify the blacklist provider, check their delisting process, and submit a delisting request. Cross-reference with recent sending activity to find the cause.
5. **Monitor continuously**: Check the dashboard regularly — some blacklists auto-expire, others require manual delisting.

### DMARC monitoring setup
1. **Add your domains**: In ZeroBounce → DMARC Monitor → add all domains you send email from.
2. **Publish DMARC record**: If you don't have a DMARC record yet, start with `v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:[email protected]`. ZeroBounce provides the correct record to publish.
3. **Monitor reports**: Review DMARC aggregate reports in the dashboard — identify all authorized senders.
4. **Tighten policy gradually**: Once you've identified all legitimate senders, move from p=none → p=quarantine → p=reject over weeks/months.
5. **Watch for suspicious activity**: Act on alerts about unauthorized senders spoofing your domain.

### Email warmup workflow
1. **Connect your email account**: In ZeroBounce → Email Warmup → connect the Gmail or Outlook account you want to warm up.
2. **Configure settings**: Set daily send volume targets and ramp-up schedule.
3. **Start warmup**: ZeroBounce begins automated engagement — sending, opening, replying, and rescuing from spam.
4. **Monitor progress**: Check warmup metrics in the dashboard — delivery rates, inbox placement rates.
5. **Run inbox placement tests**: After 2-3 weeks, run placement tests to verify reputation improvement.
6. **Transition to campaigns**: Once warmup metrics stabilize, begin sending real campaigns at low volume and gradually increase.

## Gotchas

*Best-effort from research — review these, especially items about pricing, credit costs, and API behavior that may have changed.*

- **Don't treat Catch-All as Valid or Invalid.** Catch-all domains accept all emails at the SMTP level, so ZeroBounce cannot confirm individual mailbox existence through standard validation alone. Don't blindly include them (risking bounces) or blindly exclude them (losing valid prospects). Use AI Scoring to evaluate catch-all addresses individually — it's what the feature was designed for.
- **Don't underestimate Email Finder credit cost.** At 20 credits per successful find, a batch of 500 lookups can cost up to 10,000 credits — equivalent to validating 10,000 emails. Budget Email Finder usage separately from validation credits. If you need high-volume email discovery, compare the per-find cost against dedicated email finder tools.
- **Don't forget about regional API endpoints.** ZeroBounce offers US and EU regional endpoints in