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Outbound and email marketing glossary

35 terms from cold email, deliverability, LinkedIn, SMS and lead generation, defined the way we'd explain them on a call. Each links to the guide that goes deeper.

A2P 10DLC
Application-to-person messaging over standard 10-digit long code numbers in the US. Carriers require businesses to register their brand and campaign through The Campaign Registry before texting from these numbers, and filter unregistered traffic. Read more
Appointment setting
The work of turning a reply into a held meeting: qualifying the prospect, handling the back and forth and putting a time on the calendar. At Be Leaded it's part of every outbound program. Read more
Bounce rate
The share of emails that couldn't be delivered. Hard bounces are invalid addresses, soft bounces are temporary. Keep it under 2% by verifying every address before sending. Read more
Bulk sender
Gmail's term for anyone sending more than 5,000 messages a day to Gmail accounts. Bulk senders must authenticate with SPF, DKIM and DMARC, keep spam rates under 0.3% and support one-click unsubscribe. The status never expires. Read more
CAN-SPAM
The US law governing commercial email. It requires accurate headers, an honest subject line, a physical postal address, a working opt-out and opt-outs honored within 10 business days. It applies to B2B email, and each violating email can draw a penalty of up to $53,088. Read more
Catch-all domain
A domain that accepts email to any address, valid or not, so verification tools can't confirm individual addresses. Catch-all contacts are held for later, smaller sends or checked with a second tool. Read more
Cold email
An unsolicited business email to someone who hasn't heard from you before, sent one to one with a specific reason. Distinct from a newsletter, which goes to people who subscribed. Read more
Cost per meeting
Total program cost divided by qualified meetings held. The number that matters more than cost per lead or cost per click. Read more
Deliverability
Whether email reaches the inbox rather than spam or the void. Decided by authentication, sender reputation, list quality, content and volume. Read more
Delivery rate
The share of emails accepted by the receiving server. Not the same as inbox placement, which is where the email lands once accepted. Be Leaded's programs hold a 99% delivery rate. Read more
DKIM
DomainKeys Identified Mail. A cryptographic signature added to each email and checked against a key published in the sender's DNS, proving the message wasn't altered in transit. Read more
DMARC
Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting and Conformance. A DNS policy that tells receivers what to do when SPF and DKIM fail and where to send reports. Required by Gmail, Yahoo and Microsoft for bulk senders, with p=none the minimum. Read more
Domain reputation
A mailbox provider's running score of a sending domain, built from complaint rates, bounces, engagement and authentication history. Visible in Google Postmaster Tools. Read more
Email verification
Checking whether an address exists and accepts mail before sending to it, using tools such as ZeroBounce or MillionVerifier. The first defense against bounces. Read more
Inbox placement
Where an accepted email lands: primary inbox, promotions, spam. Measured with seed lists and placement tests, and improved by warmup, authentication and clean lists. Read more
Lead
A person or company that has shown interest or fits your buyer profile. An inbound lead asked for something. An outbound lead is one you chose to contact. Read more
Lifecycle email
Automated emails triggered by what a person does: a welcome series, an onboarding sequence, a re-engagement flow. Runs between newsletter issues. Read more
List-unsubscribe
An email header that lets mailbox providers show an unsubscribe button. Gmail and Yahoo require the one-click version (RFC 8058) for bulk senders, with requests honored within two days. Read more
Newsletter
A recurring email to people who subscribed, with one useful idea per issue. The programs Be Leaded runs average a 49% open rate. Read more
Off-market deal
A company that isn't listed for sale, reached by approaching the owner directly. Most privately held businesses change hands this way. Read more
Open rate
The share of delivered emails recorded as opened. Inflated by privacy features such as Apple Mail Privacy Protection, so it's a trend line rather than a truth. Judge campaigns on replies and meetings. Read more
Outbound
Marketing and sales activity where you reach out first: cold email, LinkedIn outreach, calls. The opposite of inbound, where the prospect finds you. Read more
Positive reply rate
The share of emails that get a reply expressing interest, as opposed to any reply at all. About a third of replies are positive in a typical program. Read more
The consent standard under the TCPA for marketing texts and automated or AI-voice calls: a clear written agreement, not pre-checked, that the person will receive marketing messages from your business. Read more
Qualified meeting
A meeting with someone who matches a definition agreed in writing before launch: title, company size, industry and the problem they need solved. Read more
Reply rate
Replies divided by emails sent. Instantly's 2026 report puts the average at 3.43%, the top quartile above 5.5%. Different tools count differently, so check the method before comparing. Read more
SDR
Sales development representative. The person who prospects and books meetings for account executives. Median on-target earnings of $80,000 a year and a 3.0-month ramp, according to The Bridge Group. Read more
Sending domain
A domain used only for outbound email, separate from a company's main domain, so cold volume never touches the domain that carries invoices and support. Read more
Sequence
A series of touches to one prospect over days or weeks: emails, LinkedIn messages, sometimes a call. Four to seven touches is the range the data supports. Read more
Spam complaint rate
The share of delivered emails that recipients mark as spam. Gmail asks senders to stay under 0.1% and never reach 0.3%. Yahoo's line is 0.3%. Read more
Speed to lead
The time between a lead arriving and your first contact. Reaching a lead within five minutes rather than thirty raises the odds of contact roughly a hundredfold, per the original lead response study. Read more
SPF
Sender Policy Framework. A DNS record listing the servers allowed to send email for a domain. Keep it under 10 DNS lookups and aligned with the From domain. Read more
TCPA
The Telephone Consumer Protection Act, the US law covering marketing calls and texts. It requires prior express written consent for marketing texts and for calls made with automated or artificial voices, including AI voices. Read more
Warmup
Sending a small, rising volume of email from a new inbox for two to three weeks so mailbox providers learn it's legitimate before it carries cold volume. Kept running at a low level afterward. Read more
White label
Work delivered under another company's brand. Be Leaded runs outbound and newsletter programs for marketing agencies under the agency's name. Read more

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