Updated July 2025 (Gmail Tips)
The Vanishing Form Submissions Mystery
You know someone filled out your website form—you may even have seen the confirmation message—but the email notification never arrived in your inbox. Frustrating? Absolutely. Broken website? Likely not.
At The Image Stop, we build and test every form to ensure it fires correctly and sends messages as expected. But when those messages don’t show up in your email inbox, the culprit is usually not the form—it’s what happens after the form sends.
Here’s what you need to know about why this happens and how to fix it, without the technical jargon or finger-pointing.
How Website Contact Forms Actually Work
When someone fills out a form on your website — whether it’s a request for a quote, a booking, or a general inquiry — the information doesn’t magically appear in your inbox. Here’s the process in simple terms:
- User submits the form – The visitor fills out fields like name, email, and message.
- Server processes the request – Your website’s hosting server takes that information and prepares it to send to your email processing server as an email.
- Email is sent to your email provider using your website domain – Ideally, the email should be delivered from an address like
contact@yourdomain.com. - Your inbox receives it – The email travels through the internet and arrives in your mail provider’s system (Gmail, Outlook, Hotmail, or your business email).
Sounds simple, right? The problem comes in step 3 — and that’s where many businesses lose important leads.
That is also where our job ends – and your email provider’s job begins.
Why Emails Don’t Arrive: The IT Side of the Equation
Even if everything works perfectly on the site, your inbox might still not receive the message. Why?
- Spam filters may automatically block or divert messages that look unfamiliar.
- Firewall systems like Microsoft Exchange or Google Workspace may silently reject the message.
- Improper DNS records (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) can cause your domain to mark your own messages as suspicious.
- Your IT setup might include a spam quarantine that keeps the messages hidden from your main inbox.
It’s like mailing a letter with a return address your post office doesn’t trust—it never makes it to your door.
Why Using Gmail, Outlook, or Hotmail Causes Issues
If your website form is set up to send messages from an address like yourbusiness@gmail.com, yourname@outlook.com, or yourcompany@hotmail.com, there’s a high chance of problems.
Here’s why:
- Spam Filters Don’t Trust It – Major email providers are strict. When your website says it’s sending an email from Gmail (or Outlook, Hotmail) but isn’t actually using Gmail’s servers, the message often gets flagged as spam or blocked altogether.
- Authentication Fails – Modern email systems use checks like SPF, DKIM, and DMARC to verify if the sender is real. If the email claims to be from Gmail but isn’t authenticated through Google’s servers, it fails the test.
- Delivery is Unreliable – Even if the email isn’t rejected, it may land in the junk folder, never reach the inbox, or be silently dropped. That means potential leads never get to you.
Think about it: Would you want to risk missing out on a new client just because your form emails were set up incorrectly?
Gmail Specific Delivery Considerations
If you use Gmail or Google Workspace for your email, there are a few extra quirks to be aware of:
- Primary vs. Promotions vs. Spam – Gmail automatically sorts emails into different tabs. Even legitimate form submissions can end up in the “Promotions” or “Spam” folder.
- Strict Authentication Checks – Gmail is especially picky about SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records. If these aren’t set correctly, your form notifications may be rejected or filtered out.
- Display Name Recognition – Gmail pays attention to the sender name and may treat messages from an unrecognised name with caution.
What to do if you use Gmail:
- Check All Tabs and Folders – Look in Spam, Promotions, and any custom filters you’ve set up.
- Add the Sender to Your Contacts – Gmail is more likely to deliver emails from saved contacts straight to your inbox.
- Mark as “Not Spam” – Every time you rescue a legitimate message from spam, Gmail learns to trust similar emails in the future.
- Authenticate Your Domain – Ensure SPF, DKIM, and DMARC are properly set up in your DNS records for the best chance at delivery.
HOW TO - DKIM for gmail....
Configure DKIM in Gmail (or your Email Service):
If using Gmail directly (not Workspace):
- Go to your Gmail settings (gear icon -> See all settings).
- Go to the “Accounts and Import” tab.
- Find the “Send mail as” section and click “Edit info” next to your email address.
- Follow the instructions provided by Gmail to verify your domain and add the DKIM key. You’ll likely need to copy the verification string from Gmail and add it as a TXT record in your DNS, then verify it in Gmail.
The Right Way: Use Your Website’s Domain
The best practice is to send form emails from an address tied to your domain — something like info@yourdomain.com. This ensures consistency and trust because the email is being sent from the same place it claims to be.
When everything matches up, email providers are much more likely to deliver it safely to your inbox.
How an IT Company Can Help
An IT company can solve these delivery issues by:
- Setting Up Proper Domain Email – Creating a professional email address linked to your domain and integrating it with your website.
- Configuring Authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) – These behind-the-scenes settings prove to email providers that your messages are legitimate.
- Using Secure SMTP Services – Ensuring that your website sends emails through a secure, authenticated channel rather than a generic server.
- Monitoring & Troubleshooting – If emails still get lost, an IT partner can trace where the problem happens and adjust settings accordingly.
Don’t Let Leads Slip Through the Cracks
Your website form is one of the most important tools for capturing new business. But if those emails never arrive, it’s like locking the front door to potential customers.
Working with an IT company ensures your form submissions get delivered properly — giving you peace of mind and protecting every lead.
Here’s What We Recommend (and Already Do)
To make sure messages aren’t lost in the email void, we suggest the following steps:
1. Whitelist the website’s sending address
Ask your IT provider to add the form sender address to your safe sender list.
2. Use authenticated email delivery
If recommenede by your IT provider we can work with them to help connect your site to a trusted mail delivery service like SendGrid or Mailgun, which improves reliability and keeps your messages from getting flagged.
3. Have your IT team review email settings
They can check for spam traps, tighten up your DNS records, and set rules that allow form-based emails through.
4. We also set up message storage inside your website
As a backup (and peace of mind), we configure every form to store submissions right in your website dashboard or can add this is your site doe not currently have this feature in place. This means you can always access submissions—even if the email doesn’t land in your inbox. Just log in, and it’s all there. A great ‘Plan B’.
We’re Not Your IT Provider (But We’re Here to Help)
We’re specialists in web design, hosting, and form functionality – not corporate IT setups. But we do know how to work alongside your IT team to get things working smoothly. We’ll confirm the form is doing its job, and your IT provider can ensure your inbox is ready to receive.
When the right pieces are in place on both sides, your contact forms will work exactly as they should – and you won’t miss out on valuable leads.
Final Thoughts
Website forms are a crucial tool for communication and lead generation. When emails go missing, it’s almost always a deliverability issue, not a design or function problem. Let us do what we do best—build and maintain reliable forms—and we’ll help you connect the dots with your IT team when needed.