Making the Arcane Simple
Your Emails Should Be Reaching the Inbox
Most delivery problems come down to authentication gaps, permission failures, or configuration errors that have specific fixes. I spent eleven years inside the systems that make these decisions — writing the policies, building the enforcement infrastructure, working through the edge cases. That background changes what the diagnosis looks like.
Your Email Program Is Probably Fine. One Part of It Isn't.
Most of the programs I look at are largely sound. The authentication is mostly in place. The permission practices are mostly right. What’s causing the delivery problem is usually something specific — a DMARC policy set wide open while phishing mail using your domain clears receivers without a challenge, a sending platform someone in marketing stood up and never documented, a contact who unsubscribed from one business unit and kept getting mail from another because the two ESPs never shared a suppression list.
That specific thing has a location in your configuration and a fix. We can find it together.
Your emails aren’t reaching the inbox
Authentication failures and sender reputation issues have defined solutions. The question is finding the right one for your configuration.
You’re not sure your authentication is set up correctly
SPF, DKIM, and DMARC each need to be implemented and coordinated — getting one right while leaving the others incomplete creates the much of the same exposure as skipping them entirely.
A deliverability crisis just hit
Blocklistings, bulk filtering, and sudden delivery drops require immediate, structured intervention — not trial and error.
You need ongoing oversight, not a one-time fix
Email infrastructure requires maintenance. Authentication records atrophy, DKIM keys age, and permission systems develop gaps over time.
Eleven Years Inside a Major Provider’s Email Policy Team Is a Different Kind of Experience
I’m Mickey Chandler. I have over 20 years in email including 11 years at a major email service provider developing and enforcing the policies that govern how email gets delivered. I wasn’t advising from the outside. I was making the decisions — writing the rules, building the enforcement systems, and working through the edge cases. I hold CIPP/US and CIPM certifications in privacy and an MS in information systems. I also operate Lex Protego, a separate law practice focused on privacy law and data protection, which means I understand where the technical ends and the legal begins. (And I speak both languages fluently.)
Whizardries is the technical practice. The work here is configuration, authentication, infrastructure review, and program oversight. If your situation raises legal questions, I’ll tell you that clearly, and I can still point you in the right direction.
When I diagnose a delivery problem, I’m drawing on the same framework the providers use to evaluate your mail. That’s the reason the diagnosis looks different from what you’ve seen before.
→ Read More About My Background
The Path From Problem to Resolution Is Shorter Than You Think
1
Assessment
The free initial assessment starts with your actual configuration, not a generic checklist. It covers your authentication records, your sending infrastructure, and your current delivery symptoms. You’ll leave with a clear picture of where the problems are and what’s causing them.
2
Analysis
Some situations need focused diagnostics. Others need a structured recovery program. I’ll recommend the package that matches what your program actually requires.
3
Resolution
The free initial assessment starts with your actual configuration, not a generic checklist. It covers your authentication records, your sending infrastructure, and your current delivery symptoms. You’ll leave with a clear picture of where the problems are and what’s causing them.
The Work Fits the Problem
I offer a small set of fixed-scope packages, each built around a specific type of situation. There’s no hourly billing and no ambiguity about what’s included.
Free Email Deliverability Assessment
A focused 30-minute conversation to identify your highest-priority issues and determine which engagement, if any, is the right fit.
Diagnostic Assessment
A focused technical assessment that identifies what is causing your delivery problem, explains it in plain language, and delivers specific recommended actions. Five business days.
Technical Program Audit
A full technical review of a functioning email program — authentication, infrastructure, permission practices, and monitoring coverage — with a risk-ranked report and implementation roadmap. Five business days.
Delivery Recovery Program
A structured 45-day recovery program for active delivery failures. Four defined phases, weekly status updates, and documentation so the same problem does not recur.
Advisory Retainer
Monthly fixed-fee oversight for established programs. A set number of hours each month for questions, change reviews, provider feedback interpretation, and escalation support if a problem develops.
All Whizardries services are technical in nature and do not constitute legal advice. If your situation raises legal or compliance questions, I’ll tell you.
A Free Assessment Tells You Exactly Where You Stand
It’s a thirty minute call. You don’t need to prepare a technical brief or know the right vocabulary. Bring your symptoms — the bounce rates, the delivery complaints, the authentication errors you’ve been ignoring — and I’ll tell you what they mean and what to do about them.
You’ll get a written summary of findings, a priority list, and a clear recommendation for next steps. That recommendation might be a paid engagement. It might be nothing. It depends entirely on what I find.
No obligation. No follow-up sequence if you don’t want one. Just a useful half-hour.
You know something isn’t right. That’s usually enough to start.