Email spam senders try to trick recipients into downloading malware, sharing their personal information or sending money. They use misleading information and scare tactics in their messages, and they frequently pose as legitimate businesses to try to steal the recipient’s money or their personal information. It’s also common for them to include a sense of urgency, creating the impression that if the recipient doesn’t act quickly, they may miss out on a special offer or some other benefit. Spammers’ methods change and evolve all the time, but one thing that remains constant is that they are motivated by a financial incentive and are attempting to gain some sort of advantage from the recipient.
A number of different factors can cause an email to be classified as spam, including using a domain that isn’t authenticated or verified, having excessive images, triggering the Spam folder due to a high rate of hard bounces, having a subject line with a misleading subject matter and other factors. However, there are some things that all marketers should be aware of to prevent bad emails from getting delivered to their subscribers.
The best way to avoid having your emails classified as spam is to always keep your emails clean and up-to-date. Keeping your IP reputation low and honoring opt-out requests promptly are also important. It’s worth remembering that email service providers look at how your subscribers engage with your emails. If you have a low open and click-through rate, you could find yourself in the spam folder.
Never send unsolicited attachments to your subscribers. Attachments are a great way for spammers to distribute malware, and any unsolicited email that includes an attachment is almost always a red flag.
Another way to prevent bad emails is to make sure you have a clear and easy way for your subscribers to unsubscribe from your email list. Many countries have laws and guidelines for how to do this, so it’s important to follow these rules.
Lastly, don’t forget to check your email program’s spam complaint statistics regularly. This is an important metric that email services like Gmail use to determine the deliverability of your emails. Having a high spam complaint rate will significantly impact your ability to get your emails in front of your audience.
Using an email software that allows you to screen new email addresses will also help to prevent bad emails from making it to your subscribers’ inboxes. This can be done by checking the “Add to contacts” or “Screener” tabs in the email client. Adding the email address to your contacts will ensure that future emails from the sender will not be automatically moved to your spam folder. You can also check your spam complaint rates in the “Reporting” tab of your email program.