13 Reasons why your email went to spam and how fix it [Quick and Easy]

Are you worried about why you are not getting the desired output you have been looking for at an email campaign? Here you will get the solution here that you have been looking for.

Michael Harper

Last Updated On: [date format=”d F, Y” timestamp=”-27 days”]

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Table of Contents

You have started your massive email marketing campaign but you are not getting the expected feedback from it? The reason could be very simple; your emails are landing into the dreaded spam folder. Spam filters are becoming more and more sensitive that it is crucial to respect certain simple rules when you are composing your emails to improve your email deliverability.

To help you compose emails that will never meet the spam folder I have listed 13 reasons why your emails go pam and how to avoid them.

1. Your emailing list contains many inactive subscribers

Your email list might contain thousands and thousands of emails, however, that does not guarantee you that every single recipient is opening and reading your emails.

 

These un-engaging and unresponsive subscribers not only drive down your email opening rates but also trigger spam filters. Hence, why it is crucial to “purge” your list and compile a new healthy one that contains only your active subscribers.

 

Solution: The best way to identify these un-engaging recipients is to use mail tracker software such as ContantMonkey, Yesware. To check the quality of your emailing list you can use Zero Bounce, AWeber, ActiveCampaign and GetResponse.

1.1  Contact Monkey

This platform allows you to track the performance of your email marketing campaign by measuring email opens and link clicks. On top of that, you will be able to identify the most attractive and engaging content of your emails. To use this platform, you can either request a demo account or purchase one of their paid.

1.1  Yesware

Trusted by 1.2 million users, this software notifies you when your followers open your emails, check the attachments and the links that you send them.

1.3 Zero Bounce

This tool scans your email list, detects and removes all those emails addresses that no longer exist and those that contain misspellings. With their email validation feature you will be able to validate every email address in your list, quickly and effectively before starting your email marketing campaign.  In addition to that, you will be securing the of your IP, while lowering the bounce rates as well.

 

You can access Zero Bounce for free by registering in the “Fremium plan” or subscribe to one of the paid plans “Email Validation and Scoring” ($16/month) or “Delivarability Toolkit” ($39/month).

2.Your emails contain spam trigger word

All online marketers know the importance of having a catchy CTA (call-to-action) phrase, which will grab the attention of your followers and persuade them to open your emails.  However, the usage of certain CTA words triggers the spam filters and your emails might never make it into your follower’s inbox.

On top of that, using one of the spam trigger words listed in the table below in your email’s subject lines will definitely send your email to the spam folder.

Solution: To avoid sending out spam mails always use spam checker tools and the good news is that there are countless of tools out there (even free ones) that allow you to scan your email’s spamminess. I have tested several of them and have listed only three that had the best performance.

2.1 Vbout

A marketing automation tool that among its main features also offers a highly effective spam word and subject line, checker. To access these tools, you can request a demo account or purchase one of their paid plans. I suggest you start with the demo first and if the tool meets your needs you can easily upgrade at any time.

How does it work?

The spam word checker has a very user-friendly interface, and all you have to do is type some words that you think might activate the spam filter. The search engine will let you know whether these words are in the spam trigger list words or not.

2.2  GlockApps

An amazing, all-in-one platform that ensures your email’s safe passage into your recipient’s inbox. Their spam checker tool scans your emails with various spam filters, including BarracudaGoogle Spam Filter, and Mimecast, and returns a detailed report about the issues that they might have found.

2.3 IP Quality Score (IPQUALITYSCORE)

A free email spam checker tool that allows you to estimate the deliverability rates of your emails before you send them out to your subscribers.

This online tool checks your emails for the presence of spam trigger words, and it is very easy to use. All you have to do is paste your email in the interface box and read the generated report.

To prove the efficiency of this free online tool, I run a demo email that contained some frequently used spam trigger words.  Below you can find the email and the scan result (As expected, it detected a high risk of spam).

3. Attachment of files in your emails

 

Including attachments to your emails is a common mistake that most online marketers make but are not aware that such behavior triggers spam filters. These attachments can be anything from product description to new recipes, and if you attach them to your emails, there is a high chance that your email will never reach their inbox.

 

Why does this happen? Spam filters often associate email attachments with virus malware and destructive files. To protect email recipients from possible scams and data leaks spam filters send attachment containing emails straight into the spam folder.

 

Solution: Send links instead of attachments. You can provide a link embedded into the body of the email that redirects your subscribers to your file. By doing so, you will dodge the spam filters and also inform your clients about your brand new product.

4. Your email content is not standardized

Over the years, I have received loads and loads of spam emails, and I have noticed that they all have in common the following characteristics.

 

 

  • Using ALL CAPS to write the subject line and large chunks of the content. This behavior can annoy your recipients and increase the chances of being marked as spam, if it ever reaches the inbox, of course.
  • Using a variety of fonts and colors in the body of the email. This is a huge NO-NO that must be avoided at all costs.
  • Adding tons of exclamation points and question marks will only ensure that your email lands safely into the spam folder.
  •  

Can you spot these mistakes in the spam folder of my email?

Solution: To avoid sounding like a marketing robot, opt for more personalized emails. Do not be afraid to use their first name and a friendly writing tone in your emails. No one likes reading generic emails all the time, and they probably receive hundreds of these emails anyway.

 

Avoid using all CAPS, stick to one font, don’t be overly colorful with your text. Below is an example of a spam email that will never make its way into the inbox of your subscribers.

5. Text-to-image ratio is off

Filling your emails with tons of images and including only a few words will trigger the spam filters. Spam filters are very sensitive and will scan your emails for the image-to-text ratio, and if this ratio is off, it will mark this email and the incoming ones as spam.

Solution:  Make sure to keep a balanced ratio of images and text in your emails. The ideal image to text ratio would be 50/50 or 60/40. Use online tools such as mail-tester.com, that allow you to run your email templates to check if they contain any spam triggering elements.

How does it work?
Mail-tester.com provides you with an email address, that you can use to send out your email. After sending it, you have to return to the mail-tester.com interface and click on the check your score button. This tool will analyze your email contents in a matter of minutes and returns a score evaluating the spamminess of your email.

How To Write Proper Email

In this section, you will learn how to write email properly, which will not get spammed

6. Your emails contain a lot of grammar and spelling mistakes

This is an innocent but very common reason why most emails end up in the spam folder. Spam filters can easily detect grammar mistakes and will automatically send your emails into the spam folder.

 

Why does this happen?
It is a known practice for hackers to use translation software to send out malware and phishing emails. These emails often contain tons of mistakes, and spam filters protect the users by sending them into spam.

 

Solution: Install a grammar checking software and use them when writing your emails. By doing so, you will greatly improve the quality and increase the deliverability rate of your emails. I highly recommend the editing tool ProWritingAid as it offers great features and it has affordable pricing plans.

ProWritingAid

This platform not only allows you to write mistake-free emails but also give suggestions on how to improve your writing style. You can install it for free or purchase one of their paid plans ProWritingAid Premium ($79 per month) and ProWritingAid Premium + Plagiarism Checker.

7. Your emails lack a physical address

You have compiled the perfect marketing email, free of spam triggering words, with the right ratio image to text ratio, but your email still ends up in the spam folder. One thing that you might have forgotten is to include your or your business’s physical address.

 

Why is this important?
Including your physical address provides a sense of traceability and security that your company is legit. Your clients will also feel more comfortable purchasing your products, knowing that they can contact you at any time.

 

Solution: Make sure to always add your physical address in the emails that you send out. A good emailing practice is to add your physical address at the bottom of your email content, as shown in this example email from TubeBuddy.

8. Not offering the option to unsubscribe

You should always make sure to include an un-subscription link in your newsletters or promotional emails, and I cannot emphasize this enough. If you fail to provide the option to your followers, you are increasing the chances for your email to be sent straight to the spam folder.

 

Solution: Add an “Unsubscribe” or “Opt-out” interactive link at the end of your emails. Doing so will help you to identify flaws in your current email marketing approach and how to solve it in your future email marketing campaigns. A good example is the opt-out redirecting window of TubeBuddy, shown below.

9. Blacklisted IP or domain

When you send out large volumes of emails that contain spam triggering characteristics, it is no surprise for your domain or IP address to end up on a public blacklist. It is feasible to check whether your IP or domain has been blacklisted before starting an email marketing campaign to increase the email deliverability rate.

 

Solution: The best way to check if your IP or domain is blacklisted is by using various online tools. My favorite tools for this purpose are MX Lookup and Multirbl.valli.org.

9.1  MX Lookup

This online tool checks the configuration of your DNS, and whether your domain and IP have been blacklisted or not. You can access this tool for free or easily upgrade for one of their paid plans for $99 per month.

9.2 Multirbl.valli.org

A free online tool that operates similarly to the MX Lookup. Also offers extra features such as cross-referencing blacklists by domain, IPV4, and IPV6.

10. Non consistent mail frequency

Are you sending out several promotion emails to your followers every day? If you answered yes, then that is among the reasons why your emails end up in the spam folder.

By flooding your recipient’s email inbox with hundreds of emails in a short time you are driving them to mark your emails as spam and un-subscribe. On top of that, your IP might be blacklisted as well.

 

Solution: To avoid this kind of behavior you have to make sure to establish a well-balanced emailing campaign. Please keep in mind that sending out a small number of emails per month could also be damaging as your subscribers might forget your blog and why they decided to follow you in the first place.

Having access to the right tool

In this section, you will learn about the tools that you need to avoid your email from being marked as spam

11. You have low sender reputation

Email sender reputation is incredibly important, in the world of online marketing. The email sender reputation refers to the evaluation that an Internet Service Provider (ISP) does to your email marketing performance. ISP evaluates this performance by assigning a score that impacts the deliverability rate of your emails.

 

How does it work?

The higher is your email sender score, the lower are the chances for your email to end up in your client’s inbox, and the lower is your email sender score, the higher the chances that your email will go into the spam folder.

 

Solution: Check your email sender reputation before launching your email marketing campaign. There are numerous online tools such as SenderScore, TrustedScore.org that you can use.

 

11.1 Sender Score

This email reputation evaluation service allows you to check the health of your emailing program. Their sender score is a number ranging between 0 and 100.

 

For sender scores below 70, you must improve your sender reputation, and if your sender score is between 70-80 you doing great but there is still room for improvement. Lastly, if your sender score is higher than 80, you have an outstanding sender reputation.

12. You are using bought or rented lists

The idea of purchasing or renting existing emailing lists is very attractive, especially if you have just started your online business and want to share your product or services with as many people as possible.

However, sending tons of promotional emails to people that might have never heard about your company will only lead them to mark your emails as spam, damaging your sender’s reputation in the process.

Solution: Build your emailing list. I know that it is hard it is, but it is better to share your content and products with people who know them and love hearing from you. Keep advertising your products/services and your list will grow larger.

13. You do not have permission to send them emails

Emailing people without permission, not only will lower your email deliverability rate, sender reputation but can also cause you legal problems. This risk is extremely high when you purchase email lists and start your emailing campaign without asking them for permission first.

Solution: Always send an opt-in form to your newly acquired email addresses. Allow them to check your website or blog and decide if they want to join your newsletter or not. You can make your own personalized opt-in forms using online marketing platforms such as AWeber, GetResponse and ActiveCampaign.

13.1 AWeber

This all-in-one email marketing platform offers hundreds of features to help you launch your email marketing campaign, including a tool that allows you to build opt-in forms. You can personalize your opt-in form by choosing one from the countless templates offered by AWeber. After you have designed your opt-in form, you can simply copy the HTML code and paste it into the page where you want it to appear.

13.2 GetResponse

With this email marketing platform, you will be able to create unique, simple to share opt-in forms that you can put anywhere on your website. If you want to add something extra to grab the attention of your viewers, you can create pop-up and scroll forms. GetResponse also allows you to easily integrate these opt-in forms in Facebook and WordPress as well.

13.3 ActiveCampaign

This email marketing platform is the cheapest option of the three and, in addition to its main features, also allows you to build and customize the appropriate opt-in forms for your online business. For its new users, Active Campaign offers many tutorials that will guide you on how to build your opt-in forms.

With spam emails accounting for 53.95% of the e-mail traffic in 2020, do not allow your emails become part of this statistics. Now that you know what you are doing wrong, make sure follow these advices to increase the email deliverability rate of your email marketing campaigns.

I hope this article has helped you to understand the reasons behind your email being marked as spam. Don’t forget to leave your feedback in the comment section. Do let us know how it has helped you.

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