Email marketing has become a go-to method for generating leads and nurturing customers due to massive reach potential. With an expected 254.7 million U.S. email users by the end of 2020 (up nearly 21 million from 2015), no marketer can ignore the power of this medium.
With great power comes great responsibility, however. Spam traps, trigger words, and anti-spam laws can catapult your emails straight into the spam folder if you are not careful.
The good news is that this fate can be avoided with some careful preparation. Featured below are 4 ways to dodge the dreaded spam folder:
1. Choose the right sender name
Personalization is a very hot trend today because it adds the human touch to automated messages. When you set up the ‘from’ address, use one that features a personal name and your brand (like ‘janedoe@mycompany.com’). Email users are more likely to click on an email address that appears to come from a real person versus a generic one like ‘noreply@domain.com.’
After you establish your ‘from’ address, use it consistently across your campaigns. If you change your ‘from’ address frequently, email service providers may flag your company and audit you. Their findings could lower your reputation and send you to the spam folder more often.
2. Check to see if your company is blacklisted
If you suspect your emails are hitting the spam folder, check a free site like Multirbl.Valli to find out if you have been blacklisted. Enter your domain name into the search box, and click ‘Send.’ You will learn within seconds if you are predestined for the spam folder. Even if you feel confident about your company’s reputation, this is still a good tool to utilize occasionally.
3. Keep your email lists clean
Email service providers consider a number of factors in your reputation score. The items below will help you stay clear from spam filters and traps:
- Delete hard bounces from your list – If you continually send emails to invalid addresses, you could end up in a spam trap, which will lower your deliverability rate.
- Let go of unsubscribers – When users unsubscribe, respect their wishes to prevent being labeled as spam. If you do not have an unsubscribe option, consider adding one immediately. According to the CAN-SPAM Act, you could be fined up to $40,654 for each violation.
4. Craft the perfect subject line
Your subject lines and email content can land you in the spam folder if you practice undesirable tactics. Skip this outcome by implementing the following steps:
- Do not use trigger words – Words like ‘earn money,’ ‘sale,’ ‘sales,’ and ‘you’re a winner’ hit spam filters immediately. Keep your subject lines more casual, and omit salesy language.
- Deliver on your promise – If you promise your audience an invitation to an event in the subject line, make sure your body copy contains event details. Email users will mark your email as spam if your subject line varies drastically from your email content.
- Do not include attachments – Spam filters look for potentially harmful documents, and attachments like Microsoft Word files or .pdfs could hurt your deliverability. Instead, include a call-to-action button that drives users to a downloadable file or a web form.
- Skip rich content embeds – Videos are highly valuable on websites and in social marketing, but they do not translate as well in email marketing. Many email clients will not play videos properly, and your emails could end up labeled as spam. If video is vital to your campaign, feature a call-to-action with a link to the video. Many marketers even insert a screenshot of the video as the main image and link it to the full video.
Email marketing provides an excellent avenue for driving more clicks and securing new customers. By following these recommendations, you will position your campaigns for greater reach and overall success.
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