Decoding the Spam Folder: Understanding Why Emails Get Flagged and Strategies to Ensure Deliverability to the Inbox

 

In most cases, emails end up in spam due to just a few settings. It only takes you a few minutes to make adjustments to your domain records, and your emails are more likely to end up in your inbox.

 

First, let's define some concepts.

 

The domain is the address of your website. It consists of a name and a domain zone (.com, .ru, .ua).

 

DNS records are records about the correspondence between a name and service information in the domain name system. They are designed to link your site to the server and prevent attackers from acting on behalf of your site.

 

Reasons why your emails end up in spam:

1. SPF not configured
SPF (Sender Policy Framework) is a special DNS record. It contains a complete list of IP addresses from which it is allowed to send email campaigns on behalf of the domain.

 

2. DKIM not configured
DKIM (Domain Keys Identified Mail) is a unique digital signature. Placed in the header of the email to confirm that sending the email is authorized by the domain owner.

 

3. DMARC not configured
DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication Reporting and Conformance) is one way to protect subscribers from phishing attacks using your company's domain.

 

4. Purchased mailing lists
The recipient did not give permission to send emails
There is nothing wrong with wanting a large subscription base. But it is better to assemble the base yourself, purchased bases are always a risk.

 

5. No Double Opt-in
Double Opt-in is a confirmation of consent to receive the newsletter. Implemented by automating email newsletters. A classic example is a registration or subscription confirmation email.

 

6. Domain and IP address not warmed up
If you suddenly dramatically increase the number of emails you send, the chances of getting into spam will be very high.

To avoid such situations, you need to “warm-up” your subscriber base. It is best to do this not by yourself, but with the help of professional tools such as Warmy. Warmy is the auto all-in-one tool for email deliverability to make your Email Channel Reliable.

7. Contacts don't understand what they are signing up for
When filling out the registration form, the user must be aware of what letters he will receive in the future.

 

8. Complicated unsubscribe process
This is one of the main reasons why emails are marked as spam. Don't hide the unsubscribe button or make the process too complicated.

 

9. Lots of photos and little text
Email marketing is a little different from other marketing channels. While images play a big role, they shouldn't dominate your emails.

 

10. Links to suspicious sites
Mail services analyze the content of the letter, they interact with links and follow some of them. Therefore, we do not recommend using many links in a letter.

 

11. Low Engagement
Spam filters also look at how many subscribers interact with your emails. The more of them, the higher the chance of getting into the “Inbox”.

 

12. Send from a free domain like Gmail or Yahoo
Mailings should be done from your company's domains.

 

13. Bad IP reputation
The sender's IP address has its own reputation, which is assigned to it for many months, even if no one uses it for email campaigns. How to fix it, read our article - A domain with a tainted reputation, what should I do?

 

 

After you correct all these errors, your letters will be in the Inbox.

 

Watch our video - Why my emails are landing in spam? 🤨

 

 

Good luck.