If your business is facing the frustrating problem of having your company’s outgoing emails sent to customers getting labeled as spam then fear not, because you are not alone and there are a number of steps you can implement now to help reduce the impact of this common issue.
Since people have grown tired of constantly being inundated with spam in their inboxes, filters, and various email spam programs have been created to reduce the volume of spam an email account receives by only receiving emails which meet a strict criteria; consequently, many of the emails sent by companies to their customers get labeled as spam. While there is no way to completely circumnavigate all spam filters, there are things you can do to make it more likely for your emails to be sent to your customers without being labeled as spam.
Take a look at the list of ways to stop your emails from being labeled as spam below.
- Comply with the CAN-SPAM Act: This act requires that emails sent with anything commercially related must meet certain standards, mainly that they do not have misleading information in the header and subject lines, and that they identify themselves as an ad.
- Try to stay away from spam trigger words and phrases that are commonly identified by filters as spam or phishing emails: Avoid words that are commonly in commercial advertisements and promotions, though even when you don’t use such words there is no guarantee that your email will avoid being labeled as spam.
- When sending HTML emails, make sure to include a text version: Incorrect HTML tags can often cause emails to end up being filtered into spam
- Consider requesting your customers to whitelist your domain: If your emails are getting blacklisted, then consider letting your customers/recipient know and asking them to place you on their “whitelist.”
- Utilize some type of spam checking service: Before sending out emails to your client list, it is always a good idea to use a spam checking tool, such as the downloadable SpamAssassin, or online service that you send your email to, like com.
- Make sure you aren’t on any blacklists: Check to see that your server isn’t on any blacklists that prevent your emails from being delivered spam-free; some free services include Free Email Blacklist Lookup at MX ToolBox, Email Blacklist Check, and Spam Database Lookup like info. If you find your server is on a blacklist, you need to follow up with the website you have been blacklisted why and correct the problem that had you blacklisted in the first place.
- Avoid sending large attachments and certain types of attachments: As a general rule, you shouldn’t send emails with attachments to people on your list who are not expecting them. If you must send a particularly large attachment, try doing so using a service like com. Also, avoid sending .exe, .zip, and .swf attachments.
- Investigate the reason behind every email bounce: Each time email bounces, it will indicate the reason, and once you know if someone has blacklisted you because you are sending spam, you can correct the problem.
- Limit a number of emails you are sending per hour. If you are sending too many emails per hour, incoming servers will assume you are a spammer and you will be placed on blacklists. You should not be sending more than 20 emails per hour as a server. If you want to send out more than 20 emails per hour then we recommend using email marketing programs such as Constant Contact, etc. LOJO also offers email marketing options that are competitive and hassle-free.
There are many other small things you can be doing to avoid being blacklisted. If you have been blacklisted and your email is getting labeled as spam, give LOJO a call. We are happy to help you navigate through this issue.
Written by Cassandra Sohn
