Avoiding the Spam Folder

One of the most frequent questions I get from clients is in regards to deliverability. Spammers out there have made it tough for legitimate email marketers to send messages without having to worry about triggering spam filters or ending up in someone’s junk folder.

Here are some quick things to watch out for that Stefan Pollard suggests are the hallmarks of classic spam:

• Vague or aggressive subject lines
• E-mail address or stranger’s name in the sender line instead of a company or brand name
• Aggressive language in body copy, along with overuse of exclamation points and misspellings
• High ratio of images to text, especially one large image
• Oversized, boldfaced red type
• Too-frequent messages, often with unwanted or irrelevant content
• Newsletters that look more like solo offers than reliable information sources

Though the above are all warning signs, preventing looking like spam really boils down to the application of common sense. Try to read your email messages with the perspective of the recipient. Or instate a test-run, and send other company members your email, asking for feedback on whether they got spam vibes from the message.