How do I make sure that email doesn’t fall in spam while using a free email marketing tool?
If you are using a free email marketing tool to send newsletters, promotions, or updates to your subscribers, you might be wondering how to avoid the spam folder and increase your deliverability. Spam filters are constantly evolving and becoming more sophisticated, so it’s important to follow some best practices to ensure that your emails reach your audience’s inbox. Here are some tips to help you out:
- Use a reputable email service provider. Some free email marketing tools might have low sender reputation or poor deliverability rates, which can affect your emails’ chances of landing in the inbox. Reputable platforms often have established relationships with ISPs (Internet Service Providers) to help ensure better deliverability. Choose a provider that has a good track record of sending quality emails and complying with anti-spam laws.
- Authenticate Your Domain: Set up SPF (Sender Policy Framework) and DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail) authentication for your domain. This adds an extra layer of security and legitimacy to your emails.
Verify your domain and sender identity. One of the ways that spam filters determine the legitimacy of an email is by checking the sender’s domain and identity. You can verify your domain by adding some records to your DNS settings, such as SPF, DKIM, and DMARC. These records help to authenticate your emails and prevent spoofing. You can also verify your sender identity by using a consistent and recognizable from name and address, and by adding a clear and accurate subject line.
What is SPF?
What is DKIM?
DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail) enables domain owners to automatically “sign” emails from their domain, just as the signature on a check helps confirm who wrote the check. The DKIM “signature” is a digital signature that uses cryptography to mathematically verify that the email came from the domain1.
What is DMARC?
DMARC stands for Domain-based Message Authentication Reporting and Conformance. It is an email authentication protocol that verifies email senders by building on the Domain Name System (DNS), DomainKeys Identified Mail (DKIM), and Sender Policy Framework (SPF) protocols1. DMARC is designed to give email domain owners the ability to protect their domain from unauthorized use, commonly known as email spoofing2. DMARC ensures the destination email systems trust messages sent from your domain. Using DMARC with SPF and DKIM gives organizations more protection against spoofing and phishing email. DMARC helps receiving mail systems decide what to do with messages from your domain that fail SPF or DKIM checks3.
What are the differences between DMARC, DKIM and SPF?
SPF (Sender Policy Framework), DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail), and DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication Reporting and Conformance) are three email authentication methods1. SPF is an email authentication protocol that detects email spoofing by verifying the sending server’s authenticity2. DKIM enables domain owners to automatically “sign” emails from their domain, just as the signature on a check helps confirm who wrote the check. The DKIM “signature” is a digital signature that uses cryptography to mathematically verify that the email came from the domain1. DMARC tells a receiving email server what to do given the results after checking SPF and DKIM. A domain’s DMARC policy can be set in a variety of ways — it can instruct mail servers to quarantine emails that fail SPF or DKIM (or both), to reject such emails, or to deliver them1.
3. Build a Clean Email List: Maintain a clean and engaged email list by regularly removing inactive or bounced email addresses. Sending to a quality list reduces the chances of triggering spam filters.
4. Segment your list and send relevant content. Another factor that affects your deliverability is your engagement rate. If your subscribers open, click, and reply to your emails, it signals to the spam filters that your emails are valuable and wanted. To increase your engagement rate, you should segment your list based on different criteria, such as interests, preferences, behavior, or location. Then, you should send personalized and relevant content to each segment, based on their needs and expectations.
5. Avoid Spammy Content: Craft your emails to avoid using words, phrases, or symbols that are commonly associated with spam. Avoid using excessive capitalization, multiple exclamation points, and “spammy” keywords.
Avoid spammy words and phrases. Some words and phrases can trigger spam filters or make your subscribers suspicious of your emails. For example, words like “guaranteed”, “free”, “urgent”, “click here”, or “act now” can be seen as spammy or misleading. You should also avoid using all caps, excessive punctuation, or misleading claims in your subject line or body text.
6. Test your emails before sending. Before you hit send, you should test your emails to make sure they look good on different devices and email clients, and that they don’t contain any errors or broken links. You can also use tools like Mail Tester or GlockApps to check your spam score and identify any issues that might affect your deliverability.
7. Personalize and Segment: Personalize your emails and segment your list based on recipient preferences and behaviors. Relevant content is less likely to be marked as spam.
8. Use a Recognizable From Name and Address: Use a from name and email address that clearly identify your business. This helps recipients recognize your emails and reduces the likelihood of being marked as spam.
9. Provide Clear Unsubscribe Options: Include clear and easy-to-find unsubscribe links in your emails. Making it easy for recipients to unsubscribe reduces the likelihood of them marking your emails as spam.
10. Avoid Excessive Image-to-Text Ratio: Balance your email content between text and images. Emails that are mostly images can trigger spam filters.
11.Test Before Sending: Use email testing tools provided by your email marketing platform to check how your emails are likely to be received by different email clients and spam filters.
12.Monitor and Analyze: Monitor email performance, including open rates and engagement metrics. High engagement suggests that your emails are being well-received.
13. Avoid Purchased Lists: Never use purchased or rented email lists. These lists are often outdated and can lead to high bounce rates and spam complaints.
14. Follow GDPR and CAN-SPAM Regulations: Ensure your emails comply with relevant regulations, such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the CAN-SPAM Act. Include clear opt-in and opt-out options.
15. Warm Up Your Sending Domain: If you’re using a new sending domain, gradually increase your email volume over time. This helps build a positive sending reputation.
Conclusion
Remember that improving email deliverability is an ongoing effort. Stay informed about email deliverability best practices and adapt your strategies as needed. It’s important to regularly monitor your email campaigns, analyze results, and make adjustments to optimize deliverability over time.
