Many years have passed since the dawn of email, but some age-old wisdoms remain held by today’s most experienced marketers. Thankfully, over the years, there have been significant improvements to email marketing technology that has made it much smarter and more intuitive. One of the most welcome improvements has been the instinctiveness of spam filters.
For many years, email marketers have avoided “spammy” words and phrases that could get them into trouble with spam filters. Words such as “clearance,” “click here,” and “open now” have long been blacklisted because conventional wisdom warns they are likely to trigger spam filters.
What once may have been true is now outdated and doesn’t necessarily apply to modern email marketing. ISPs have become incredibly sophisticated and have embraced ‘Big Data’, essentially recording all inbox actions of their users to define what constitutes an “unwanted” email, otherwise known as ‘engagement metrics’. Some examples of these metrics include subscriber engagement and sender reputation.
So, what does this mean for your concerns about avoiding “spammy” promotional email? The real answer? Your copy probably isn’t nearly as dangerous as you once thought. In fact, your email content plays a relatively small role in triggering spam catchers.
It’d be careless to forget that while spam filters have become less critical of your content, your subscribers can still cause serious damage to your campaign. Although good sender reputation and positive engagement will over-ride most content-based filters, your subscribers may think your content seems spammy and mark it as such. Look to strike a balance between purely promotional, click-bait emails and others more modest in taste.
In 2021, forget antiquated myths about “spammy” emails and understand that “spam” technology has changed to emphasize engagement over copy. Stay in the inbox (and out of the spam folder) by ensuring your technical set-up, registration process, list acquisition methods, and sending strategies are encouraging positive engagement with your subscribers. This is the year to feel confident in promoting your goods and services – using an expanded availability of copy – with little to no fear of repercussion. However, engagement is key, so create your campaigns accordingly.
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