Email marketing is regarded as one of the key elements of digital marketing to spread awareness about your services and products and also to create brand awareness.
But, how far is this method effective? Email marketing is in itself a niche market and has evolved over time. Businesses now can use email marketing software to send emails to the targeted customer base and turn leads into successful sales. What becomes the problem here, is direct mail marketing that is triggering the spam filters. It is allowing your emails to land in spam folders.
Even if the marketers are not using direct mail marketing method, they are still under the pressure of having to continuously think of, spam triggers words, spam traps, and anti-spam laws.
Due to this reason, crafting emails that will directly land into your targeted customer’s inbox instead of the spam folders, is an art in itself.
Have you ever considered why it is so important when you are doing direct mail marketing?
The ISPs or Internet Service Providers are stringent enough to ban the spammers but, that is not the end of the story. The spammers are getting banned but not before some collateral damage is being done. In the process of making email marketing a clean and more ethical process, some good-willed marketers are also facing these brutal consequences as their emails are ending up in the spam folders instead of the inbox.
Spam Filters Are Legal
To avoid, these tragedies from happening, the marketers need to be aware of the necessary information and also gather the required knowledge to save their emails from the spam trackers. A study from ReturnPath shows that, out of the total number of emails sent by genuine email marketers, only 79% reach the subscriber’s inbox.
A small error can send an honest email to the spam folder and sometimes causes a serious and irreparable damage to the email marketing strategy of the sender and also demotes the sender reputation.
Uncalled and unsolicited bulk mail is a serious issue and it is evident from the fact that almost every internet dominant country in the world has legally restricted the use of spam mail. It can be said that even after using email marketing software, an email can end up in the spam folder.
So, how to stop that?
Without further wasting time, here are few tips to steer clear of the spam filters and trackers and make sure that your email marketing strategy is doing the job which it is supposed to.
But, before starting, instead of using direct mail marketing, which is the shortest way to end up in spam filters, you need to take care of a few technical issues for triggered email marketing. It will maximize your email deliverability.
Few tips to remember are when you are doing direct mail marketing,
Focus On Sender Name
Email marketers must keep in mind to use a sender name while using email marketing software. An email address that preferably contains your name or your business’s name. lets the recipients recognize you quickly.
This is beneficial because, inboxes are usually flooded with emails and adding a sender name or business name, lets the recipients recognize you immediately and choose to open. People prefer to open emails that include a personal name instead of a generic or impersonal one like in direct mail marketing.
Using the sender name in email marketing is always a good strategy because Email Service Providers, as well as spam technology, keep a close look at the ‘from’ segment. The spam technology gathers information about the mail source like domain or IP address. Change in the source or address often signifies shady business and thus, the mail is more likely to be marked as a spam.
Thus, to stay on the road to the recipient’s inbox, you need to, save frequent change in the source address or ‘from’ field to prevent using sender names like noreply@domain.com
Trustworthy Email Service Provider
The good reputation of the clients has an impact on the email service providers as they gain from it. If the clients from a certain ESP send out relevant and valuable content with high scores on their IP addresses, the ESP consequently becomes trustworthy.
Thus, steering clear from unreliable ESPs is a must. These ESPs usually gets blocked from reputable ESPs like Yahoo Mail, Gmail or Hotmail.
Are you a blacklisted Sender?
If you use an IP address that has a bad reputation in the digital world, the emails you send are more likely to end up in a spam folder just like direct mail marketing. So, your IP address affects the rate of email delivery directly.
To avoid such mishaps and check whether your IP address is blacklisted or not, you can use tools like MxToolBox or Multirbl.Valli.org
Take Care of Your Email Subject
Email subject is one of the most important parts when you are doing mail marketing. A good subject helps to create a good impression for your emails as well as generates engagement through clicks.
But, a misleading subject line can create confusion and spam trackers can end them up in the spam folder. Don’t use any marketing terms such as free, sale, business etc. Try to keep your mail subject straight and useful for the user without any promotional word.
Always Give an Unsubscribe Option
You have to use an unsubscribe option in your email because of its the law. Also, make the unsubscribe journey easy for the user. Respecting the wishes of the targeted audience is always for the marketing strategy. If you continue sending emails to the unsubscribed audience, your emails are most likely to be marked as spam. This can be derogatory for the goodwill and reputation of the business.
Don’t Use Rich Media Content
A maximum number of email clients are not comfortable with, rich media content. So, try to avoid Flash or video embeds in your emails.
If you insert them and in case, they don’t show or work properly then it will create a wrong impression to your clients. This is enough to damage your reputation and make the email spammy.
Test Your Mail Before Sending Them
Before starting a direct mail marketing, it’s always a very good idea to test your mail before sending them to your clients or subscribers. Check the quality before sending out. Many tools are available for mail testing and the good one is Mail Tester.
Unfortunately, there is no exact formula to drop your email to the inbox, not in the spam folder. But, by paying attention to the above mentioned technical factors, you can make an outstanding direct mail marketing. Also, these will help you to protect your IP address, reputation, and domain from getting blacklisted ever.
Read More: How Successful Email Marketing Campaigns Start Conversations That End in Conversions