Targeted email marketing is the cheapest and probably the most effective marketing tool available for todays Internet businesses. Everyone on the Internet has an email address. With programs that will send pre-written emails to an almost infinite number of addresses with the click of a mouse button, it’s easy to understand the appeal.
But no matter how efficient or advanced your email marketing system is, it’s not going to matter if your emails end up in the junk or bulk folder. This is why you need a good spam checker.
The biggest hurdle to email marketing today is spam filters. Many unscrupulous email marketing campaigns, driven largely by fraudulent marketers, took advantage in the early days of email marketing. And continue to do so today. As a result, most ISPs and free email account hosting sites have set up spam filters. Most hosting companies take a firm stand against their clients that engage in spam mailings. But don’t think this has stopped the spam. There are many programs available that search websites for “mailto” links and other ways for email addresses without obtaining permission. And some hosting companies can’t or just don’t enforce the anti-spam rules.
Ways To Avoid The Spam Label
To avoid having your emails labeled spam, focus your email marketing on addresses that have signed up to your list. Use the double opt-in method. Make sure every email you send out has a link for the recipient to unsubscribe. If you’re thinking about using a rented or purchased list, check into the company you’re getting it from first. If the deal looks to good to be true, it probably is. Before agreeing to joint mailings with other Internet marketers, make sure they’re as concerned with their email marketing reputation as you are. Not every marketer cares about using spam free email marketing.
Once you’re sure your emails are going to the people that want them, you still need to take precautions against your emails being blocked by the spam filters.
The best way to avoid spam filters is to be aware of how they work. They don’t all work exactly the same. But there are some things that will set off their alarms. Most spam filters use software that scans the e-mail for certain triggers, which include certain phrases, formatting, and some types of aggressive writing styles
You’ve probably received emails that have certain words typed differently than you usually see them. This is because some words catch the attention of the spam blocking programs. The most common ones are “free” (used alone or with many other words like “money”, “quote”, “sample”, “trial”, “access”, “membership” etc), “guarantee”, “money”, “$$$”, “extra income”, “checks”, “as seen on TV”, “sex”, “XXX” and “porn. Some harmless seeming phrases like “cable converter”, “reverses aging” and “search engine listings” can set off triggers. If you can word your mailings without using these terms, then you might want to do so. But if you have to use them, get creative with them. For example, you could type f.r.e.e and it shouldn’t be read as free by the programs, but the human eye still sees it that way. You don’t want to use too many tricks to fool the spam filters. Better to try using words that avoid them. Try to avoid using free in capitals, or in the subject line. And don’t talk about money with an exclamation point. Sometimes the word “now” can trip the program triggers. “Now” is often used in sentences like “take advantage of this offer now”.
You also need to be careful with sentences with dollar amounts in them. Saying “I earned $12,756 last month” could trip the spam triggers. One way to rephrase that might be to say “I earned well over $12,756 last month. Putting extra words between the dollar amount and earned, should let it pass the spam detectors.
Avoid the use of ALL CAPS in both the subject and body of your email. Try not to repeat marketing words too often. Stay away from excessive use of punctuation like “!!!”. These things can clutter your email. And set off the spam triggers. You want to keep your email marketing clean, with out clutter, both for the appearance and to avoid these triggers.
In the early days of email marketing, spammers had addresses like [email protected]. So, you want to avoid using email addresses with numbers in them for your email marketing campaign..
To avoid problems, I use an online spam checker. There are many free spam checkers you can find using key words ‘free spam checker”. One of the best I’ve found is SiteSell SpamChecker Tool. These spam checker tools can help keep your email marketing out of the junk folders and in the in-boxes where they can be read. You just type, or copy and paste your email, newsletter or ezine in the box provided and the spam checker will let you know what you need to change. A good spam checker will also give you some tips to avoid future spam problems.
As you gain more experience in writing your emails, you will start using the right wordings to avoid triggering the spam checkers out of habit. Practice really does lead to perfection. Especially with email marketing. Use the free spam checkers available to keep your email marketing going in the right direction. At least ’till you get to the perfection stage.
