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Knowledge Base Home aero-right Reports aero-right How to Reduce Spam Complaints

How to Reduce Spam Complaints

Reports Updated on October 25, 2023

The following tips will help you reduce spam complaints:

Confirmed opt-in: The best way to ensure that your subscribers want to receive emails from you is by using a confirmed opt-in process. It requires your subscribers to confirm their subscription, usually by clicking a link in an email before they can be added to your email list.

Your list only: It is not acceptable to purchase email lists or use third-party lists. You should remove any email addresses obtained from third-party sources.

Practice good list hygiene: Don’t fall in love with your list! The quantity of email addresses in your list means little; it is the quality that counts. Verifying your list can help you remove invalid emails, keeping your list clean, Benchmark recommends doing this before uploading a new list. Read more about List Verification.

One rule of thumb we like to use is, if they are not opening your emails remove  them. You can permanently remove unopens by using our Clean List tool.

Include the Unsubscribe Link: The first and most important step you can take is to include an unsubscribe link in every message (this is automatically done with Benchmark). Beyond this, the unsubscribe link should be two things: obvious and painless. Customers who want your emails will ignore the link, and those who don’t will find it easy to unsubscribe from your list rather than hastily clicking the email as spam.

Evaluate your Subject Line: Ensure that – especially when starting out – your company name is included in the subject line. You may think that is not necessary, since your company name will more than likely show in the “from” field, however, this helps to convey professionalism.

Be sure that the message in your subject line is conveyed in the email. No one likes to be duped, and doing so raises the chances of your email being marked as spam.

Familiar layout: Using a consistent email template with the same colors, fonts and layout will help your subscribers to recognize your email campaigns. Over time your subscribers will recognize your layout, and with that familiarity, they will be reminded that they have subscribed to your list.

Familiar and consistent company name: Confusion and complaints can originate from subscribers being unfamiliar with your company or brand name.

Consistent from address: Using a consistent ‘from’ email address serves two purposes.

First, using the same ‘from’ address over time is another way to ensure that your subscribers recognize your emails. It is best to use a from email address that includes your brand or the company name that they subscribed to.

Second, if different ‘from’ addresses are used, it increases the chances that the subscriber’s local email filter programs (spam filters) will block your emails. It is a good idea to ask your subscribers to add your email address to their address book to ensure that your messages will get past any local filters.

Frequency: A common complaint trigger is businesses sending too many emails to the same group of people.

While a subscriber may like your products and your business, there comes the point when your mailings become annoying when sent too often, particularly if you are sending essentially the same message over and over again. The frequency of mail-outs will depend on your business and the type of information you provide to your subscribers. By outlining the anticipated frequency in your sign-up subscription terms, your subscribers will know how often to expect your mailings.

Few other tips:

  • Do not write long email copy, go for “short and crisp,” then point to your website for more information.
  • Don’t repeat your website URL over and over again — you are more likely to get more complaints than more sales; once or twice is usually enough;
  • Run a spam-check on your messages before you send them out and fix any problems that it detects.