How can spam complaints and bad content choices impact email deliverability?

Summary

Spam complaints and bad content choices severely impact email deliverability. Incompetent campaigns, deliverability issues from complaints/content, poor unsubscribe practices, irrelevant/low-quality content, lack of permission, inconsistent sending, spam traps, deceptive subjects, and negative engagement all contribute. High spam complaints and bounce rates damage sender reputation. Authentication is crucial, as is warming new IPs and avoiding spam triggers. Regular testing and feedback are key to maintaining good deliverability.

Key findings

  • Campaign Competence: Poor campaign quality and content reflect on deliverability.
  • Spam Complaints Hurt: High spam complaints significantly damage sender reputation and delivery.
  • Content Relevance is Key: Irrelevant and low-quality content lowers engagement and deliverability.
  • Permission is Essential: Sending without explicit permission increases spam complaints.
  • Consistency Matters: Inconsistent sending patterns trigger spam filters.
  • Authentication Protects: Proper authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) prevents spam classification.
  • Feedback Loops Improve: Participating in feedback loops addresses spam causes.
  • Negative Engagement Hurts: Negative engagement damages sender reputation.

Key considerations

  • Improve Campaign Quality: Focus on creating competent and engaging campaigns.
  • Manage Spam Complaints: Actively address spam complaints to improve reputation.
  • Send Relevant Content: Provide valuable and engaging content to boost engagement.
  • Obtain Explicit Permission: Ensure recipients opt-in to receive emails.
  • Maintain Consistency: Establish a consistent sending volume to avoid flags.
  • Implement Authentication: Properly configure SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records.
  • Utilize Feedback Loops: Actively use feedback loops to address spam complaints.
  • Warm-Up New IPs: Gradually increase sending volume on new IPs.
  • Avoid Spam Triggers: Refrain from using spammy keywords and excessive exclamation marks.
  • Test Deliverability: Use deliverability testing tools to identify issues.

What email marketers say
13Marketer opinions

Spam complaints and poor content choices negatively affect email deliverability. Sending irrelevant or low-quality content leads to lower engagement, signaling to mailbox providers that the emails aren't valuable. Sending without explicit permission causes spam complaints, harming sender reputation. Inconsistent sending volumes raise red flags. High spam complaint rates and bounce rates negatively impact reputation. Deceptive subject lines, spammy keywords, and poor HTML coding trigger spam filters. Negative engagement (deleting emails without reading) impacts sender reputation. Sincerity of honoring unsubscribe requests is also a concern. Deliverability testing and feedback loops are important for maintaining deliverability.

Key opinions

  • Engagement Matters: Low engagement due to irrelevant content hurts deliverability.
  • Permission is Crucial: Sending without explicit permission leads to spam complaints.
  • Consistency is Key: Inconsistent sending volumes raise red flags.
  • Reputation Impact: Spam complaints, bounce rates, and negative engagement damage sender reputation.
  • Content Matters: Deceptive content and poor HTML coding trigger spam filters.

Key considerations

  • Obtain Explicit Consent: Ensure recipients have explicitly opted-in to receive emails.
  • Maintain List Hygiene: Regularly clean email lists to reduce bounce rates and spam complaints.
  • Craft Relevant Content: Provide valuable and engaging content to improve engagement rates.
  • Ensure Consistent Volume: Maintain a consistent sending volume to avoid triggering spam filters.
  • Monitor Deliverability: Use deliverability testing tools and feedback loops to identify and address potential issues.
  • Be Honest with Users: Make sure unsubscribes work.
Marketer view

Email marketer from Litmus shares that ensure your HTML code is clean and properly formatted, as poorly coded emails are more likely to be flagged as spam.

November 2023 - Litmus
Marketer view

Email marketer from Neil Patel's Blog shares that irrelevant or low-quality content can lead to lower engagement rates (opens, clicks), which signals to mailbox providers that your emails are not valuable, thus hurting deliverability.

August 2022 - Neil Patel's Blog
Marketer view

Email marketer from G2 Learn explains that deceptive subject lines trigger spam filters and decrease deliverability. Subject lines that accurately describe the email content are essential.

November 2023 - G2
Marketer view

Email marketer from Reddit explains that receiving too many 'this is spam' clicks will quickly tank your sender reputation. ISPs pay attention to user feedback.

February 2025 - Reddit
Marketer view

Email marketer from EmailToolTester explains that regularly use email deliverability testing tools to check your email's spam score and identify potential issues before sending to your entire list.

October 2023 - EmailToolTester
Marketer view

Marketer from Email Geeks questions the sincerity of honoring unsubscribe requests, quoting, "If you don't want to hear from us again, just reply to the sender and we'll honor your request."

February 2023 - Email Geeks
Marketer view

Marketer from Email Geeks suggests that the sender lacks 'critical thinking'.

October 2021 - Email Geeks
Marketer view

Marketer from Email Geeks states that they don’t see how this sort of thing wins the sender any business whatsoever.

December 2021 - Email Geeks
Marketer view

Email marketer from Mailchimp explains that sending emails to recipients who haven't explicitly given you permission (opt-in) is a major cause of spam complaints, which directly harms your sender reputation and deliverability.

January 2023 - Mailchimp
Marketer view

Email marketer from Email Marketing Forum shares that high bounce rates signal poor list hygiene, which increases the likelihood of being flagged as a spammer and hurting your deliverability.

June 2024 - Email Marketing Forum
Marketer view

Email marketer from SendGrid explains that avoid using excessive exclamation points, all caps, and known 'spammy' keywords in your email content, as these can trigger spam filters.

July 2022 - SendGrid
Marketer view

Marketer from Email Geeks considers the 'Notice to Recipient' as 'bat shit stupid'.

March 2023 - Email Geeks
Marketer view

Email marketer from HubSpot shares that inconsistent sending volumes can raise red flags with mailbox providers, making them more likely to filter your emails as spam. Sudden spikes in sending volume are particularly problematic.

January 2023 - HubSpot

What the experts say
4Expert opinions

Spam complaints and poor content choices are major factors impacting email deliverability. Indications of deliverability issues stem from spam complaints and bad content choices which show incompetence. Participating in feedback loops helps address root causes of spam complaints, leading to improved practices. Spam complaints and negative engagement hurt sender reputation and affect deliverability for all recipients.

Key opinions

  • Content Incompetence Affects Deliverability: Poor email campaign competence and bad content choices highlight deliverability issues.
  • Feedback Loops are Critical: Feedback loops are essential for managing spam complaints and improving practices.
  • Reputation is Key: Spam complaints and negative engagement damage sender reputation, affecting overall deliverability.

Key considerations

  • Improve Content Quality: Focus on creating competent and engaging email campaigns to avoid being flagged as spam.
  • Participate in Feedback Loops: Actively use feedback loops to identify and address the reasons behind spam complaints.
  • Monitor Sender Reputation: Pay attention to sender reputation metrics and take steps to mitigate negative impacts.
Expert view

Expert from Word to the Wise shares that spam complaints and other forms of negative engagement (e.g., deleting without reading) negatively impact your sender reputation, which in turn affects deliverability to all recipients, not just those who complained.

May 2021 - Word to the Wise
Expert view

Expert from Email Geeks indicates the sender is 'having deliverability issues because of spam complaints and bad content choices'.

December 2022 - Email Geeks
Expert view

Expert from Email Geeks says that 'This is not the best way to show off your competence at email campaigns.'

December 2024 - Email Geeks
Expert view

Expert from Spamresource.com explains that participating in feedback loops is crucial for identifying and addressing the root causes of spam complaints, allowing senders to improve their practices and maintain deliverability.

April 2023 - Spamresource.com

What the documentation says
5Technical articles

High spam complaint rates significantly harm sender reputation, leading to emails being filtered as spam or blocked. Misleading content, including deceptive subject lines and from addresses, negatively impacts deliverability and sender reputation. Landing in spam traps due to poor list hygiene severely hurts sender reputation and deliverability. Proper configuration of SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records is crucial for email authentication and preventing spam classification. Gradually increasing email sending volume with a new IP address is important for maintaining high deliverability.

Key findings

  • Spam Complaints Harm Reputation: High spam complaint rates result in filtering or blocking of emails.
  • Deceptive Content Hurts Deliverability: Misleading content negatively impacts sender reputation.
  • Spam Traps Damage Reputation: Landing in spam traps indicates poor list hygiene and affects deliverability.
  • Authentication is Crucial: SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records are essential for email authentication.
  • IP Warming is Needed: Gradual increase of sending volume is important for new IP addresses.

Key considerations

  • Manage Spam Complaints: Actively monitor and address spam complaints to improve sender reputation.
  • Use Honest Content: Avoid misleading subject lines and from addresses to maintain trust.
  • Practice List Hygiene: Regularly clean and update email lists to avoid spam traps.
  • Implement Authentication: Properly configure SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records for email authentication.
  • Warm Up New IPs: Gradually increase sending volume when using new IP addresses.
Technical article

Documentation from AWS explains that if you are using a new IP Address, then you must gradually increase your email sending volume to maintain high deliverability.

May 2023 - AWS
Technical article

Documentation from Google Postmaster Tools explains that high spam complaint rates can severely impact your sender reputation, leading to emails being filtered into spam folders or blocked entirely.

January 2024 - Google
Technical article

Documentation from RFC-Editor details that ensuring your sending servers are properly configured with SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records is critical for authenticating your emails and preventing them from being marked as spam.

November 2023 - RFC-Editor
Technical article

Documentation from Microsoft Deliverability Documentation shares that using misleading or deceptive content, including subject lines and from addresses, can negatively impact your deliverability and sender reputation.

March 2021 - Microsoft
Technical article

Documentation from Spamhaus explains how landing in spam traps (email addresses used to identify spammers) due to poor list hygiene and sending practices drastically hurts your sender reputation and deliverability.

June 2024 - Spamhaus