What could be causing high spam rates in Google Postmaster even with consent-based emailing practices?

Summary

High spam rates in Google Postmaster, even with consent-based practices, stem from a confluence of technical, content-related, and sending-practice issues. Technical factors include improper email authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), a poor IP reputation, incorrect reverse DNS records, and blacklisting. Content issues involve spam trigger words and poor HTML. Sending practices like poor list quality (unengaged users, harvesting), lack of segmentation, high frequency, difficult unsubscribes, unmonitored FBLs, volume fluctuations during re-permissioning, and lack of brand recognition contribute significantly. Maintaining a low spam rate (below 0.03%) is critical. The consensus emphasizes the need for comprehensive deliverability management, focusing on both technical setup, content optimization, and audience engagement.

Key findings

  • Spam Rate Urgency: High spam rates are a critical issue ('5 alarm fire') requiring immediate action.
  • Technical Deficiencies: Improper authentication, poor IP reputation, and incorrect DNS records are common technical issues.
  • Content and Formatting: Spam trigger words and poor HTML increase spam scores.
  • List Quality Degradation: Poor list quality, including inactive users and harvested addresses, leads to spam complaints.
  • Engagement and Relevance: Lack of segmentation and high sending frequency decrease engagement and increase spam reports.
  • Subscriber Control: Difficult unsubscribe processes frustrate subscribers, leading to spam complaints.
  • Brand Recognition: Lack of brand recognition during re-permissioning can trigger spam filters.
  • Feedback Loop Neglect: Ignoring feedback loops hinders deliverability improvements.

Key considerations

  • Authentication Implementation: Implement and regularly monitor SPF, DKIM, and DMARC.
  • List Hygiene Practices: Regularly clean email lists to remove inactive or unengaged subscribers and prevent harvesting.
  • Content Optimization Strategies: Avoid spam trigger words and ensure well-formatted HTML in emails.
  • Segmentation Implementation: Segment email lists to provide relevant content to each subscriber.
  • Frequency Governance: Manage sending frequency to avoid overwhelming subscribers.
  • Unsubscribe Simplicity: Provide a simple and easily accessible unsubscribe process.
  • Reputation Monitoring: Monitor IP and domain reputation and promptly address issues.
  • FBL Implementation: Monitor and respond to feedback loops to address user complaints.
  • Reverse DNS Setup: Ensure a correct reverse DNS record (PTR) for sending IP addresses.
  • Blocklist Monitoring: Monitor and promptly respond to being listed on blocklists.
  • DMARC Report Analysis: Regularly analyze DMARC reports to identify and address authentication failures and spoofing.
  • Re-permissioning Strategy: During re-permissioning campaigns, maintain brand recognition and manage volume carefully.

What email marketers say
12Marketer opinions

High spam rates in Google Postmaster, despite consent-based practices, can stem from various factors. These include technical issues such as improper email authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), a poor IP reputation, and deliverability issues caused by being on blocklists. Content-related problems like spam trigger words and poor HTML formatting also contribute. Furthermore, sending practices such as not segmenting lists, sending emails too frequently, and having a difficult unsubscribe process can lead to increased spam complaints. Finally, brand recognition issues during re-permissioning campaigns and lagging indicators from volume fluctuations can impact spam rates.

Key opinions

  • Technical Setup: Improper email authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) and poor IP reputation are major technical contributors to high spam rates.
  • Content Issues: Spam trigger words and poor HTML formatting in email content can increase spam scores.
  • List Management: Poor list quality, including old or unengaged email addresses, and lack of segmentation result in higher spam complaints.
  • Sending Practices: Sending too frequently, a difficult unsubscribe process, and unmonitored complaint rates negatively affect deliverability.
  • Re-permissioning: Brand recognition and volume fluctuations during re-permissioning campaigns can spike spam rates.

Key considerations

  • Authentication: Ensure proper email authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) is set up and regularly monitored.
  • List Hygiene: Implement a regular list cleaning process to remove inactive or unengaged subscribers.
  • Segmentation: Segment email lists to ensure content is relevant to each subscriber group.
  • Content Optimization: Avoid spam trigger words and use well-formatted HTML in email content.
  • Sending Frequency: Monitor sending frequency and adjust based on subscriber engagement.
  • Unsubscribe Process: Make the unsubscribe process easy and straightforward for subscribers.
  • Reputation Monitoring: Monitor IP and domain reputation and address any issues promptly.
  • Complaint Rates: Implement feedback loops and monitor complaint rates closely to address any negative trends.
  • Re-Permissioning: When re-permissioning, be mindful of brand recognition and gradually increase email volume.
Marketer view

Email marketer from Email Geeks suspects that volume fluctuation is what could be contributing to the high spam rate. Re-permissioning should be spread out as evenly as possible, at a low percentage of normal daily volume.

May 2024 - Email Geeks
Marketer view

Email marketer from Litmus shares that sending the same message to everyone, even consent-based subscribers, will increase spam rate if not relevant to all of the audience. Segmentation is key.

May 2021 - Litmus
Marketer view

Email marketer from Email Geeks responds that lack of brand recognition could be the cause if the re-permission campaign is being sent from a new domain. Suggests using a display from like "New Company, formerly Old Company" for a while.

December 2021 - Email Geeks
Marketer view

Email marketer from Stack Overflow notes that subscribers will mark emails as spam if it is too hard to unsubscribe. Thus making unsubscribing very simple is essential for decreasing spam rates.

January 2022 - Stack Overflow
Marketer view

Email marketer from Reddit shares that your email content triggers spam filters. Using spam trigger words or poorly formatted HTML can increase spam scores, even with a clean list.

July 2023 - Reddit
Marketer view

Email marketer from SenderScore shares that a poor IP reputation may be causing a high spam rate. Even with consent, a history of sending spam from your IP address can negatively affect deliverability.

October 2024 - SenderScore
Marketer view

Email marketer from Validity shares that email providers are actively monitoring complaint rates as a key metric for evaluating sender reputation. A high complaint rate directly impacts deliverability.

August 2023 - Validity
Marketer view

Email marketer from Mailjet Blog shares that improper email authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) can contribute to higher spam rates. Email providers may view emails lacking proper authentication as suspicious.

February 2022 - Mailjet Blog
Marketer view

Email marketer from Email on Acid says too frequent emails can cause subscribers to mark emails as spam even if they did consent. This then increases spam rates.

September 2021 - Email on Acid
Marketer view

Email marketer from Email Geeks shares that the daily breakdown of the email volume impacts the spam rate. Lagging complaints from a high volume send day can spike the FBL rate on low volume send days. The expert asks about other signal details.

June 2023 - Email Geeks
Marketer view

Email marketer from OptinMonster shares that offering subscribers a preference center allows them to customize the types and frequency of emails they receive. This can decrease spam rates and increase engagement.

November 2022 - OptinMonster
Marketer view

Email marketer from Neil Patel Blog shares that a likely reason for high spam rates is poor list quality. Even with consent, old or unengaged email addresses can lead to spam complaints. Regularly cleaning your email list is crucial.

January 2022 - Neil Patel Blog

What the experts say
4Expert opinions

High spam rates in Google Postmaster, even with consent-based emailing, can indicate a serious deliverability issue. Factors contributing to this may include inadequate list hygiene practices, specifically the failure to remove inactive subscribers, and vulnerabilities to email address harvesting, both of which undermine the value of consent. The assessment emphasizes the need to scrutinize acquisition practices and proactively maintain list quality.

Key opinions

  • Severity of Issue: A high spam rate is a critical problem ('5 alarm fire') requiring immediate attention.
  • List Hygiene: Inactive subscribers can significantly damage sender reputation, even with opt-in practices.
  • Acquisition Practices: Email address harvesting can invalidate consent and inflate spam rates.
  • Re-Permissioning: Re-permissioning in itself should not cause high spam rates, suggesting other underlying problems.

Key considerations

  • Immediate Action: Prioritize addressing the high spam rate to avoid severe deliverability consequences.
  • List Cleaning: Implement a robust process for identifying and removing inactive subscribers from email lists.
  • Acquisition Review: Examine email acquisition practices to prevent email address harvesting and ensure legitimate consent.
  • Investigation: Investigate other factors outside of re-permissioning that could be causing high spam rates.
Expert view

Expert from Email Geeks says that the spam rate performance is a "5 alarm fire".

February 2025 - Email Geeks
Expert view

Expert from Spam Resource explains that even with opt-in practices, maintaining clean lists by regularly removing inactive subscribers can greatly improve your sender reputation and reduce spam complaints.

January 2025 - Spam Resource
Expert view

Expert from Email Geeks explains that repermissioning shouldn't cause such a high complaint rate.

December 2023 - Email Geeks
Expert view

Expert from Word to the Wise responds that email address harvesting can impact spam rates, even with consent-based practices. Regularly review your acquisition practices to make sure they're not attracting harvesters.

February 2023 - Word to the Wise

What the documentation says
5Technical articles

High spam rates in Google Postmaster, even with consent-based practices, can be attributed to several technical factors outlined in various documentation sources. Maintaining a spam rate below 0.10% is essential, with a recommended target of under 0.03%. Failure to actively monitor and respond to feedback loops (FBLs) can result in high spam rates. Missing or incorrect reverse DNS (PTR) records can cause emails to be flagged as spam. Being listed on blocklists like Spamhaus or Spamcop significantly affects delivery rates. Finally, not monitoring DMARC reports can lead to undetected authentication failures and spoofing, increasing spam rates.

Key findings

  • Spam Rate Thresholds: Maintaining a spam rate below 0.10% is crucial, with a target of under 0.03% recommended by Google.
  • Feedback Loops (FBLs): Ignoring FBLs and user complaints can lead to higher spam rates.
  • Reverse DNS (PTR): A missing or incorrect PTR record can negatively impact email deliverability.
  • Blocklist Monitoring: Being on blocklists significantly affects delivery and increases spam rates.
  • DMARC Reporting: Failure to monitor DMARC reports can result in undetected authentication failures and spoofing.

Key considerations

  • Spam Rate Goals: Consistently monitor and strive to keep spam rates below the recommended thresholds.
  • FBL Implementation: Actively monitor and respond to feedback loops to address user complaints and improve deliverability.
  • PTR Record Configuration: Ensure a correct reverse DNS (PTR) record is configured for your sending IP addresses.
  • Blocklist Monitoring Tools: Implement monitoring tools to check for blocklist listings and take prompt action to resolve any issues.
  • DMARC Analysis: Regularly analyze DMARC reports to identify and address authentication failures and potential spoofing activity.
Technical article

Documentation from IETF explains that monitoring DMARC reports will allow insight into authentication failures and potential spoofing activity associated with your domain. Addressing these issues can significantly reduce spam rates.

June 2024 - IETF
Technical article

Documentation from RFC explains that a missing or incorrect reverse DNS (PTR) record can cause your emails to be flagged as spam. This record maps an IP address to a domain name, which is a key factor in verifying your server's identity.

July 2022 - RFC-Editor
Technical article

Documentation from SparkPost explains that not actively monitoring and responding to feedback loops (FBLs) can cause high spam rates. FBLs provide valuable data on user complaints, which can inform deliverability adjustments.

May 2021 - SparkPost
Technical article

Documentation from Microsoft shares that being on block lists such as Spamhaus or Spamcop will drastically affect your delivery rates and increase spam rates. You need to proactively monitor these.

February 2025 - Microsoft
Technical article

Documentation from Google Support explains that senders who consistently keep their spam rate below 0.10% are exempt from most spam-related issues. However, Google recommends keeping it below 0.03% to ensure deliverability.

July 2021 - Google Support