Why isn't my logo image loading in Gmail, even after moving the email from spam?
Summary
What email marketers say11Marketer opinions
Email marketer from Mailjet Resources says that image blocking can happen if the sender isn't trusted or if the image is hosted on a non-secure (HTTP) server. Switching to HTTPS hosting or authenticating your sending domain may solve the issue.
Email marketer from SMTP2GO Blog explains that images might not display due to Gmail's caching issues, slow internet connection, or incorrect image paths. They suggest checking these factors.
Email marketer from Google Product Forums suggests that Gmail may block images from unknown senders as a security measure. Adding the sender to the contacts list can resolve this.
Marketer from Email Geeks suggests that if using Google Workspace, a policy might exist that blocks remote images on unauthenticated messages. They advise setting up authentication and testing again. They also suggest embedding small images like logos to give them the best chance of being seen, especially since many MUAs don't automatically load remote images, and filters may dislike shared-content domains.
Email marketer from Stack Overflow explains that including absolute URLs for images is crucial, particularly when the email client is not set up to load relative image paths. They also suggest testing with various email clients, not just Gmail.
Email marketer from Reddit mentions that sometimes Gmail's aggressive caching can prevent images from loading, even after marking the email as safe. They recommend clearing Gmail's cache or trying a different browser.
Email marketer from Email on Acid explains that images might be broken due to incorrect file paths, blocked external images, or unsupported image formats. They recommend checking image paths, whitelisting senders, and using common image formats like JPEG or PNG.
Email marketer from Sendinblue answers image loading can be affected by deliverability, even if the email reaches the inbox. Poor sender reputation and low engagement can still cause issues with image display.
Marketer from Email Geeks shares that they use AWS, but route it through the same domain used for sending emails (e.g., `<https://img.oursite.com/>` instead of `<https://s3.amazonaws.com/>`).
Email marketer from Campaign Monitor explains the difference between embedding images (directly in the email) and hosting images (linking to them from a server). Embedding can increase email size but ensures the image is always available, while hosting relies on the server's availability.
Email marketer from Litmus explains that some email clients use image proxying, which can affect how images are displayed. Image proxying downloads images to the client's servers before displaying them to the user, which can sometimes cause issues. They recommend testing emails across various clients.
What the experts say2Expert opinions
Expert from SpamResource explains that a poor sender reputation, even if not directly causing spam filtering, can lead to Gmail subtly restricting image display as a precautionary measure. They recommend monitoring sender reputation and engagement metrics.
Expert from Word to the Wise explains that hosting images on a reputable server and ensuring proper email authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) is crucial. Even if the email lands in the inbox, poor authentication or a low sender reputation can still cause Gmail to block images. Using a dedicated sending domain for images is recommended.
What the documentation says4Technical articles
Documentation from Microsoft explains that Outlook blocks images by default as a security measure. Users can change these settings in the Trust Center to allow images from trusted senders or domains.
Documentation from RFC Editor defines the standards for email message formats. While it doesn't directly address image blocking, it explains how MIME types are used for embedding images, and incorrect MIME types can lead to display problems.
Documentation from IETF explains that using Content-ID (CID) for inline images helps ensure images are correctly linked within the email body. Problems with CID implementation can result in images not displaying.
Documentation from Google Support details that Gmail protects users by not displaying images automatically. Users must choose to display images or add the sender to their contacts. This is to prevent spammers from using images to verify email addresses.