{"id":5885,"date":"2026-06-16T09:00:55","date_gmt":"2026-06-16T13:00:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/blog\/how-your-content-could-trigger-the-spam-filter\/"},"modified":"2026-06-16T09:00:56","modified_gmt":"2026-06-16T13:00:56","slug":"how-your-content-could-trigger-the-spam-filter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/blog\/how-your-content-could-trigger-the-spam-filter","title":{"rendered":"Why Did My Email Go to Spam? Deliverability Questions, Answered"},"content":{"rendered":"<table class=\"mt-3 mb-3\" style=\"background-color: #f2f3f6;\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td class=\"block-1\" style=\"padding: 20px;\">\n<h3>Key takeaways \u2728<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Spam filters aren\u2019t just catching scammers<\/strong>\u2014they\u2019re catching you. With one in six real emails never making it to the inbox, you\u2019ll need to pay attention to your infrastructure, sender reputation, and subscriber engagement.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Respect the unsubscribe<\/strong>\u2014or pay for it with spam complaints. Making it hard to unsubscribe doesn\u2019t keep people on your list; it pushes them to hit \u201cmark as spam.\u201d One-click unsubscribe isn\u2019t optional anymore, and it\u2019s far less damaging to lose a subscriber than to rack up spam complaints.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Relevant, personalized emails are your best defense against spam filters<\/strong>. Strong deliverability comes from sending emails people actually want to receive. That means smart segmentation, clean lists, and thoughtful personalization. Engagement is the ultimate inbox pass.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The best way to insult an email marketer is to call their\u00a0emails\u00a0spam. No one wants their hard work to be lumped into malicious sending behavior!<\/p>\n<p>Protecting customers by\u00a0identifying\u00a0malicious emails is a constantly evolving process for\u00a0email\u00a0service providers (ESPs), as these bad actors continue to refine their tactics.\u00a0Spam filters today have become so sophisticated that\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0rare an email can slip through an\u00a0ESP\u2019s defenses.<\/p>\n<p>But in the process,\u00a0ESPs may be netting more than just malicious emails. One in seven\u00a0legitimate emails\u00a0fail to\u00a0reach the inbox, according to\u00a0<a rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.validity.com\/resource-center\/2026-email-deliverability-benchmark-report\/\">Validity\u2019s 2026\u00a0Deliverability Benchmarks Report<\/a>.\u00a0And global spam placement rates almost doubled in the past year.<\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"EN-US\" xml:lang=\"EN-US\" data-contrast=\"auto\">Ah, email deliverability, if only you were easy. The average global inbox placement rate is 87.2% with 6.1% of emails landing in the spam folder and 6.6% missing. In this post, we\u2019ll cover why emails land in the spam folder instead of the inbox\u2014and a few ways to troubleshoot your deliverability if you find a high percentage of your messages stuck in spam-land.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h3>Table of contents<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-leveltext=\"\u25cf\" data-font=\"Verdana\" data-listid=\"6\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\u25cf&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><a rel=\"noopener\" href=\"#go-to-spam\">Why do emails go to spam?<\/a><\/li>\n<li aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-leveltext=\"\u25cf\" data-font=\"Verdana\" data-listid=\"6\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\u25cf&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><a rel=\"noopener\" href=\"#checklist\">A non-exhaustive checklist of why your marketing emails go to spam<\/a><\/li>\n<li aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-leveltext=\"\u25cf\" data-font=\"Verdana\" data-listid=\"6\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\u25cf&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><a rel=\"noopener\" href=\"#8-steps\">8 steps to prevent emails from going to the spam filter<\/a><\/li>\n<li aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-leveltext=\"\u25cf\" data-font=\"Verdana\" data-listid=\"10\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\u25cf&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><a rel=\"noopener\" href=\"#out-of-spam\">Stuck in the spam folder? Here\u2019s how to get out<\/a><\/li>\n<li aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-leveltext=\"\u25cf\" data-font=\"Verdana\" data-listid=\"10\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\u25cf&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><a rel=\"noopener\" href=\"#engage\">Find out why your emails go to spam with Validity<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 id=\"go-to-spam\" aria-level=\"2\">Why do emails go to spam?<\/h2>\n<p>Spam filters are there to catch scammers, not keep good senders from reaching the inbox.\u00a0However,\u00a0sometimes us\u00a0healthy senders\u00a0do get flagged and filtered\u00a0into spam\u00a0for a few\u00a0different reasons.<\/p>\n<p>You see, every email you send goes through a maze of deliverability obstacles before it reaches its destination. Three factors influence\u00a0whether or not\u00a0someone receives your email in the inbox:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-leveltext=\"%1.\" data-font=\"\" data-listid=\"11\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:0,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769242&quot;:[65533,0],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;%1.&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><strong>Infrastructure<\/strong>:\u00a0Your identification and authentication records<\/li>\n<li aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-leveltext=\"%1.\" data-font=\"\" data-listid=\"11\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:0,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769242&quot;:[65533,0],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;%1.&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><strong>Domain reputation<\/strong>:\u00a0How\u00a0mailbox providers (MBPs)\u00a0view your\u00a0sending domain and IP addresses<\/li>\n<li aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-leveltext=\"%1.\" data-font=\"\" data-listid=\"11\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:0,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769242&quot;:[65533,0],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;%1.&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><strong>Content<\/strong>: What your message\u00a0contains\u00a0and how your subscriber has reacted to it in the past<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>If\u00a0you\u2019re\u00a0struggling to solve the latest deliverability mystery for your email marketing program,\u00a0you\u2019re\u00a0not alone.<\/p>\n\n<div class=\"container pt-3 pb-5 px-1\">\n\t<div class=\"row blog-cta-green rounded-5 p-4\">\n\t\t<div class=\"mx-auto col-12\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"row d-flex align-items-center\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col-lg-6 col-12\">\n\t\t\t\t<p class=\"bold fs-4\">Reach the inbox\u2014not the spam folder<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<p>70% of emails show at least one spam-related issue that could keep them from the inbox. Don\u2019t let your email be one of them. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/spam-filter-tests\" class=\"bold\">Learn more.<\/a><\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<button class=\"button-blue arrow\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/pricing-litmus\" class=\"text-white text-decoration-none\">Book a demo<\/a><\/button>\n\t\t\t<\/div><!--col-6-->\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col-6 d-none d-lg-block\">\n\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/test.svg\" width=\"210\" height=\"130\" alt=\"\">\n\t\t\t<\/div><!--col-6-->\n\t\t\t<\/div> <!--row-->\n\t\t<\/div><!--col-12-->\n\t<\/div><!--row-->\n<\/div><!--container-->\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\n<h2 id=\"checklist\" aria-level=\"2\">A non-exhaustive list of why your marketing emails\u00a0are\u00a0going to spam<\/h2>\n<p>Check this list first, then read on\u00a0for\u00a0how to fix them.<\/p>\n<table class=\"table table-striped\">\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th>Reason<\/th>\n<th>Why it might impact deliverability<\/th>\n<th>What to do about it<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>Email authentication protocols are not set correctly.<\/td>\n<td>Authentication protocols communicate to MBPs that the email coming in is from a legitimate sender. Most major MBPs require authentication protocols to be in place for bulk senders.<\/td>\n<td>Check DKIM, SPF, and DMARC records to ensure all are correctly set up. You can also implement BIMI which displays your brand logo in the inbox when you send an email.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Email send volume and cadence is too high or too unpredictable.<\/td>\n<td>It looks suspicious to MBPs to have sudden spikes of activity.<\/td>\n<td>Normalize your email send cadence and segment your list. Consider a full warm-up process when you know a change in volume is upcoming.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Spam complaints\u2014your subscribers are marking your email as spam.<\/td>\n<td>MBPs filter based on user behavior and preferences. If enough subscribers mark you as spam, that&#8217;s where your emails will live.<\/td>\n<td>Make it easier for subscribers to unsubscribe. An unsubscribe is much better for your reputation than a spam complaint.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Your content &#8220;looks&#8221; spammy to an MBP.<\/td>\n<td>If your email matches common scammer traits like poor formatting, phishing, or HTML, they are more likely to filter you into the spam folder.<\/td>\n<td>Test and preview your emails ahead of time with Litmus.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>You&#8217;re sending emails to inactive, fake, closed, or email addresses that have been repurposed into spam traps.<\/td>\n<td>Poor email list hygiene will destroy your sender reputation. You could even end up on a blocklist.<\/td>\n<td>Use double opt-in to ensure each new subscriber actually wants your emails. Regularly verify your email list and don&#8217;t buy lists from third parties.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Email engagement is low.<\/td>\n<td>Lower engagement = lower sender reputation = more likely to go to spam.<\/td>\n<td>Send targeted, relevant emails your subscribers actually want to receive.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<h2 id=\"8-steps\" aria-level=\"2\">8 steps to prevent emails from going to spam<\/h2>\n<p>If you\u2019re struggling with emails landing in the spam folder, here\u2019s a more detailed look at what to check about your email marketing program:<\/p>\n<h3>1. Implement proper email authentication infrastructure<\/h3>\n<p>Even if\u00a0you\u2019ve\u00a0already authenticated your email\u00a0program, start\u00a0here.\u00a0Email\u00a0authentication\u00a0basically tells\u00a0inbox providers that you are who you say you are.<\/p>\n<p>You have four different authentication methods available\u2014we recommend using all three:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-leveltext=\"\u25cf\" data-font=\"\" data-listid=\"9\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\u25cf&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\">Sender Policy Framework (SPF):\u00a0SPF allows a domain owner to\u00a0indicate\u00a0multiple IP addresses or domains that can send mail on their behalf via a DNS TXT entry. This way, mailbox providers know that if\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0sent from your company\u2019s domain or IP address, that\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0from you.<\/li>\n<li aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-leveltext=\"\u25cf\" data-font=\"\" data-listid=\"9\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\u25cf&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\">DomainKeys Identified Mail (DKIM):\u00a0DKIM allows your organization to claim responsibility for your email as part of the authentication process by matching a public and private key, like a digital signature.<\/li>\n<li aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-leveltext=\"\u25cf\" data-font=\"\" data-listid=\"9\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\u25cf&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><a rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/blog\/dmarc-what-it-is-how-it-helps-protect-your-brand-against-email-fraud\">Domain Message Authentication and Reporting Conformance (DMARC)<\/a>: DMARC protects a domain from being used in phishing and spoofing attempts by defining how receiving inbox providers should handle messages that fail an authentication check.<\/li>\n<li aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-leveltext=\"\u25cf\" data-font=\"\" data-listid=\"9\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\u25cf&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\">BONUS:\u00a0<a rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/blog\/what-is-bimi-and-why-should-email-marketers-care\">Brand Indicators for Message Identification (BIMI)<\/a>: BIMI allows you to display a sender logo alongside your messages in the inbox after completing authentication.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If you haven\u2019t authenticated your emails, <a rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/blog\/new-yahoo-gmail-email-deliverability-rules\">Gmail, Microsoft, and Yahoo\u2019s\u00a0bulk sender requirements\u00a0<\/a>mean you\u2019re guaranteed to land in their spam folders. Their first requirement? Using these security protocols to verify your identity.<\/p>\n<p>For each one of these authentication methods, make sure\u00a0they\u2019re\u00a0set up correctly and that\u00a0each record is aligned.<\/p>\n<h3>2. Watch your email cadence and frequency<\/h3>\n<p>What makes email marketing work as a channel is that\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0not interruptive.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0not the in-your-face billboards, ads, or pop-ups people love to hate. Your subscribers chose to receive emails from you\u2014which is great! Treat that permission with respect and take a hard look at your email marketing cadence. Are you sending too many emails?<\/p>\n<p>There are two sides to email cadence with deliverability. The first is email volume, which refers to the\u00a0overall\u00a0number of\u00a0emails\u00a0that you send. A sharp increase in volume is going to raise some flags for\u00a0MBPs.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_124308\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-124308\" style=\"width: 1024px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-124308\" src=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Global-email-volume-2026-1024x755.png\" alt=\"Global email volume graph showing a spike during the holidays\" width=\"1024\" height=\"755\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Global-email-volume-2026-1024x755.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Global-email-volume-2026-300x221.png 300w, https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Global-email-volume-2026-768x567.png 768w, https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Global-email-volume-2026.png 1136w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-124308\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Source: <a rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.validity.com\/resource-center\/2026-email-deliverability-benchmark-report\/\">2026 Deliverability Benchmark Report<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>That means leading up to a big promotion spike (like Black Friday\/Cyber Monday, as shown above)\u00a0you\u2019ll\u00a0need to raise your send volume slowly.<\/p>\n<p>But beyond a large volume\u00a0jump\u00a0like that,\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0also about matching the needs of your subscribers with your business tactics.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0one thing to heavily promote a big sale or a once-a-year event, but if you make a habit of it, your subscribers will just tune out, which is even worse. \u201cWe get lots of complaints, and\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0about email overload. What we often see is\u00a0almost a\u00a0type of bombing, and [subscribers] get fatigued,\u201d said\u00a0<a rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.validity.com\/blog\/mailbox-provider-roundtable-recapping-microsoft-gmail-and-yahoos-thoughts-on-new-bulk-sender-requirements\/\">Microsoft\u2019s Principal PM Architect Ross Adams.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>When in doubt, ask your unengaged subscribers what they want to see as a separate email campaign directing them to your\u00a0preferences\u00a0center.\u00a0Here\u2019s\u00a0an example of ours, which outlines both our\u00a0regular newsletters and one-off campaigns that we send out to our subscribers.<\/p>\n<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-124309\" src=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Litmus-preference-center-options-1024x821.png\" alt=\"Litmus preference center: newsletter, product updates, educational resources, events and webinars, and partner updates\" width=\"1024\" height=\"821\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Litmus-preference-center-options-1024x821.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Litmus-preference-center-options-300x241.png 300w, https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Litmus-preference-center-options-768x616.png 768w, https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Litmus-preference-center-options.png 1152w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/>\n<p>Giving your subscribers control over what kinds of emails they receive can help set expectations and prevent future spam complaints. Sometimes stakeholders have an expectation that you need to be sending constantly, but if you\u2019re not getting engagement\u2014or continually struggling with your deliverability, maybe cool it for a minute on your cadence.<\/p>\n<h3>3. Manage spam complaints<\/h3>\n<p>Everyone loves to worry about unsubscribes, but\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0spam complaints that matter more\u00a0for your deliverability. Yet, when Validity asked attendees to their State of Email Live\u00a0event about their spam complaint rate\u201419%\u00a0didn\u2019t\u00a0know.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_122644\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-122644\" style=\"width: 1024px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-122644\" src=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Average-spam-complaint-rates-1024x479.png\" alt=\"Chart of average spam complaint rates showing less than .1 percent and .1-.2 percent tied at 25%\" width=\"1024\" height=\"479\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Average-spam-complaint-rates-1024x479.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Average-spam-complaint-rates-300x140.png 300w, https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Average-spam-complaint-rates-768x359.png 768w, https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Average-spam-complaint-rates.png 1026w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-122644\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Source: <a rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.validity.com\/resource-center\/2025-email-deliverability-benchmark-report\/\">2025 Validity Deliverability Benchmarks Report<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span lang=\"EN-US\" xml:lang=\"EN-US\" data-contrast=\"auto\">This is a key deliverability metric to know if\u00a0you\u2019re\u00a0trying to troubleshoot your inbox placement. To\u00a0comply with\u00a0Gmail, Microsoft, and Yahoo\u2019s\u00a0bulk sender\u00a0requirements, for example, you must\u00a0maintain\u00a0a spam complaint rate of 0.3%.\u00a0<\/span><a rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.validity.com\/blog\/mailbox-provider-roundtable-recapping-microsoft-gmail-and-yahoos-thoughts-on-new-bulk-sender-requirements\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><span lang=\"EN-US\" xml:lang=\"EN-US\" data-contrast=\"none\">Clea Moore, Principal Product Manager at Yahoo, told us\u00a0<\/span><\/a><span lang=\"EN-US\" xml:lang=\"EN-US\" data-contrast=\"auto\">that senders should view these\u00a0requirements not as a mere\u00a0checklist but as a holistic improvement strategy for the subscriber and sender\u00a0requirements. Even though the\u00a0requirement\u00a0is at\u00a00.3% for spam complaints, for example, she\u00a0recommends closer to 0.1%.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_124312\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-124312\" style=\"width: 1024px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-124312 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Global-spam-complaint-rate-2026-1024x537.png\" alt=\"Global spam complain rates 2026\" width=\"1024\" height=\"537\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Global-spam-complaint-rate-2026-1024x537.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Global-spam-complaint-rate-2026-300x157.png 300w, https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Global-spam-complaint-rate-2026-768x403.png 768w, https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Global-spam-complaint-rate-2026.png 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-124312\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Source: <a rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.validity.com\/resource-center\/2026-email-deliverability-benchmark-report\/\">2026 Deliverability Benchmark Report<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>To keep your spam complaints low, you need to understand why a subscriber hits that button in the first place. Someone could mark you as spam because they:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-leveltext=\"\u25cf\" data-font=\"\" data-listid=\"8\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\u25cf&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\">Can\u2019t find the unsubscribe button so they click mark as spam instead (more on why this is important below!)<\/li>\n<li aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-leveltext=\"\u25cf\" data-font=\"\" data-listid=\"8\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\u25cf&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\">Didn\u2019t actually subscribe in the first place because you bought an email list, scraped the web for email addresses for people who visited your website, or automatically opted-in a customer at checkout. (Pleeeeease don\u2019t do this, we beg you!)<\/li>\n<li aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-leveltext=\"\u25cf\" data-font=\"\" data-listid=\"8\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\u25cf&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\">Think the email \u201clooks like spam.\u201d This includes bait-and-switch subject lines, using FWD: or RE: in weird ways, or generally trying to \u201chack\u201d email marketing or be overly clever when it\u2019s just confusing for your subscriber.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>All this to say: Never mess with your subscribers and only email the people who\u00a0actually opt-in\u00a0to your list.\u00a0<a rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/blog\/5-things-you-must-know-about-email-consent-under-gdpr\">Not only is this illegal in certain countries<\/a>, it\u2019s super annoying. Once you\u2019ve lost brand trust, it can be difficult (or impossible) to earn it back.<\/p>\n\n<div class=\"container pt-3 pb-5\">\n\t<div class=\"row blog-cta-blue  p-4\">\n\t\t<div class=\"col-12 mx-auto\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"row d-flex align-items-center\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col-lg-6 col-12\">\n\t\t\t\t<p class=\"bold fs-4\">Unlock 2026 inbox benchmarks now<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<p>Download Validity\u2019s 2026 Email Deliverability Benchmark Report and learn how your inbox placement compares before your next send.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<button class=\"button-blue arrow\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.validity.com\/resource-center\/2026-email-deliverability-benchmark-report\/\" class=\"text-white text-decoration-none\">Get the report<\/a><\/button>\n\t\t\t<\/div><!--col-6-->\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col-6 d-none d-lg-block\">\n\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/blog-cta-12172024.svg\" width=\"208\" height=\"171\" alt=\"\">\n\t\t\t<\/div><!--col-6-->\n\t\t\t<\/div> <!--row-->\n\t\t<\/div><!--col-12-->\n\t<\/div><!--row-->\n<\/div><!--container-->\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\n<h3>4. Make it easy for subscribers to say goodbye<\/h3>\n<p><a rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/blog\/new-yahoo-gmail-email-deliverability-rules\">Gmail and Yahoo\u2019s\u00a0bulk sender\u00a0requirements\u00a0\u00a0<\/a>mean if you\u00a0fail to\u00a0include a one-click unsubscribe option in your emails,\u00a0they\u2019re\u00a0automatically going to the spam folder. (Not to\u00a0mention,\u00a0marketing laws from around the world.)<\/p>\n<p>Not a greyed-out link\u00a0that\u2019s\u00a0impossible to see in your footer.<\/p>\n<p>Not a \u201creply\u00a0to this email to be\u00a0removed from this list.<\/p>\n<p>And\u00a0DEFINITELY not\u00a0\u201cforgetting\u201d to include one altogether.<\/p>\n<p>Email marketers love to freak out over unsubscribe metrics, but trust us,\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0much worse to be marked as spam instead.<\/p>\n<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-124313\" src=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Validity-email-footer-1024x428.png\" alt=\"Validity email footer showing easy unsubscribe\" width=\"1024\" height=\"428\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Validity-email-footer-1024x428.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Validity-email-footer-300x125.png 300w, https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Validity-email-footer-768x321.png 768w, https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Validity-email-footer-1536x642.png 1536w, https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Validity-email-footer.png 1550w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/>\n<h3>5. Fix your formatting<\/h3>\n<p>There\u2019s no one way for an email to \u201clook\u201d like spam, but broken images, funky formatting, and typos\u00a0definitely don\u2019t\u00a0help make you look legit.<\/p>\n<p>Some spam filters automatically check unexpected language such as misspellings and nonsensical words, as well as excessive inline markup tags, characters in layout, and other markers of messy code. If\u00a0you\u2019re\u00a0using AI to help you draft copy, create images, or code your emails, double- or triple-check them before\u00a0they go out.<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s\u00a0why having a poor email testing strategy puts your email program at risk. Without adequate testing, you could be sending broken emails that lead to negative experiences, damaging trust, and\u00a0ultimately,\u00a0harming the\u00a0relationship you have with your subscribers. This wastes money and time for everyone.<\/p>\n<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-119594\" src=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Litmus-Previews--1024x586.avif\" alt=\"Screenshot of Litmus email Previews\" width=\"1024\" height=\"586\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Litmus-Previews--1024x586.avif 1024w, https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Litmus-Previews--300x172.avif 300w, https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Litmus-Previews--768x439.avif 768w, https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Litmus-Previews--1536x879.avif 1536w, https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Litmus-Previews--scaled.avif 2048w, https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Litmus-Previews--1800x1030.avif 1800w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/>\n<p>We\u2019ve\u00a0all sent out an email with a typo in it. But if\u00a0you\u2019re\u00a0sending emails riddled with errors or that are\u00a0difficult to\u00a0read because of a formatting issue, make sure\u00a0you\u2019re\u00a0checking your emails thoroughly before\u00a0you click send. (If you need a little help,\u00a0we\u2019ve\u00a0got a whole library of\u00a0<a rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/email-templates\">pre-tested free email marketing templates<\/a> you can use.)<\/p>\n<h3>6. Clean up your email listand usesmart segmentation<\/h3>\n<p>Poor email\u00a0list\u00a0hygiene is another common\u00a0reason you may be landing in the spam folder by accident. As B2B marketers, we often run into this\u2014anytime someone leaves a\u00a0company,\u00a0what was once a solid lead becomes a hard bounce.<\/p>\n<p>25% of email marketers surveyed for the\u00a0<a rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/landing-page\/state-of-email-2025\">State of Email\u00a0Report 2025<\/a>\u00a0say\u00a0segmentation is their most effective personalization strategy.\u00a0To clean up your email list:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-leveltext=\"%1.\" data-font=\"\" data-listid=\"5\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:0,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769242&quot;:[65533,0],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;%1.&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\">Filter out common typos (like gmial.com or\u00a0<a rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/yaho.com\/\">yaho.com<\/a>). Then, filter out any email addresses that have hard bounced and\u00a0all of\u00a0your\u00a0unsubscribes. These should go on your \u201cdo not email\u201d suppression list.<\/li>\n<li aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-leveltext=\"%1.\" data-font=\"\" data-listid=\"5\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:0,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769242&quot;:[65533,0],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;%1.&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\">Then, look at your soft bounces, which happen when an inbox is temporarily full or not working. If\u00a0you\u2019ve\u00a0got more\u00a0than 3 soft bounces, put those addresses on the suppression list, too.<\/li>\n<li aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-leveltext=\"%1.\" data-font=\"\" data-listid=\"5\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:0,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769242&quot;:[65533,0],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;%1.&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\">Finally, look at your overall engagement.\u00a0We\u2019ll\u00a0talk more\u00a0about segmentation in a\u00a0minute, but\u00a0remove\u00a0anyone on your email list that\u00a0hasn\u2019t\u00a0engaged in more\u00a0than\u00a090 days\u00a0with a single email (opens, clicks,\u00a0responses, or otherwise)\u00a0We call these inactive subscribers, and these are\u00a0the group of people most likely to hurt your deliverability.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>When it comes to spam filters,\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0more\u00a0about user behavior and engagement than\u00a0the nuts and bolts. If\u00a0you\u2019ve\u00a0already checked over your authentication protocols and other deliverability metrics,\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0time to think more\u00a0deeply about your engagement.<\/p>\n<p>A great place\u00a0to start if\u00a0you\u2019re\u00a0finding a lack of engagement is with a\u00a0re-engagement campaign for those inactive subscribers.\u00a0We typically send one after\u00a060 days\u00a0of no engagement for our subscribers, giving them a chance to fine-tune their emails before\u00a0suspending them from our list.<\/p>\n<div class=\"image-scroll mb-3\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone\" src=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/1.png\" alt=\"\" \/><\/div>\n\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">If this all seems daunting, <a rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.validity.com\/engage\/\">Validity Engage<\/a>, our AI-powered email platform,<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> helps you clean, monitor, and maintain your marketing data. It also<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> regularly verifies your list and makes sure all new email addresses added are real, working addresses\u2014no typos or spam traps here!<\/span><\/p>\n<h3>7. Increase your overall email engagement<\/h3>\n<p>The\u00a0reason deliverability feels like such a black box is that much of how a mailbox provider\u00a0determines\u00a0your inbox placement comes down to user behavior\u2014those opens, clicks, and\u00a0read time on your emails. And that, as any email geek knows, is one of the hardest things to fix.<\/p>\n<p>In addition to the segmentation\u00a0strategy\u00a0we described above, personalization is one of the best ways to increase your engagement.<\/p>\n<p>Email marketing is such a personal channel that your subscribers\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0just\u00a0respond to\u00a0personalization,\u00a0they expect it. 71% of consumers expect companies to deliver personalized experiences,\u00a0<a rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mckinsey.com\/capabilities\/growth-marketing-and-sales\/our-insights\/the-value-of-getting-personalization-right-or-wrong-is-multiplying\">according to McKinsey<\/a>. Make sure\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0working correctly, first\u2014nothing like seeing the wrong name in the subject line to make it look like spam\u2014but also that it\u00a0actually feels\u00a0personalized.<span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_117919\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-117919\" style=\"width: 1024px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-117919 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/03_PersonalizationStrategie-1024x599.jpeg\" alt=\"Pie chart from Litmus' State of Email report showing which personalization strategies marketers find most effective: segmentation (most), dynamic content, personalized subject lines, location-based personalization, and behavior-based triggers (least).\" width=\"1024\" height=\"599\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/03_PersonalizationStrategie-1024x599.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/03_PersonalizationStrategie-300x176.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/03_PersonalizationStrategie-768x450.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/03_PersonalizationStrategie.jpeg 1500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-117919\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Source: <a rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/landing-page\/state-of-email-2025\">State of Email Report 2025<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Yes,\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0more\u00a0work to produce multiple emails for the same campaign\u2014but the payoff is worth it. That means\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0not about knowing your subscribers\u2019 first name, location, or company name, but about tailoring an email for their interests and needs.<\/p>\n<p>Personalization\u00a0isn\u2019t\u00a0about adding\u00a0someone\u2019s\u00a0first name into an email campaign with the right merge tag. Personalization is about interests, behavior, and challenges. This is your\u00a0relationship-building opportunity. Use\u00a0that zero-party data through forms, surveys, interactive content, or preference centers to build your personalization strategy. Whatever data you choose to collect, make sure\u00a0to use it\u2014the more\u00a0personalized your emails, the better\u00a0they\u2019ll\u00a0perform.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s engagement, more than the content itself, that really matters when it comes to deliverability. If you\u2019re struggling with the spam filter, it may be time to take a look at your email list and what kind of engagement you\u2019re seeing\u2026and how you can better personalize the emails you\u2019re sending so they\u2019re relevant, timely, and interesting to your subscribers.<\/p>\n\n<div class=\"container pt-3 pb-5 px-1\">\n\t<div class=\"row blog-cta-blue rounded-5 p-4\">\n\t\t<div class=\"mx-auto col-12\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"row d-flex align-items-center\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col-lg-6 col-12\">\n\t\t\t\t<p class=\"bold fs-4\">Get email insights from marketers worldwide<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<p>Dive into the State of Email Reports for the latest trends, innovations, and best practices across the email marketing industry.\n<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<button class=\"button-blue download\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/state-of-email-reports\" class=\"text-white text-decoration-none\">Get the report<\/a><\/button>\n\t\t\t<\/div><!--col-6-->\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col-6 d-none d-lg-block\">\n\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/download-blog-cta-09232024.svg\" width=\"221\" height=\"175\" alt=\"\">\n\t\t\t<\/div><!--col-6-->\n\t\t\t<\/div> <!--row-->\n\t\t<\/div><!--col-12-->\n\t<\/div><!--row-->\n<\/div><!--container-->\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\n<h3>8. Send email content subscribers want to receive<\/h3>\n<p>For years, marketers worried over specific words and phrases in their subject lines or emails, or\u00a0whether or not\u00a0foreign languages would accidentally trip a spam filter.\u00a0Luckily,\u00a0MBPs\u00a0are\u00a0much more\u00a0sophisticated today (pour one out for the time one of our emails got filtered for\u00a0<a rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/blog\/dont-play-hide-and-seek-how-to-keep-your-email-code-clean\">bringing sexy back<\/a>!)<\/p>\n<p>Today,\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0less about specific words you use and\u00a0more\u00a0what\u00a0feels \u201cspammy\u201d to the\u00a0recipient.\u00a0That\u2019s\u00a0not to say you should suddenly pepper your emails with swears or racy\u00a0references if it\u00a0doesn\u2019t\u00a0fit your brand. But if probiotic brand Seed can lead with the subject line, \u201cHow\u2019s your poop?\u201d then you\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0have to agonize\u00a0over using\u00a0the word \u201cdiscount.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"image-scroll mb-3\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone\" src=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/2.png\" alt=\"\" \/><\/div>\n\n<p>Poor content has less to do with the specific words or phrases you use and is\u00a0rather about\u00a0how you use them, and how your subscribers engage with your content (or\u00a0don\u2019t.) Focusing on great content means:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-leveltext=\"\u25cf\" data-font=\"\" data-listid=\"3\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\u25cf&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><strong>Know your audience<\/strong>:\u00a0What do your subscribers care\u00a0about? Why did they subscribe? What issues are\u00a0they facing? Use the answers to these questions to guide your\u00a0email\u2019s\u00a0content.<\/li>\n<li aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-leveltext=\"\u25cf\" data-font=\"\" data-listid=\"3\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\u25cf&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><strong>Content &gt; Sales<\/strong>:\u00a0Provide your subscribers with content that is of interest to them, rather than just hammering them with sales messages. Show your subscribers that you care\u00a0about them and their needs and wants, rather than your own motives. This helps build brand trust (and funnily enough, more\u00a0sales!).<\/li>\n<li aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-leveltext=\"\u25cf\" data-font=\"\" data-listid=\"3\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\u25cf&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><strong>Think about the subscriber journey from start to finish<\/strong>:\u00a0Build your emails and email campaigns thinking not just about that email, but how it fits into the context of your\u00a0subscribers\u2019\u00a0interaction with your brand. Where\u00a0are\u00a0they as they open the email, both emotionally (I wish X problem\u00a0was\u00a0solved) and physically (mobile vs. desktop). From that email, where\u00a0do they go next?\u00a0What\u2019s\u00a0the\u00a0ultimate goal\u00a0or action\u00a0you\u2019re\u00a0driving?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Building the best content you can helps you boost engagement and positive subscriber behavior like clicks, opens, and our favorite, TINS (when subscribers\u00a0rescue you from the spam folder by saying, \u201cThis is not spam.\u201d) Keeping your content helpful, rather than salesy, is the best way to keep your content from being spammy.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"out-of-spam\" aria-level=\"2\">Stuck in the spam folder?\u00a0Here\u2019s\u00a0how to get out.<\/h2>\n<p>After\u00a0you\u2019ve\u00a0spent so much time crafting the perfect email, it can all go to waste if your subscribers\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0get a chance to see it. If\u00a0you\u2019re\u00a0worried about your deliverability, here\u00a0is your action plan:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-leveltext=\"%1.\" data-font=\"\" data-listid=\"4\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:0,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769242&quot;:[65533,0],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;%1.&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><strong>Start with your\u00a0analytics<\/strong>.\u00a0Understand your inbox placement, spam complaints, unsubscribe rates, and overall engagement (opens, clicks, and\u00a0read time) to get a sense of your current performance.<\/li>\n<li aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-leveltext=\"%1.\" data-font=\"\" data-listid=\"4\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:0,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769242&quot;:[65533,0],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;%1.&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\">If\u00a0you\u2019re\u00a0unhappy with your\u00a0performance,\u00a0<strong>check your authentication protocols first<\/strong>.\u00a0This is a do-not-pass-go, do-not-collect-$200 kind of situation.<\/li>\n<li aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-leveltext=\"%1.\" data-font=\"\" data-listid=\"4\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:0,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769242&quot;:[65533,0],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;%1.&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\">After that,\u00a0<strong>check your email\u00a0list\u00a0hygiene<\/strong>\u00a0to see\u00a0how\u00a0accurate\u00a0your list is\u00a0and implement the segmentation strategy we discussed above.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Those cover your biggest issues that could be impacting your deliverability. After that? Look holistically at your email marketing program. Not to give you an existential crisis, but are you sending emails your subscribers actually want to receive? Make sure your emails line up with their preferences, and if you haven\u2019t personalized your emails, get to it.<\/p>\n<p>Feeling overwhelmed? Validity\u2019s\u00a0<a rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.validity.com\/everest\/services\/\">Professional Services<\/a>\u00a0can help you\u00a0get to the bottom of\u00a0your situation. Send\u00a0them\u00a0a message and we can get all this sorted for you.\u00a0\ud83e\udd17<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"engage\" aria-level=\"2\">Find out why your emails land in the spam folder<\/h2>\n<p>With so many different factors influencing your deliverability, it\u2019s difficult to know what to fix when you\u2019re struggling with the spam folder\u2014at least it was before <a rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.validity.com\/engage\/\">Validity Engage.<\/a> Now you can easily uncover patterns in your email list, see engagement and inbox placement insights, and autonomously take action. Engage&#8217;s crucial insights and guidance helps you reach more people, increase engagement, and protect your email performance.<\/p>\n\n<div class=\"container pt-3 pb-5\">\n\t<div class=\"row blog-cta-blue  p-4\">\n\t\t<div class=\"col-12 mx-auto\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"row d-flex align-items-center\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col-lg-6 col-12\">\n\t\t\t\t<p class=\"bold fs-4\">AI-powered email intelligence <\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<p>Built on Validity\u2019s vast data network, Validity Engage removes risk and boosts email performance\u2014so you can produce exceptional results in less time.  <\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<button class=\"button-blue arrow\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.validity.com\/engage\/\" class=\"text-white text-decoration-none\">Explore AI for email<\/a><\/button>\n\t\t\t<\/div><!--col-6-->\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col-6 d-none d-lg-block\">\n\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.litmus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/engage-cta-02122025.svg\" width=\"416\" height=\"342\" alt=\"\">\n\t\t\t<\/div><!--col-6-->\n\t\t\t<\/div> <!--row-->\n\t\t<\/div><!--col-12-->\n\t<\/div><!--row-->\n<\/div><!--container-->\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Email marketers often ask: \u201cWhy did my email end up in spam?\u201d Deliverability remains a tricky subject to tackle, but we have advice to help.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":99370,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"tags":[45,499,48],"blog_category":[10302,10308],"class_list":["post-5885","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-deliverability","tag-email-coding","tag-spam-filter","blog_category-email-deliverability","blog_category-email-testing"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.5 (Yoast SEO v27.7) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Why Did My Email Go to Spam? 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