It’s safe to go ahead and assume that nearly all of us have sent an email to a prospective client or colleague and - without our being aware of it - had it end up in a spam folder when we thought it was received in their inbox and thus ready for viewing. Add the fact that people typically don’t search through their spam folders for emails that might’ve been misdirected there and it becomes a serious issue for anyone who’s putting considerable efforts into their email marketing campaigns. Here at 4GoodHosting, we’re a top Canadian web hosting provider who can absolutely relate to this because we’ve no doubt had a few or more of our own ending up being auto-deleted over time from a spam folder. That’s an opportunity lost, and like you we also put a lot of effort into our email marketing efforts. So what to do, what makes certain emails get caught in the spam folder when there’s nothing - at least to your understanding - ‘spammy’ about them at all? Of course, it’s because of spam filters. But how exactly do they work, and more specifically what are common triggers for them to take a legitimate email and label it as spam? Let’s discuss this today, and start by having a look at how spam filters work. Avoid Accumulating Points! Spam filters are software programs that scan emails as they flow into device. It is programmed with a specific set of criteria about filtering these emails. When the filter finds an email that matches the criteria, it is summarily sent to the spam folder. All good internet mail servers are equipped with a spam filter, and they can also be installed on network servers and individual PCs. The filters work with a point system, but of course you don’t want your email accumulating any of these points. When a certain limit or point value is reached during the email scan, the email is termed as spam and it is flagged or deleted depending on the user’s preference settings. So it now begs the question - how are these points calculated? Every email spam filter will...
