My emails go to spam: a checklist

Mail lands in spam for a handful of reasons, and they are almost always the same ones. Go down this list in order. Most people find the cause in the first three, and every item has a page in SpamCipher that shows you where you stand.

Before you start

• A connected mailbox and a campaign
• About 8 minutes for the first pass

The domain and the mailbox

Step 1: 1. Are SPF, DKIM and DMARC set up?

• Open Email Accounts. A domain under Needs attention with records missing fails the first check every mail provider makes.
• Click the card to see which record is missing, then follow the domain records guide. Until all three pass, expect spam.

Step 2: 2. Has the mailbox been warmed up?

• On the mailbox card, Never warmed means it has no reputation yet. Enrol it in warm-up and give it two to three weeks before it sends real volume.
• A mailbox that was warmed up but then paused for weeks cools down again.

Step 3: 3. Is it sending too much?

• Click Settings on the card. A Daily cap above 50 on a mailbox younger than two months is the most common cause of a sudden drop.
• Keep two to five mailboxes per domain and spread the campaign across them, rather than pushing one mailbox hard.

The list and the email

Step 4: 4. Were the addresses checked?

• Bounces are the fastest way to a bad reputation. Open the campaign's Leads tab and look at the Verify column: every lead should be verified before it is sent to.
• Keep Verify emails before sending ticked on every import.

Step 5: 5. Is the email plain?

• Open the campaign's Mailboxes tab and the Deliverability fold. Turn Open-tracking pixel and Click-tracking link rewriting off: both add things spam filters look for.
• Under Sending rules, choose First email plain or All plain text. A short, plain email with no images, one link at most and no attachments reads like a person wrote it.

Step 6: 6. Is the pace natural?

• Under Sending rules, set Gap between sends to a few minutes and add a Random extra wait, so sends do not land on a clock.
• Tick Limit emails per company so one domain does not get ten emails from you in a morning.

Measure

Step 7: 7. Where does it land right now?

• Open Inbox Placement and run a test from the mailbox. It sends to real seed inboxes at Gmail, Outlook and the rest and reports inbox, promotions or spam for each.
• Below 70% inbox, stop and fix the items above before sending more. Test again a week after each change.

Troubleshooting