This article expains you how you can prevent your press releases from ending up in the spam folder of journalists. More information about why test mails can end up in the spam folder can be found in this article.

Spam filters are becoming increasingly strict, and this also affects press releases. Spam filters us a point system to determine whether an e-mail has to be marked as spam. Spam filters look at the content of emails, as well as the trustworthiness of the sender. In this article we tell you where spam filters focus on, and how you can anticipate.

Subject line

Spam filters look closely at subject lines. Lots of uppercase letters, or question and exclamation marks are an indication to mark messages as spam. The use of spam trigger words such as 'money' or 'success' also rings alarm bells. Furthermore, it is advisable not to use long subject lines.

Layout and content

Spam filters scan emails to check for words commonly found in spam messages. Terms like "offer" or "make money" are flagged as potentially untrustworthy by spam filters. You should also avoid excessive use of punctuation, such as exclamation marks.

In addition, spam filters monitor the ratio between text and images/attachments. When your press release consists of many images or attachments and little text, a spam filter may mark it as suspicious.

Authentication and Verification

Spam filters check the trustworthiness of senders. Proving and confirming that you are a credible sender will increase the status of your emails. For this reason, it is mandatory in Smart.pr to verify and authenticate your sending domain. This gives Smart.pr permission to send outgoing mail on behalf of your own sending domain. You can easily verify and authenticate your sending domain in our user-friendly wizard. Read here you can verify and authenticate your sending domains.

Quality of your recipient list

Spam filters look at the interaction that takes place with your press releases. When many people unsubscribe from your mailings, when your message is rarely opened or the mailing is sent to numerous inactive e-mail addresses, this is an indication of possible spam. We therefore recommend that you keep your address book up to date.

Sender information

In addition to technical verification, spam filters check whether a physical address can be found in e-mails. You can easily put this information in your boilerplate.

Promotion & Spam

Some email clients distinguish between promotion and spam. Spam messages are placed in the spam folder, but newsletters and targeted promotions can be placed in a promotion/advertising folder. When your press release is aimed at promotion, there is the possibility that mail clients will mark it as such.

Spam Tests

There are several spam tests that allow you to check your press release before sending it. These tests give you insight into how spam filters rate your press release.

The above information can be seen as guidance and best practices. We cannot give concrete advice about the content of your press release, i.a. because the configuration of spam filters differs per e-mail client and organization, and is subject to continuous change.