If your campaign report shows high numbers of spam complants, bounces, or unsubscribes, that is an indication that there are problems with either your mailing list or the content you are sending. This help article explains how to diagnose and correct these issues.
Too Many Spam Complaints or Unsubscribes
A complaint rate over 0.1% (1 complaint per 1,000 recipients) is considered high. An unsubscribe rate over 1.0% (1 unsubscribe per 100 recipients) is considered high. Senders with a pattern of high complaint or unsubscribe rates may find their emails rejected or sent to spam and their Direct Mail account suspended, so it's important to correct this issue promptly. The causes of high complaint or unsubscribe rates include:
- Non-Opt-In List: Using a list that does not meet our requirements is a top reason for complaints and/or unsubscribes. This includes using purchased lists, lists that are too old (i.e. have not been used in the past year), and lists that were acquired from a third-party. As you add to your list over time, make sure that you are only adding contacts that meet our requirements. If you are moving lists to Direct Mail from another email service, make sure you carefully screen out contacts who have already unsubscribed or bounced. You must delete from your list any contacts that do not meet our requirements and make sure they are not imported again.
- Unclear or Misleading Subject Line or Sender Information: If the recipient can't immediately tell what your email is about or who it's from, they may be more likely to mark it as spam. Use clear, honest subject lines that accurately reflect the email's content, and ensure your "From" name and address are recognizable.
- Irrelevant Content: If your message is not relevant to what the person originally signed up for, is primarily promotional with little valuable information, or uses spammy language and tactics, recipients may feel misled or frustrated. Focus on providing genuinely helpful, relevant content, and avoid excessive sales pitches or suspicious-sounding claims.
Direct Mail automatically unsubscribes any recipient that reports a spam complaint. When sending a campaign, Direct Mail automatically excludes contacts that are marked as unsubscribed. You should not reach out to recipients that have reported a spam complaint.
Too Many Hard Bounces
A "hard bounce" occurs when an email message is permanently undeliverable, typically due to an invalid, non-existent, or deactivated email address. This is in contrast to a "soft bounce," which happens when a message is temporarily undeliverable for reasons like a full inbox or server issue. A hard bounce rate over 5% (5 hard bounces per 100 recipients) is considered high. High bounce rates are problematic because they negatively impact your sender reputation. Mailbox providers and spam filters monitor hard bounce rates, and high levels can cause your emails to be flagged as spam or blocked entirely. High bounce rates may result in your Direct Mail account being suspended, as well.
The causes of high bounce rates include:
- Non-Opt-In List: Using a list that does not meet our requirements is a top reason for hard bounces. This includes using purchased lists and lists that were acquired from a third-party. As you add to your list over time, make sure that you are only adding contacts that meet our requirements. If you use a web form to collect new contacts, make sure it is protected against bot attacks (our email sign-up forms have this protection). If you are moving lists to Direct Mail from another email service, make sure you carefully screen out contacts who have already bounced or unsubscribed. You must delete from your list any contacts that do not meet our requirements and make sure they are not imported again.
- Old List: Using a list that has not been used within the past year is another top reason for hard bounces. Using these "stale" lists is a bad idea because, in addition to the bounces, they often contain email addresses that are turned into spam traps. Spam traps may not bounce when you send to them, but but they will negatively affect your sender reputation. When importing, take care to not import old or stale contacts.
When sending a campaign, Direct Mail automatically excludes contacts that have hard bounced. You do not need to remove them from your list.