Is your e-mail mistaken for spam?
by Tim North
Published
on this site: February 8th, 2004
How
many e-mail messages do you receive in a week? How many of these are unsolicited
advertising (spam)? If you're anything like me, the answer to both questions is
"Too many!"
An unfortunate side effect of this tide of spam is
that many people now delete any message that they suspect of being spam without
reading it. This means that your e-mail's subject line will make or break you.
A
good subject line is vital to prevent your e-mail being inadvertently dismissed
as spam by some readers.
It is even more important when you consider the
increasing use of rule-based e-mail filters that use very unforgiving software
to classify incoming messages as spam or not-spam.
Here then are some simple
tips to help you prevent your e-mail being mistaken for spam:
- Don't
use money in the subject line; e.g.
Can we cut $500 from the budget?
Many
of your readers will have spam filters than kill off anything with a dollar sign
in the subject line.
- Don't include advertising words like best
selling, cash, free, guaranteed, make money, opportunity, order, satisfied, saving
or special offer.
Such words are frequently used in spam subject lines.
Keep in mind that they can easily sneak through:
Can we free up some money
from the budget?
- Don't leave the subject field blank. Not only
are you failing to capture your reader's attention, but this is a common spammer
technique to trick you into opening the message.
- Don't send work
messages from private addresses like yahoo.com or aol.com. A significant percentage
of all spam comes from such addresses.
- Don't send unsolicited
attachments. People have become very wary of them as many are infected with viruses
or contain other malicious software.
- DON'T SHOUT. Don't send
a message in which the subject is in full capitals. This is a common sign of spam.
-
Don't use words that may have an inadvertent adult meaning.
- Ensure
that the date is set correctly on your computer as an incorrect or missing date
is a common sign of forged e-mail headers -- another common spammer trick.
Armed
with these tips, your e-mail should get through every time.
You'll find many more helpful tips like these in the SAMPLE CHAPTERS from
Tim North's much applauded range of e-books:
http://www.BetterWritingSkills.com.
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