Yahoo!’s new email visualization tool may be email marketing eye candy, but it has also revealed some noteworthy tidbits for email marketers. The map on the front page shows Yahoo! email usage volume by location as well as a continuously updated number of emails delivered every second by the Yahoo! mail network. Click on a continent, and you can receive the same information specific to that area, with additional clicks zooming in further to reveal more detailed information about the data used to determine whether a particular message lands in the inbox or the junk folder.

What Information Is Available?

Perhaps the most interesting pieces of information for email marketers are the trending keywords and the email verification criteria.

• Trending Keywords

Click on the green box on the left side of the map to view keywords showing up most often in the subject lines of emails that make it to the inbox. Click the “Show Spam Keywords” box at the bottom of the graph to see keywords appearing in messages that land in the spam folder.

• Email Verification Criteria

This information is buried a little deeper, but can be found by clicking on a continent on the main page, then on a point within that continent. Click on one of the envelopes labeled either “Junk” or “Inbox” to see a list of five criteria used to determine which emails go where, as well as a pass or fail designation for each.

What Does This Mean for Email Marketers?

Sure, it’s interesting, but can it really impact your email marketing strategy? We think it can, by offering some valuable information we could only guess at before.

• The subject line isn’t as important as you might think when it comes to spam determination. So you can forget your list of approved or banned subject line words (like “free”) as well as those odd variations that attempt to fool the filter (f.r.e.e.; f*r*e*e; f-r-e-e). The trending keyword feature demonstrates that previously anathema words like free actually show up in delivered messages a high percentage of the time. They also show up in junked messages, suggesting that subject line words might not play as important a role as once thought.

• Spam filters look at the email as a whole to determine in-box worthiness. Criteria such as a verified IP address, links, sender, and message content all play a part in determining which messages get marked as spam and which ones reach the inbox.

The bottom line? Stop trying to game the system and instead work towards creating engaging, useful emails that build relationships with your subscribers—the kind of emails we help clients create every day at eConnect Email.

Your email campaign’s delivery rate refers to the number of emails sent that reach their destination.  For most email service providers (ESP’s), this rate hovers between 80% and 90%.  eConnect Email’s delivery rate averages 95%-98%, well above the norm, kudos to our delivery team!  Don’t be deceived by that statistic though.  Just because we successfully deliver your email campaigns doesn’t necessary mean viewers actually see them.  If you’re not careful, your company’s emails could be misdirected to the spam/ junk folder, out of sight of your subscriber.  Here are a few tips to help ensure your email successfully reaches the inbox:

• Use Double Opt-ins

Double opt-ins require a subscriber to click a link you send them through email after they have registered on your site in order to begin receiving messages from you. This way, you know that the correct email address was entered and that the person legitimately wants to receive emails from you. You can use eConnect Email’s list management tools to ensure that only the people who want to receive your messages make it onto your list.

• Be Smart About Subject Lines

Spam filters watch for certain characteristics in subject lines. While it’s impossible to know exactly what the filters are looking for, you can bet that subjects in all caps or those with lots of exclamation points are more likely to be flagged as spam than a clear, concise subject line. Strive to communicate your message in as few words as possible and without using gimmicks to grab the reader’s attention.

• Avoid Spammer Behavior

Purchasing an email list is one of the top ways to get your sender address blocked by spam filters. These lists often consist of outdated addresses that will earn a high bounce rate, making a filter more likely to blacklist your sending IP’s (just know using purchased lists is never a good idea, trust us on this one).

• Avoid Spammer Content

Using spammy phrases such as “free,” “sale,” or “buy now” sends up red flags for the spam filter. You should also avoid using a single image as the body of your email with no headers, text versions, or alt tags.  A good rule of thumb for email newsletters is to incorporate one or two well-placed images alongside informative text within the body of each email you send. eConnect Email can help you custom design a template for your emails that will make sure as many of your subscribers as possible get to view your message.

By putting some thought into your email creation and taking advantage of the expert assistance available from eConnect Email, you can ensure a successful email campaign with not only high delivery rates, but also a higher percentage of messages that make it to the email inbox!