It’s frustrating when emails don’t land where they’re meant to. Sometimes messages sent to clients — whether directly or through an email marketing campaign — can end up in spam or junk folders.
The good news? There are a couple of easy ways to help prevent this from happening again. Most email providers offer the same tools, even if they look a little different.
add your email address to their contact list
A contact list is exactly what it sounds like — a list of email addresses someone trusts and regularly hears from.
When a client adds your email address to their contact list, their email provider recognises you as a trusted sender. That means your emails are much more likely to land safely in their inbox, not spam.
Why this helps:
Email providers assume messages from saved contacts are wanted — so they let them straight through
ask clients to whitelist your email address
A whitelist (sometimes called a safe sender or approved sender list) is a setting that tells an email provider, “Emails from this address are always welcome.”
Once your email address is added to a client’s whitelist, your messages will bypass spam filters entirely and go straight to their inbox.
Why this helps:
Whitelisting is one of the strongest signals an email provider can get that your emails should never be marked as spam.
use a real “from” name and email address
Emails are more likely to be trusted when they clearly show who they’re from.
Best practice:
Use a recognisable from name (for example, your business or personal name)
Send from a real email address on your domain (like
hello@yourdomain.co.nz) rather than a free email provider
This helps email providers see your messages as legitimate and expected.
avoid spam-trigger words and formatting
Some words and styles can raise red flags with spam filters — even if your email is completely genuine.
Try to:
Avoid excessive capital letters or multiple exclamation marks
Be careful with words like free, urgent, guaranteed, or act now
Keep image-heavy emails balanced with clear, readable text
Clean, calm emails tend to perform better
send consistently (not in big bursts)
Email providers look at sending patterns. Sending lots of emails all at once after long gaps can look suspicious.
If possible:
Send emails regularly rather than in large, sudden bursts
Warm up new email addresses gradually before sending campaigns
Consistency builds trust over time.
always include an unsubscribe link
It might feel counter-intuitive, but this actually helps deliverability.
When people can easily unsubscribe:
They’re less likely to mark your email as spam
Email providers see your emails as permission-based
A visible unsubscribe link keeps everyone happy — including spam filters.
ask clients to reply to your email
Replies are a strong positive signal for inbox placement.
A simple line like:
“Just hit reply if you have any questions”
can help email providers recognise real engagement and boost future inbox delivery.
keep your mailing list clean
Sending emails to old, unused, or incorrect addresses can hurt your sender reputation.
Good habits include:
Removing bounced email addresses
Avoiding purchased or scraped email lists
Only emailing people who have opted in
Quality always beats quantity ❤️