Summary
The overwhelming consensus from email marketing experts, documentation, and community discussions is that sending an update preferences email after a user marks an email as spam is strongly discouraged. It's considered a breach of user trust, can negatively impact sender reputation and deliverability, and could be perceived as intrusive. The widely recommended best practice is to immediately remove the user from all mailing lists upon receiving a spam complaint. Additionally, segregating email streams (promotional vs. transactional), implementing feedback loops, and maintaining good list hygiene are crucial for minimizing spam complaints and ensuring healthy email deliverability.
Key findings
- Harmful to Reputation: Sending emails after a spam complaint damages sender reputation and deliverability.
- Clear Opt-Out Signal: Marking an email as spam is a definitive unsubscribe action.
- Immediate Suppression: The recommended action is to immediately suppress/remove the user from all mailing lists.
- Intrusive: Sending a preference update email can be seen as intrusive and annoying.
- Learning Spam Filters: Spam filters learn from user actions; spam complaints increase the likelihood of blocking future emails.
- Legal Risk: Sending emails to people who have unsubscribed (marking as spam is a form of unsubscribing) carries potential legal risk under anti-spam laws (e.g., CAN-SPAM).
Key considerations
- Email Stream Segregation: Consider segregating sending domains/IPs for promotional vs. transactional emails to limit the impact of complaints.
- List Hygiene Practices: Implement robust list hygiene practices: remove unengaged subscribers, validate email addresses.
- Feedback Loop Monitoring: Monitor and actively utilize feedback loops to identify and remove spam complainers.
- Respect User Choice: Always respect the user's decision to opt-out (marking as spam) and avoid any further communication.
- Complaint Monitoring: Monitor your complaint rates closely. High complaint rates may indicate problems with your sending practices, content, or list acquisition methods.
- Offer Easy Opt-Out: Make it easy for subscribers to opt-out of your emails to reduce the likelihood of spam complaints.
What email marketers say
13 marketer opinions
The overwhelming consensus from email marketing experts and documentation suggests that sending an update preferences email after a user marks an email as spam is a bad practice. The primary reason is that it can further damage your sender reputation and deliverability. Marking an email as spam is considered a clear opt-out signal, and respecting the user's decision is crucial. Instead, you should immediately remove the subscriber from your mailing list to avoid future issues. Separating transactional and promotional emails, as well as segregating domains based on email streams, can help mitigate the impact of spam complaints. Maintaining good list hygiene and focusing on engaged subscribers are also vital for high deliverability rates.
Key opinions
- Negative Impact: Sending emails after a spam complaint can negatively impact sender reputation and deliverability.
- Clear Opt-Out: A spam complaint is a clear signal that the user no longer wants to receive emails.
- Immediate Removal: The best practice is to immediately remove the subscriber from the mailing list.
- Unwanted Emails: Recipients marking an email as spam may be reacting to a series of unwanted emails.
- Preference Update Negative: Sending a preference update email can be seen as intrusive and further annoy the recipient.
- Spam Filters: Spam filters learn from user behavior, and spam complaints increase the likelihood of blocking future emails.
Key considerations
- Domain Segregation: Consider segregating sending domains based on email streams (e.g., promotional vs. transactional).
- List Hygiene: Maintain good list hygiene by regularly removing unengaged subscribers and those who mark emails as spam.
- Feedback Loops: Utilize feedback loops to identify and remove users who mark emails as spam.
- Respect User Choice: Respect the user's decision to flag an email as spam and do not send further emails.
- Engagement: Focus on acquiring and engaging subscribers who actively want to receive your emails.
- Complaint rates: Monitor your spam complaint rates to identify and address potential deliverability issues.
Marketer view
Email marketer from Email on Acid states that if you receive a spam complaint through a feedback loop, the best practice is to immediately unsubscribe the recipient to avoid further issues.
20 Jun 2024 - Email on Acid
Marketer view
Email marketer from Email Geeks questions the assumption that someone reporting an email as spam is referring only to that specific email; she thinks most people reach for the spam button after a pattern of unwanted emails, and the email may be the final straw.
20 Sep 2024 - Email Geeks
What the experts say
2 expert opinions
Experts agree that sending more email to someone who has marked your email as spam is detrimental to your relationship and sender reputation. Marking an email as spam is a clear indication of unsubscribing, and it should be respected by immediately removing the recipient from all mailing lists.
Key opinions
- Negative Relationship Impact: Sending further emails after a spam complaint harms the sender-recipient relationship.
- Loud Unsubscribe: Marking as spam is considered a definitive unsubscribe action.
- Immediate Removal: Immediate removal from all mailing lists is the recommended best practice.
- Protect Sender Reputation: Removing spam complainers helps safeguard sender reputation.
Key considerations
- Respect the Signal: Acknowledge and respect the recipient's explicit unsubscribe request.
- Automated Removal: Implement automated systems to ensure immediate removal upon spam complaints.
- No Exceptions: Avoid any attempt to re-engage or clarify preferences after a spam complaint.
Expert view
Expert from Email Geeks states if someone says they don't want your email and you send them more email there's no universe in which this ends well for your relationship with that recipient.
19 Oct 2022 - Email Geeks
Expert view
Expert from Word to the Wise explains that when someone marks an email as spam, they're essentially unsubscribing in a very loud way. The best practice is to respect this signal and immediately remove them from all mailing lists to protect your sender reputation.
24 Jan 2025 - Word to the Wise
What the documentation says
3 technical articles
Email deliverability documentation from Google, the RFC Editor, and Microsoft emphasizes the importance of managing spam complaints. High spam rates negatively impact deliverability, particularly to Gmail users, and can lead to high spam confidence levels (SCL). Automated Feedback Loops (FBLs) forward spam complaints to senders, who are then expected to use this data to remove complaining users from their lists. Focus should be on acquiring engaged subscribers and actively removing unengaged or complaining users to maintain a good sender reputation.
Key findings
- Negative Deliverability Impact: High spam rates negatively impact email deliverability.
- Feedback Loops: Automated Feedback Loops (FBLs) provide spam complaint data to senders.
- Sender Responsibility: Senders are responsible for removing users who mark emails as spam.
- SCL Impact: High Spam Confidence Levels (SCL) can lead to delivery issues.
Key considerations
- Engaged Subscribers: Focus on acquiring and maintaining engaged subscribers.
- List Management: Actively manage email lists by removing unengaged or complaining users.
- Reputation Management: Prioritize maintaining a positive sender reputation to avoid deliverability issues.
- FBL Implementation: Implement and monitor Automated Feedback Loops to identify and address spam complaints.
Technical article
Documentation from Microsoft explains that high spam confidence levels (SCL) assigned to your emails can lead to delivery issues. Reducing spam complaints is crucial for maintaining a good sender reputation and avoiding high SCL scores.
29 Jul 2023 - Microsoft
Technical article
Documentation from RFC Editor describes Automated Feedback Loops (FBLs) as a mechanism where ISPs forward spam complaints to senders. Senders are expected to use this information to remove complaining users from their lists.
20 May 2023 - RFC Editor
Are abuse reports and feedback loops (FBLs) still useful in email marketing, and how do they work with different email clients?
Are spam complaint rates siloed by provider affecting deliverability?
Do spam complaints from different email domains have different weights in deliverability?
How can I identify which users marked my emails as spam in Gmail?
How can I track Gmail spam complaints and identify the cause?
How do spam complaints and user interaction affect domain reputation?
