Summary
Increased bot clicks and spam rates in email marketing stem from multiple sources, including automated bot activity (particularly from .edu, Outlook.com, and iCloud.com), spam traps designed to identify spammers, and poor sender reputation. Contributing factors to a poor reputation include high complaint rates, sending to spam traps, and lack of proper email authentication. Recent increases in bot activity have been observed since early months. Effective mitigation strategies involve monitoring and improving sender reputation, using double opt-in, regularly cleaning email lists, implementing honeypot traps to identify bots, setting up email authentication protocols (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), managing bounce rates, adhering to CAN-SPAM Act requirements, segmenting email lists for more relevant content, and tracking filters to understand bot activity patterns. Addressing NHI (Not Human Initiated) interactions and unusual traffic patterns (data centers, VPNs) are also important.
Key findings
- Bot Sources: Increased bot activity identified from .edu, Outlook.com, and iCloud.com domains, often driven by automated systems.
- Spam Traps Impact: Spam traps identify spammers, significantly harming sender reputation and deliverability.
- Poor Reputation Costs: Poor sender reputation, due to high complaint rates and spam traps, leads to increased spam rates and blocked emails.
- Authentication Gaps: Lack of proper email authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) makes it easier for emails to be marked as spam.
- List Hygiene Neglect: Poor list hygiene, including inactive subscribers and invalid addresses, increases bounce rates and spam complaints.
- Relevance Deficiency: Irrelevant content increases the likelihood of spam complaints, damaging sender reputation.
- NHI Patterns: Tracking filters behind addresses showing NHI (Not Human Initiated) interactions helps clarify bot activity patterns.
Key considerations
- Track and Filter NHI: Track filters behind addresses showing NHI to understand bot activity better.
- Monitor Reputation Constantly: Regularly monitor sender reputation to detect and fix issues promptly.
- Implement Double Opt-in Rigorously: Enforce double opt-in to ensure genuine subscriber interest and reduce complaints.
- Clean Lists Regularly: Routinely clean email lists to remove inactive subscribers and potential spam traps.
- Use Honeypot Traps Strategically: Implement honeypot traps to identify and filter out bot traffic efficiently.
- Set Up Authentication Properly: Ensure email authentication protocols (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) are correctly configured to verify sender identity.
- Manage Bounce Rates Actively: Monitor and manage bounce rates to maintain a healthy sender reputation.
- Comply with CAN-SPAM Diligently: Adhere strictly to CAN-SPAM Act requirements, including clear unsubscribe options.
- Segment Lists Effectively: Segment email lists for more targeted and relevant content to minimize spam complaints.
- Address Unusual Traffic: Investigate unusual traffic patterns (data centers, VPNs) for bot activity.
What email marketers say
14 marketer opinions
Increased bot clicks and spam rates in email marketing are caused by various factors, including automated bot activity, spam traps, and poor sender reputation. Bots often scan emails, while spam traps are designed to identify spammers. Recent increases in bot activity have been observed from .edu, Outlook.com, and iCloud.com domains. Mitigation strategies include monitoring sender reputation, using double opt-in, regularly cleaning email lists, implementing honeypot traps, properly setting up email authentication protocols (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), managing bounce rates, and adhering to CAN-SPAM Act requirements. Segmentation and sending relevant content can also reduce spam complaints.
Key opinions
- Bot Activity: Increased bot activity is observed from .edu, Outlook.com, and iCloud.com domains. Bots scan emails for various purposes, leading to inflated click rates.
- Spam Traps: Spam traps identify spammers and negatively impact sender reputation.
- Poor Reputation: A poor sender reputation leads to higher spam rates and blocked emails. Factors include high complaint rates and sending to spam traps.
- Authentication: Lack of proper email authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) increases the likelihood of emails being marked as spam.
- List Hygiene: Poor list hygiene (inactive subscribers, invalid addresses) increases bounce rates and spam complaints.
- Relevance: Irrelevant content leads to higher spam complaint rates.
Key considerations
- Monitor Reputation: Regularly monitor sender reputation to identify and address issues promptly.
- Double Opt-in: Implement double opt-in to ensure subscribers genuinely want to receive emails.
- List Cleaning: Regularly clean email lists to remove inactive subscribers and spam traps.
- Honeypot Traps: Use honeypot traps to identify and filter out bot traffic.
- Authentication Protocols: Properly set up email authentication protocols (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) to verify sender identity.
- Bounce Rates: Monitor and manage bounce rates to maintain a healthy sender reputation.
- CAN-SPAM Compliance: Adhere to CAN-SPAM Act requirements, including providing a clear unsubscribe link.
- Segmentation: Segment email lists to send targeted and relevant content.
- Content Relevance: Ensure content is valuable and relevant to subscribers to reduce spam complaints.
Marketer view
Email marketer from Reddit r/emailmarketing suggests using honeypot traps (hidden links only bots will click) to identify and filter out bot traffic. They also advise monitoring click patterns for suspicious activity, such as rapid or simultaneous clicks on multiple links.
21 Sep 2022 - Reddit
Marketer view
Marketer from Email Geeks observed a spike in bot activity mostly from Icloud.com starting around the end of March, which is suspected to be privacy measures testing links, and uses a pixel to vet them out.
23 Oct 2021 - Email Geeks
What the experts say
4 expert opinions
Increased bot clicks and spam rates are influenced by bot activity patterns, with increased activity seen since early months. Honeypot traps are effective for identifying bot clicks, while a poor sender reputation stemming from high complaint rates, spam traps, and lacking authentication significantly increases spam rates.
Key opinions
- Bot Activity Patterns: Increased bot activity observed since January/February requires closer monitoring to understand patterns.
- Honeypot Effectiveness: Honeypot traps are effective in identifying bot clicks through hidden links and form fields.
- Sender Reputation Impact: Poor sender reputation, due to high complaint rates, spam traps, and lacking authentication, increases spam rates.
Key considerations
- Track Filters: Tracking the filters behind addresses showing NHI can clarify bot activity patterns.
- Implement Honeypots: Use honeypot traps to detect and monitor bot interactions within email campaigns.
- Maintain Reputation: Focus on reducing complaint rates, avoiding spam traps, and ensuring proper authentication to improve sender reputation.
Expert view
Expert from Spamresource explains that creating 'honeypot' traps can effectively identify bot clicks. These are hidden links or form fields only bots are likely to interact with. Monitoring these interactions can reveal bot activity within your email campaigns.
17 Aug 2024 - Spamresource
Expert view
Expert from Email Geeks confirms seeing increased bot activity from January/February and continuing.
29 Jun 2022 - Email Geeks
What the documentation says
4 technical articles
Email deliverability is affected by sender reputation, authentication, and content. Poor sender reputation leads to emails being marked as spam or blocked, and click tracking and user-agent analysis can identify bots, which can be mitigated by implementing CAPTCHAs and rate limiting. Adhering to email best practices and Outlook.com's guidelines helps maintain a positive sending reputation.
Key findings
- Deliverability Factors: Sender reputation, authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), and content affect email deliverability.
- Bot Identification: Click tracking and analyzing user-agent data help identify bots, with unusual traffic patterns as indicators.
- Sender Reputation Importance: Sender reputation is crucial; a poor reputation can lead to emails being marked as spam or blocked.
- Policy Adherence: Following best practices and Outlook.com's guidelines is essential for maintaining a positive sending reputation.
Key considerations
- Clean List: Focus on building a clean and engaged email list.
- Authentication: Authenticate emails with SPF, DKIM, and DMARC to improve deliverability.
- Monitor Traffic: Use click tracking and user-agent analysis to monitor and identify unusual traffic patterns indicative of bots.
- Implement Mitigation: Implement CAPTCHAs and rate limiting to mitigate automated abuse.
- Email Best Practices: Follow email best practices and provide value to recipients to maintain a good reputation.
- Adhere to Guidelines: Adhere to Outlook.com's policies and guidelines for bulk senders.
Technical article
Documentation from Mailchimp explains that several factors affect email deliverability, including sender reputation, authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), and content. They advise focusing on building a clean and engaged list, avoiding spam trigger words, and authenticating your email to improve deliverability and reduce spam rates.
12 Mar 2023 - Mailchimp
Technical article
Documentation from SparkPost shares using click tracking and analyzing user-agent data helps identify bots. They also note unusual traffic patterns, such as clicks originating from data centers or VPNs, are indicators. Mitigating actions include implementing CAPTCHAs and rate limiting to prevent automated abuse.
13 Mar 2025 - SparkPost
How can I detect and segment bot clicks in email campaigns?
How can I identify and handle bot clicks and opens, particularly from Microsoft/Outlook domains, in email marketing campaigns?
How can I identify and prevent suspicious or bot-generated email addresses in my lists?
How can I minimize bot clicks in email marketing and what are the best methods for identifying and filtering them?
How can I prevent bot clicks from hurting my email reputation?
How can I prevent spammers from creating accounts via Zapier integrations?
