[FAQ]

Hello,

I run a small online newsletter here in Bacolod, and I put a lot of effort into writing what I hope is really valuable and personal content.

Lately, though, I’ve noticed my open rates for Gmail users are a bit low, and I’m worried it’s because my emails are landing in their Promotions tab where they get buried. I really feel my content is more personal than a typical promotion.

Are there any proven techniques to help my emails land in the Primary tab instead? I’ve heard some things about changing the number of images or links, but I’m not sure what actually works.

Any tips would be really helpful.

[Jeff Bullas]

A very common and understandable goal for email marketers. It is, however, a complex issue.

Short Answer: Getting emails to the Primary tab is not something you can directly control, as it is determined by Gmail’s algorithm and individual user behaviour. The best approach is not to try and ‘trick’ the algorithm, but to explicitly ask your subscribers to move your emails to Primary, which trains their inbox for future delivery.

The promotions tab is not the same as the spam folder, and trying too hard to avoid it can sometimes do more harm than good.

Gmail’s algorithm sorts emails by looking at thousands of signals, including sender information, email code, and the content itself. Any email sent from a major email marketing platform contains certain headers that identify it as bulk mail. Furthermore, a marketing email’s text and images, with words like “sale” or “discount” and a heavily formatted HTML layout, are strong signals that it is a promotion. Trying to game this by stripping out all your images and links just to look like a plain text email is a bad strategy; you sacrifice good design and clear calls-to-action, and the algorithm often sees through it anyway.

The single most powerful signal you can send to Gmail is user action. Therefore, the most effective strategy is to ask your subscribers for help. You can run a simple campaign, especially for new subscribers, that asks them directly. The text can be as simple as, “To make sure you never miss our content, please drag this email from the Promotions tab to your Primary tab.” You can even include a simple animated GIF image showing them how to do it. When a user does this, they teach their personal inbox that your emails are important to them, which is far more powerful than anything you can change in your email’s design.

It is also important to remember that people do check their Promotions tab when they are in the mood to engage with brands and offers. For many businesses, landing there is perfectly fine. The ultimate goal should be to send such valuable content that your readers will find it, regardless of which tab it lands in.

Cheers,
Jeff

[Author]

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