Here is our series on Spam Traps and the affect they have on your deliverability. If you missed a previous blog post, here they are:
Spam Traps 101 – part 1: an Introduction
Spam Traps 101 – part 2: Dormant and Blacklist Trap Addresses
What can I do?
- If you are not already doing so, start confirming your new leads. A trap will never confirm they want to be on your list. It may register as an open, but it will never click on a link to confirm their opt-in which is why it is so important to switch to double opt-in.
- If you are purchasing leads from an unknown 3rd party, stop – it’s not worth it. Even if you are using a credible list vendor, you can never be certain the list you receive is free of addresses that no longer exist or ever existed in the first place, harvested addresses, spam traps, etc. The only way to ensure the people on your list confirmed they want to receive email from you is to build the list yourself and in a manner that is consistent with best practice.
- Keep your lists up to date. Make sure you are sending at least once every 6 months and remove hard bounces accordingly. If you have not sent anything to these people in 6 months, you should send a reconfirmation email explaining how you got their address and that if they wish to continue receiving your emails they will need to reply or click the link below to reconfirm their opt-in status.
- If you are changing providers, make sure your do not resend to any hard bounces. Find out how they are handling these bounces and that the list you receive from them is clean.
How can I remove a trap ?
- Start confirming new leads.
- Send a reconfirmation email (with no promotional content at all) and include a link to reconfirm their opt-in status and remove anyone that does not do so.
Whichever of these you decide to go with, it’s important to understand that without implementing Step 1 and confirming new leads, you risk adding another trap to your list and going through this process all over again.
2009 has already proven it’s a time for change. It’s a time to learn from our mistakes and the mistakes of others, because we can’t possibly make them all ourselves. Don’t waste this opportunity to start the year in the right direction! Yes We Can!
Bye for now,
Kevin Huxham, Director of Deliverability
If you have any questions, Kevin can be reached at: postmaster@cakemail.com or feel free to use our Help Desk.
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