Over the years, Gmail has successfully developed and grown their web-based email service and is now a contender for the most used and popular amongst Yahoo! Mail and Hotmail/ MSN’s services. Given Gmail’s massive user base, it's no surprise that email marketers are alarmed when they experience deliverability issues at the internet service provider (ISP) level.

The problem is, Gmail does not provide feedback loops, nor does it accept “whitelisting” requests. This means that there are no guarantees to bypassing Gmail's spam filters.

So how does Gmail govern what is acceptable for inbox delivery? In general, they are constantly monitoring how people interact with their email. Specifically, Gmail is monitoring whether or not:

• Users are actively moving email from the spam folder into the inbox - explicitly showing Gmail which email is wanted and relevant to them.


• The “From Address” has been added to the user’s contact list.


• Gmail clients are hitting the “Report Spam” button in order to determine when to deliver future mailings to the spam folder rather than the inbox.
  

Due to Gmail’s method of evaluating user interaction, it is crucial to follow email marketing best practices to promote inbox delivery:

1. Use a double opt-in confirmation as part of a welcome program for new subscribers to ensure that future email is wanted.

2. Include a clear unsubscribe link to encourage users to properly unsubscribe, rather than hit the “Report Spam” button, or Gmail's built-in list-unsubscribe feature.

3. Publish SPF records and have signed domain keys/DKIM authentication in order to verify your email sender identification.

4. Trash aged email subscribers and unengaged/inactive email addresses from your mailing list.

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