Emails landing in the Promotions tab can be frustrating for marketers who want their messages seen in the Primary inbox. Gmail and Yahoo Mail automatically filter incoming emails to improve the user experience. Their algorithms scan subject lines, links, and formatting to decide whether a message looks promotional, personal, or suspicious. Because marketing emails often include images, product offers, and multiple links, Gmail usually sends them to the Promotions tab.
Whether your emails are delivered to your customers’ Promotions tab or their Inbox is typically determined by mail services such as Gmail. Given that you’re sending promotional emails, it’s only natural that they’ll be classified as Promotions by the Gmail algorithm.
Gmail has implemented a categorization based on the following criteria:
- Email Content (whether the content you send appears to be marketing/promotional in nature rather than personal)
- Personalization (the level of personalization your email offers to each of the customers)
- User interaction (whether your customer personally marked your email to be categorized into the promotions tab)
If you create personalized content for each subscriber in your email campaign, it’s more likely your email will land in their primary inbox tab.
Emails landing in the Promotions tab are still delivered successfully, but they may receive fewer opens. By following best practices and focusing on subscriber engagement, you increase the chance of reaching the Primary inbox.