If you’ve discovered the convenient world of using generative AI to write your text and content and decided to copy and paste them into your emails, you may be writing in an unnatural manner. If you can fool a human with your sudden surge of eloquence, guess what? You can’t fool a robot, and Google is way ahead of you.
Google has a next-level algorithm for Gmail spam control that goes beyond the traditional Sender Score (Sender Reputation) and email authentication settings, DKIM, DMARC, and SPF records. In fact, it has two: the first is an analysis of your content to see if it contains trigger keywords and if it presents “unnatural” construction with its knowledge of generative AI text. The second is user behavior from emails with the same content or worse, from previous emails that you have sent to a group of Gmail recipients in the past. (Read one of my articles where I discuss how Gmail’s user feedback system feeds their AI to detect emails as spam)
Google has also been known to use AI to detect spammy content on websites; they use an AI-based prevention system called SpamBrain that can identify spam-filled content, reducing hacked spam by 70% and gibberish spam found on hosting platforms by 75%. Technologies like SpamBrain can analyze content to detect signs of generative AI text or lack of coherence.
Additionally, Google monitors recipient behavior from emails with similar or identical content. If many recipients mark your email as spam, delete it without opening it, or ignore it completely, Google will lower your sender reputation and make it harder for your future emails to reach their destination. Google can track the engagement rate of your emails, such as how many recipients open them, click on links, reply, or forward them. A low engagement rate indicates that your email is not relevant or interesting to your audience, which may also affect your sender reputation.
So, what can you do to avoid being caught by Google’s spam detection? Here are some tips:
- Write original and personalized emails that match your tone and style. Don’t rely on generative AI tools to produce your content.
- Avoid using spammy keywords or phrases that may trigger anti-spam filters. For example, don’t use words like “free,” “guaranteed,” “urgent,” “make money,” or even “click here.”
- Test your emails before sending them to check for spelling, grammar, and formatting errors. You can use tools like Grammarly to help you with this.
- Segment your email list and send relevant and targeted messages to different groups of recipients. Don’t send mass emails to everyone on your list without considering their interests or preferences.
- Monitor your email performance and feedback from your recipients. If you notice a high bounce rate & low open rate, or if you simply get negative responses from your recipients, adjust your email strategy accordingly (or get in touch with an email deliverability expert — Ahem!).
By following these tips, you can improve your email deliverability and avoid being labeled as a spammer by Google.