When you’re crafting the perfect email, sometimes the subject line is the hardest part to complete. You have to encapsulate the entirety of your email in a line that’s not too short and not too long and is engaging enough for readers to open the email. Often times, email blast keywords, both ones to include and ones to exclude come in handy. On top of that, you need to worry about whether or not your subject line will get picked up by spam filters. These filters can be triggered for many reasons – often because the subject line contains one of many common email spam trigger words that are known to be associated with emails that cause problems.
To aid in your pursuit of the perfect subject line, we have compiled a list of the top 100 common email spam words and phrases you should avoid in order to avoid having your email picked up by spam filters.
Common email spam words and phrases to avoid
#1 | $$$ | 100% |
Act now | Action | Additional income |
Affordable | All natural/new | Amazed |
Apply now | Avoid | Be amazed/your own boss |
Beneficiary | Billing | Billion |
Bonus | Boss | Buy |
Call free/now | Cancel | Cash |
Casino | Certified | Cheap |
Click here | Clearance | Collect |
Compare rates | Congratulations | Credit card/check/offers |
Cures | Deal | Dear friend/somebody |
Debt | Discount | Direct email |
Don’t delete/hesitate | Double your income/cash | Earn |
Extra | Expire | Fantastic |
Free access/money/gift | Freedom | Friend |
Get it now/started/paid | Great | Guarantee |
Hello | Income | Increase sales/traffic |
Instant | Investment | Junk |
Limited | Lose | Lowest price |
Luxury | Make $/money | Medicine |
Money | Name | No credit check/experience |
Now | Obligation | Offer |
Only | Open | Order now |
Please | Presently | Problem |
Promise | Purchase | Quote |
Rates | Refinance | Refund |
Remove | Request | Risk-free |
Sales | Satisfaction | Save |
Score | Serious | Spam |
Success | Supplies | Take action |
Terms | Traffic | Trial |
Unlimited | Urgent | Weight |
While supplies last | Win | Winner |
In addition to excluding these words from your email subject lines, there are a few other things you can avoid to limit the chance that your email will be picked up by spam filters.
- Don’t add RE: to subject lines if it’s not a reply
- Don’t use all caps
- Don’t make spelling mistakes
- Don’t use one-word subject lines
- Don’t use video/Flash/JavaScript
- Don’t use exclamation points in your subject line
- Don’t embed forms in emails