Getting Past the Spam Filters, Part 1
Issue 119, December 3, 2002

Dear Friends,

Spam is getting to be a crushing problem. ISPs tell us that 30% of the e-mail they handle is spam, and it's getting worse all the time. In this issue I examine three related issues:

• Anti-Spam Approaches -- the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
• 20 Ways Opt-in E-Mailers Can Outsmart Spam Filters
• Words and Phrases that Trigger Some Spam Filters

My goal is not to create smarter spammers, but to help legitimate e-mail marketers to design their opt-in e-mail messages to avoid being filtered out and not getting to recipients who have requested them. Of course, spam filters is a moving target. If you've learned some things that can help me, please let me know on my contact page. (I get so much spam that it's easy for e-mail not sent through my contact page to be deleted as spam.)

Christmas is coming, and with it the tremendous hustle and bustle of getting ready. In the midst of this, it's way to easy to become so stressed that we miss the real spirit of Christmas. I've tried to help readers recapture the essence of the season in a number of Christmas short stories and articles I've written over the years. Enjoy. (http://www.joyfulheart.com/xmas/)

God bless you,
Dr. Ralph F. Wilson, Editor

Anti-Spam Approaches -- the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

With spam such a problem, there have been lots of extreme measures to prevent it -- some disastrous to legitimate marketers. In this article I examine briefly the various anti-spam approaches, look at the pros and cons of each, and then make some recommendations for my readers. Read the Article.

20 Ways Opt-in E-Mailers Can Outsmart Spam Filters

I've been deeply concerned with getting my newsletters past the spam filters. Right now only about 5% of legitimate opt-in e-mails are filtered out as "false positives." But companies and ISPs are rapidly moving to filtering e-mails. I describe the point system that the new breed of sophisticated spam filters is using. Then, based on my research, I describe in some detail 20 different strategies that legitimate e-mailers can employ to get past the spam filters. Some of these are relatively minor, but others are absolutely crucial. In this article I focus on SpamAssassin 2.43, but the principles are applicable to many filtering systems. Read the Article

Words and Phrases that Trigger Some Spam Filters

You'd be amazed at the words and phrases that tend to cause your e-mail message to be labeled as spam by the spam filters. Here's a list of about 250 words and phrases that you can watch for in your own copy, so you don't trigger rejection. See the Lists.

New Ecommerce and Web Marketing Articles

Each month our team of link editors scours dozens of online periodicals and resources to find key information on e-commerce and Web marketing. With so much new literature available to you, how do you find what you need quickly and painlessly? Here's a selective and searchable database of article and resource links to help your research and keep you up-to-date in the field. (Links gathered in a given month are usually available during the second week of the following month.)