Interpreting the Spam Checker
Learn how to interpret SendRepute's pre-send email content analysis, including lexical, structural, and HTML signals, to improve your drafts.
Interpreting the SendRepute spam checker involves understanding how different elements of your email contribute to a probabilistic classification. When you submit a draft, the system analyzes the sender name, subject line, body text, links, formatting, and HTML signals before you send the message. The resulting feedback provides an analysis of how receiving filters might view your content. By evaluating these signals, you can proactively resolve issues and prepare stronger emails.
Understanding the Analysis Signals
The analysis engine evaluates multiple layers of your email content to generate a confidence estimate.
- Lexical Signals: This looks at the actual words and phrases used in your subject and body text. The system identifies patterns commonly found in unsolicited messages.
- Structural Signals: This examines the overall layout. It looks at the ratio of text to images, the placement of different sections, and the general flow of the document.
- Link Signals: The system reviews the URLs included in your message. It checks the formatting of the links and how they are presented to the reader.
- Formatting Signals: This includes the use of capitalization, punctuation, and text styling like bolding or highlighting.
- HTML Signals: The underlying code is checked for broken tags, excessive inline styling, or elements commonly associated with poorly constructed messages. The product may support safe HTML corrections to address these issues.
Context and Flagged Terms
A common misconception is that certain words are universally banned by email providers. In reality, context is critical. A safe word can become risky depending on its surrounding text, and a flagged phrase does not automatically classify your entire message as spam.
For example, the word "free" is frequently used in legitimate newsletters and transactional updates. However, if "free" is combined with excessive capitalization, multiple exclamation points, and a structural layout that hides the sender identity, the context becomes highly risky. Conversely, a phrase like "act now" might be flagged as a potential pressure tactic. If the rest of the email contains clean HTML, standard formatting, and clear sender information, the overall message may still receive a favorable probabilistic classification. The presence of a single flagged term is just one variable in a much larger equation.
Prioritizing Edits and Rechecking
When you receive your analysis, you will see a probabilistic spam classification, a confidence level, and a list of detected terms when the account or action permits. To improve your draft, prioritize edits based on the combination of signals.
- Review the HTML and formatting signals first. Fixing broken code or removing excessive bold text often provides immediate improvements to the structural integrity of the message.
- Examine link signals. Ensure your URLs are clear, direct, and properly formatted within the text.
- Adjust lexical elements by rewriting flagged phrases to sound more natural. You can make manual edits or use optional AI rewriting features in the product to craft clearer content.
- Submit the revised draft to recheck the probabilistic classification and see if the confidence level improves.
External Factors and Deliverability
While content analysis helps optimize your message before sending, external factors play a significant role in final placement. The content classifier analyzes content only, not live DNS or blacklists. Separate Domain Check reads live public DNS and five selected public threat-intelligence sources; it is not a comprehensive check of all DNSBLs or private-provider blocklists. The classifier and builder do not send email. SendRepute Campaigns sends via your own connected provider; SendRepute is not a hosted SMTP delivery service. No tool changes DNS records. You must ensure your domain authentication aligns with industry standards independently.
For technical specifications on domain authentication, review the DMARC RFC 7489 and the IETF DMARC RFC record. Additionally, following the Gmail sender guidelines is necessary for understanding what major providers expect from senders.
To learn more about the underlying mechanics of our analysis, visit our How It Works page. For broader concepts regarding inbox placement, read our guide on Deliverability.