An email spam assessment reviews recipient permission, message quality, authentication, sending behaviour and observed delivery. A favourable test score covers only part of that work and cannot guarantee inbox placement.
Use these ten steps before and after a campaign. This concerns email sending, not Moz’s separate SEO Spam Score metric.
1. Confirm the purpose and recipient basis
Record why recipients should expect the message and how the list was obtained. For UK electronic marketing, consult the ICO’s official guidance. Publicly visible contact details are not blanket permission.
2. Identify the actual sending route
Record the email service, sending domains, visible From address and relevant infrastructure. Different transactional and marketing routes can need different configuration. Establish which provider manages the sending IP and reverse DNS.
3. Check SPF against authorised senders
SPF’s specification explains authorisation of hosts for the relevant sending identity. Review the real delivery path rather than assuming a DNS record’s mere presence proves correct authentication.
4. Check DKIM on the delivered message
DKIM supplies a signature-based mechanism for selected message data. Inspect the receiving system’s authentication results. A valid signature does not certify that the message’s purpose is trustworthy.
5. Review alignment and receiver requirements
Gmail’s sender guidance documents applicable authentication and alignment requirements, including stricter bulk-sender rules. Compare the actual From identity and sending route with the current provider requirements.
6. Make opting out usable
Check visible unsubscribe information and any applicable one-click requirement. Verify that suppression is respected before another campaign. An unsubscribe link that fails does not fulfil the intended recipient-control function.
7. Inspect the actual message
Review honest subject lines, clear sender identity, working destinations and useful content. Test the version produced by the sending platform, because formatting and tracking changes can affect the delivered message.
8. Interpret test scores by their model
Apache SpamAssassin uses a scoring framework; other tools can use different scales. Identify reported issues instead of treating every number as the same probability. Our email-score walkthrough explains the distinction.
9. Review observed sending outcomes
Assess bounces, deferrals, complaints and useful engagement with the period and recipient scope clear. A low open rate alone does not prove a filter decision. Avoid abrupt volume changes without understanding provider guidance.
Separate temporary deferrals from permanent failures in delivery logs. Use the provider’s reported reason to guide investigation instead of repeatedly retrying an unchanged message and assuming the destination must accept it.
10. Record changes and repeat relevant checks
Maintain a log of findings, responsible people and verified corrections. Our tool-selection guide helps choose supporting diagnostics, while the DNS guide separates service records from registration.
Stop treating a score as the complete assessment. The useful result is a documented sending process and specific resolved issues, with delivery uncertainty still recognised.