Graymail

Definition: Graymail refers to marketing emails that recipients once requested but no longer engage with. These emails exist in a “gray” area between valuable content and unwanted spam. Although senders have permission to contact these individuals, the recipients become inactive. They don’t unsubscribe, but they also stop opening or clicking on the emails. 

Email Service Providers closely monitor how recipients interact with these messages. When algorithms notice that many recipients ignore or delete a sender’s emails, they deem the content irrelevant. As a result, the sender’s domain reputation suffers, leading to future campaigns being filtered into the spam folder.

Example: A shopper who signs up for a “Black Friday” discount code by entering their email address on a website. After using the coupon to make a purchase, they forget to unsubscribe from the mailing list. In the following six months, the brand sends them a weekly newsletter. However, the shopper loses interest and deletes each email without opening it. These unread newsletters accumulate as Graymail. Although the shopper opted in, their lack of engagement signals to email providers that the content is unimportant, ultimately harming the brand’s email deliverability.