Business Email
Following are guidelines for constructing BUSINESS email
messages so they are less likely to "look like spam" and be
blocked by a BUSINESS email server. A business email message
should be constructed to be clearly distinguished from spam:
0) Use reasonable written grammar and spelling in the subject and
message. The content should be plain, simple, and business-like. Use Plain
Text format (*1), no colors, no inline pictures or backgrounds, Arial,
Courier, or Times Roman font (standard on all operating system
computers). Send images as attachments, not inline. Use a subject and
put content in the body. Don't use all capital (upper case) letters. Insure
the sending computer's time-of-day clock is correct for its time zone.
1) If a PVSD employee sends an email to someone outside the district,
and that message does not adhere to the incoming email security of the
PVSD business email server, and the recipient replies to the employee's
message, the reply message may be blocked. Outgoing email is not
scrutinized as thoroughly as incoming email. The PVSD employee has
caused the reply to their email to be blocked because the original message
is included in the reply and is also checked for spam characteristics.
2) The message should have a descriptive Subject. A message with a
missing or bad subject (eg. "Hi", "Read this", "Hello", "Don't Delete",
"Important", etc.) will incur spam points. A reply to a message without a
subject looks like spam. (Put something in the reply subject in addition to
"RE" or "FW".)
3) Steer clear of subject lines that scream SPAM! Words like "free,"
"limited time," "money", "Don't Delete", "Read This", and multiple
exclamation points (!!!...) trigger spam filters and incur spam points.
4) Use a real name (first and last names) in the return address (the
sender's From adrs). Messages with missing return addresses and return
addresses with lots of numbers (like email from some cell phones and
PDAs) incur spam points.
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Business Email
5) Write using standard conversational language. Be sure not to use
excessive spacing or punctuation. Do not use all capital letters in the
subject and do not use all caps in the message because that looks like
shouting spam and incurs spam points. Use correct spelling of
conversational words. Don't use text messaging shortcut spelling of words
("da"="the", "ur"="your", "omg"="oh my god" etc.).
6) Images: If you must send inline images instead of attachments, make
sure there is also text in the body of the message. Inline image spam ads
are used by criminal spammers and inline images accrue spam points.
Including as much text on the page as an inline image takes accrues fewer
spam points. Multiple inline images incur additional spam points. Send
images as attachments instead of inline. Camera-cell phone email often
sends inline images rather than attachments, includes no text by default,
uses unusual email protocols similar to spammers, and may collect enough
spam points to be dropped or quarantined. A message with an image
attachment named image001.jpg or image001.gif may cause the message
to be rejected at some email servers because spammers often send that
filename in image spam. Rename the file before sending.
7) Using Outlook's "Stationary & Fonts", signature images/logos, and cute
background images to personalize a message will incur spam points
because such attributes are converted to inline images in HTML formatted
email messages. Email generated with Incredimail incurs spam points
because that program creates inline images, inserts advertising, uses
HTML formatting, and has other characteristics of spam.
8) Avoid fancy formatting of a business message, such as very small or
very large fonts, fancy fonts, background images, colored words and
backgrounds, image "smileys" and emoticons, and other non-business
characteristics. Unusual formatting increases spam points in business
email. Send business email using "Plain Text" format (*1) instead of
Outlook's default HTML. If you must send a specially formatted document,
send it as a Word or PDF attachment. (Remove Hidden Data (metadata) in
Word and other MS Office documents before sending.)
9) Don't include gratuitous references to spam subjects. Don't talk about
Rolex watches, sexually oriented activities, pharmaceuticals, or debt/loan
treatment, unless those topics directly relate to your email. And if you do,
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Business Email
limit your email to one topic at a time. An email which mentions Rolex
watches, drugs, porn, and debt all in one message will hit several rules
that flag it as spam, even if everything else is clear.
10) Email that attaches advertising at the bottom of the message (sent
from free email servers, some cell and Internet phones, Incredimail) may
accrue enough spam points to be quarantined or dropped. The sender
cannot remove this advertising that looks like spam, so the sender must
use a paid email service without the ads or a different means of sending
business email if there are problems delivering to PVSD.
11) Regurgemail: Messages that have already been forwarded several
times will incur spam points, or be dropped. Regurgemail typically has no
business related content.
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