Listen, if you’re still using certain words in your email campaigns, you might as well be writing them directly to spam. There are some words that email marketers love, but scammers love them even more.
And that spells disaster for your email's chances of being seen.
A recent study by ZeroBounce identified the top 10 riskiest words in email marketing. These are words that, because of their association with scams, have a high likelihood of sending your carefully crafted emails straight to the spam folder.
The analysis was brutal: using machine learning, ZeroBounce assigned a weighted score to each word based on appearance frequency, click-through rate, and damage potential. Here’s what they found.
Top 10 Words to Avoid:
Money
Investment
Credit
Billion
Free
Loan
Debt
Cash
Cost
Income
No surprises here, these are all about money. It’s the kind of language that scammers thrive on, so email filters have learned to mark them as risky. The top culprit, "money," appeared 1,143 times and earned an 83.56% infection rate. Not great for building trust, right?
And then there’s "free," that classic sales hook that’s now painfully predictable. It had the highest appearance frequency, 2,266 times, but the lowest click-through rate, at just 0.56%.
That’s a clear sign: people are catching on. They’re tired of empty promises and gimmicks.
What Should You Do Instead?
Focus on words that build trust, foster curiosity, and deliver genuine value. Think less "get-rich-quick" and more "solve-your-problem." Your audience is savvy, they know when they’re being sold to. The key is to write like you're talking to a friend, not like you're pitching a timeshare.
Every word matters and the wrong word can tank your open rates faster than you can say “free cash giveaway.”
Audit your email copy. If you cut out the spammy language, you will watch your engagement rise.
Remember: marketing is about connection. And the first step to connection? Staying out of the spam folder.
If you are interested in taking your business to the next level, schedule a free 30-minute info session with us. By the end of this video call, you will have a clear understanding of the next steps you can take to start generating consistent and reliable results online with Organic & Paid Advertising: Schedule your session.
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