How do you keep your newsletter out of the spam folder?
Three things: send from your own domain with SPF, DKIM, and DMARC configured (your tool walks you through it), only email people who genuinely signed up, and prune non-openers periodically. Gmail and Yahoo have made this authentication mandatory for bulk senders since 2024.
Spam filters look at three layers. The first is technical: SPF, DKIM, and DMARC are DNS settings that prove your emails are genuinely authorized to come from your domain. Since Gmail and Yahoo tightened their bulk sender requirements in 2024, this is no longer advice but a precondition. Every serious newsletter tool has a step-by-step screen that sets it up in fifteen minutes; do it before your first send.
The second layer is reputation: how do recipients respond to your mail? Bounces, spam complaints, and ignored emails push you toward the spam folder; opens, clicks, and replies pull you out. That is why a clean list matters so much: double opt-in only, and a periodic goodbye to anyone who has not opened in a year.
The third layer is content, and it is overrated: the word "free" does not make you a spammer. What does look suspicious: one giant image with no text, shouting capitals, and link shorteners. Sending good emails to people who asked for them is ninety percent of the job.