How to Act On Emails From Email Feedback Loops

You launch a campaign. A few days later, your open rates are down, click-throughs are flat — and your deliverability starts to tank. But why?

You didn’t change your content. You didn’t hit a spam trap (as far as you know). The answer is often more frustrating: someone marked your email as spam, and you didn’t even know it.

This is where email feedback loops (FBLs) come into play — but most marketers either don’t receive these alerts or don’t know how to respond when they do.

In this guide, we’ll break down exactly what to do when a spam complaint hits your inbox — and how you can use Mailmodo to turn these complaints into opportunities to protect your sender reputation.

What is an email feedback loop (FBL)?

An email feedback loop is a service offered by some inbox providers (like Yahoo or Microsoft) that lets senders know when a recipient marks one of their emails as spam. These notifications can include the address (or a hashed version) of the complainer, allowing you to identify and suppress the contact.

Why this matters:

• Feedback loops help you proactively remove risky contacts from your list.

• They allow you to analyze what went wrong — poor targeting, confusing copy, misleading subject lines, etc.

• They protect your sender reputation by reducing repeat complaints.

What to do when someone marks your email as spam (or you receive a feedback loop alert)

Here’s your step-by-step playbook to handle complaints even when you’re not directly notified. For each action, we’ll show how Mailmodo enables you to execute it effectively.

Step 1: Suppress the complainer immediately

The fastest way to protect your sender reputation is to ensure the complainer never gets another email from you.

How to do it in Mailmodo:

1. From the Mailmodo dashboard, go to the Contacts tab and search for the user by email ID.

2. Click Manage Subscription and uncheck all email types.

3. Click Update Subscription to save the changes.

Step 2: Investigate the campaign that triggered the complaint

Spam complaints don’t happen randomly. They’re often triggered by mismatched expectations like irrelevant offers or deceptive subject lines.

How to do it in Mailmodo:

1. Open the journey from the dashboard and select the running campaign.

2. Review key metrics including open rates, click rates, unsubscribe rates, and bounce rates to understand overall performance.

3. Analyze individual messages using the campaign table to identify content issues, misalignment with the target segment, overly aggressive CTAs, or lack of personalization.

Step 3: Make it easy for users to give feedback before they complain

Many users mark emails as spam simply because they can’t find the unsubscribe link or don’t know how else to express dissatisfaction.

How to do it in Mailmodo:

1. Add a visible unsubscribe link to every email

Make sure the unsubscribe link is clearly visible and written in plain language, such as “Click here to unsubscribe.” Avoid hiding it in a long footer so users can easily opt out if they wish.

2. Use AMP widgets or in-email forms to capture feedback

Include interactive elements that let users quickly provide feedback, such as whether the content was helpful, if it did not meet their expectations, or if they want to unsubscribe. This gives recipients a way to communicate without marking your email as spam.

3. Trigger automations based on the user’s response

Set up automations that respond to user feedback by suppressing or pausing recipients who indicate dissatisfaction, sending a preference update email, or asking for more detailed feedback. This ensures you act on signals before they escalate into complaints.

Conclusion

Handling spam complaints doesn’t have to be a headache. By proactively suppressing complainers, investigating campaigns, managing disengaged users, and providing easy feedback options, you can turn potential risks into actionable insights.

Mailmodo makes this process simple and efficient. From creating behavior-based segments to setting up sunset flows and interactive feedback widgets, every tool you need to respond to complaints and optimize deliverability is built right in. Sign up for Mailmodo today and take control of your email reputation while keeping your audience happy and engaged.