• by Ray Schultz , June 8, 2023

An apparent Gmail glitch is shooting email newsletters into spam folders.

The issue was reported by Search Engine Journal, which saw open rates plummet below average for its email newsletters earlier this month. 

The problem was that the newsletters were redirected from subscribers’ primary inboxes into spam folders. 

Email service Mailchimp informed the publication that this is not an isolated episode.

Mailchimp is working with Google to resolve the problem.

"We can confirm that there was an issue affecting deliverability to Gmail inboxes for a small number of Mailchimp users," a Mailchimp spokesperson says. "We have been working with our partners at Google to address the issue, and have implemented a solution, which means affected customers should already be seeing improvement in their open rates."

The spokesperson added: "If open and click through rates remain lower than expected, we recommend working with a member of our Mailchimp Care team to review the account. 

In the interim, Mailchimp is advising publishers to communicate with subscribers and urge them to manually move the emails from the spam folder to the inbox, Search Engine Journal says.

The full extent of the problem was unclear at deadline, and it was not determined whether other service organizations had the same experience with Gmail.

This story has been updated.