How to Keep Opt-in E-Mail Out of Yahoo! Mail's Bulk Folder

Summary: If your opt-in e-mail has a way of ending up in your Yahoo! Mail recipients' bulk mail folder, then you'll be happy that help is in sight -- if not guaranteed. This brief article contains the e-mail address and instructions you need to apply to have your e-mails get to the Inbox folder instead.

I've been pretty frustrated that my confirmed opt-in (double opt-in) e-mail often goes into Yahoo's "bulk folder," even though my subscribers have requested twice to receive it.

There is a two-step process that may help you get out of the bulk folder.

1. Contact Yahoo! Mail Online Support about your bulk e-mail delivery problems. They have a brief online form to fill out. Select the problem as follows: "I send permission-based emails, yet they are delivered to the Bulk Mail folder." http://add.yahoo.com/fast/help/us/mail/cgi_bulkmail
2. You'll receive an e-mail questionnaire to answer. Here's an example of the questions as of November 2004.
3. Submit your answers to Yahoo! The e-mail address to send your answers to is received in the e-mail in step 2, which will be sent you when you complete step 1.

If your answers pass muster with Yahoo!, they'll send you an e-mail saying they will evaluate e-mail from your domain for a period of time. They'll watch for user "voting" on whether your e-mail is spam or not. At the end of the evaluation period, Yahoo will decide whether to give you Inbox preference or not.

There's no guarantee that Yahoo! will now deliver your e-mails to your recipients' Inbox, but this could certainly help.