The Context Box: Do It, But Right

Newsletter strategist Dylan Redekop recently wrote about the "context box," his term for the line in a marketing or newsletter email explaining why you are receiving a particular message. (By the way, I think he coined something useful here, so I'm totally going to steal that.)If you're not familiar, it's that bit of text that an email sender often includes, looking something like this: "You're receiving this because you signed up for the XYZ newsletter." "You're getting this email because you've made a purchase on the ABC website."The intent behind the context box is a noble one: stave off spam complaints. By reminding recipients how they ended up on your list, you stop them from hitting the "This is Spam" button out of confusion or amnesia. Since negative votes damage your sending reputation and can get you voted off of inbox island and into the swamp of the spam folder, showing this as a proof of permission feels like good deliverability insurance. Dylan's pro-context box, and I…