[Updated] Gmail’s New Open Tracking Changes: What You Need to Know (and Do!)

Vlad Oleksiienko 02 Sep 2024

Lately, Gmail users have been facing a new issue in their inboxes.

You might have noticed popups saying things like, “Images in this message are hidden. This message might be suspicious or spam.” And even more concerning, there’s now a big “Report spam” button that makes it easy for people to mark emails as unwanted.

So, what’s going on?

The initial concern is something known as an “open tracking Gmail pixel.” This is a tiny, invisible image (just 1×1 pixel) attached to emails sent through cold outreach or email tracking tools. When the email is opened, the pixel loads and signals that the message has been viewed.

But that’s not all.

It turns out that the issue isn’t just about open tracking pixels. Regular images in emails can also trigger the same warning messages or cause emails to be marked as suspicious. However, it’s important to note that having Gmail open rate tracking or images in an email doesn’t guarantee that the email will always be flagged—sometimes they are, sometimes they aren’t.

At Reply.io, we’ve been researching this issue closely.

We conducted a study by sending emails with open tracking or images to newly created Gmail accounts, as well as accounts with an established history. Our findings confirmed that both open tracking and images can, at times, cause emails to be marked as suspicious. Interestingly, we observed that paid GSuite accounts are more likely to flag such emails as spam, especially when open tracking or images are involved. However, this doesn’t happen in 100% of cases.

To summarize, open tracking pixels or pictures in emails can increase the risk of being flagged as suspicious or sent to spam, but it’s not a guaranteed outcome. The issue is more complex and depends on various factors, such as the type of Gmail account and email history.

Why is Google changing Gmail email open tracking?

Alright, let’s dive into the juicy stuff—why is Google shaking things up in our Gmail inboxes? You might be wondering, “Is this just another annoying change?”

Well, not quite!

Think of it this way: Google is like that well-meaning friend who’s always trying to help you avoid bad dates. They’ve noticed a spike in spammy emails and shady tracking tactics that make inboxes feel more like a junkyard than a personal space. So, to keep your email experience fresh and fun, they’re tightening the rules around Gmail tracking pixel.

Protecting Users: Google wants to shield you from the sneaky marketers who think they can just slide into your inbox unnoticed. By flagging emails with tracking pixels and suspicious images, they’re saying, “Hey, we’ve got your back!”
Boosting Trust: In a world full of scams and phishing attempts, trust is everything. By making it harder for spammy emails to sneak in, Google aims to create a more trustworthy email environment. Who doesn’t want that?
Encouraging Best Practices: Google’s changes push senders to up their game. If you want your emails to be opened and appreciated (and not sent to the dreaded spam folder), you’ll need to think about how you’re tracking engagement. It’s like a friendly nudge to ditch the old tricks (like using email tracking pixel) and find smarter, cleaner ways to connect.

So, while it might feel a bit like Google is playing the role of the email police, their heart is in the right place. They’re just trying to make sure your inbox is filled with the good stuff—emails you actually want to read!

What you can do now?

If you want to make sure your emails keep reaching the right people and don’t get flagged as suspicious, here are some possible actions to consider. These recommendations are not sequential steps, but rather options that you can choose from based on your specific needs.

Turn off open tracking in Gmail

Stop using open tracking in your email outreach or sequencing tools.

Our data shows that people using Reply.io without open tracking are getting 1.3 to 2 times more replies than those who do track opens. By turning off open tracking, you’ll reduce the chances of your emails being flagged.

Remove images from your emails

This means taking out things like signatures, logos, and any other images. With Google’s new policy, even these can make your emails look suspicious. Here are some quick tips to help you craft engaging emails:

1. Your subject line is the first thing your recipient sees, so make it count! Keep it concise and intriguing. Instead of “Check Out Our Amazing Product,” try “A Quick Question About [Their Business]” to spark curiosity.

2. Kick off your email with a personal touch. Mention something specific about their business, like, “I loved your recent blog post on [topic]—it really resonated with me!”

3. Cold emails should be concise and direct. Instead of saying, “I wanted to discuss how our services can benefit your company,” try, “We help businesses like yours increase engagement by 30% in weeks.”

4. Organize your thoughts with bullet points to make them easy to read:

Increase response rates with personalized outreach
Save time with our automated follow-ups
Access real-time analytics to track success

5. Wrap up your email with a simple request, like, “Would you be open to a quick chat this week?”

6. Need inspiration? Check out our email template library! We’ve got a collection of pre-written templates designed to grab attention and spark responses—all without images.

Enable link tracking

Instead of using open tracking, try using link tracking to see who’s clicking on links to your website or documents.

However, please note that while link tracking helps monitor engagement and shows if people click on your links, it can also impact deliverability because it wraps your real link and creates a suspicious redirect from the tracking link to the final link. Additionally, link tracking will not work if you enable a ‘Plain text’ mode.

You can check these clicks in Reply.io reports to get a sense of how engaged your recipients are.

Consider switching to ‘Plain text’ mode

Reply.io offers an advanced “plain text” mode that removes all HTML formatting, images, and tracking links, sending your emails as pure text.

This can really boost your deliverability. In fact, Reply.io users say that using plain text mode has doubled their reply rates! How to enable It:

First, head over to the Settings tab of your sequence in Reply.io.
Next, just flip the switch for the Plain Text Sending Mode (text-only), and voilà—you’re all set!

Focus on reply rates

If you’re doing cold outreach—reaching out to people who might not know about your service or product—a good goal is a 5-10% reply rate.

Even a 3-5% reply rate is considered pretty solid.

Try multichannel outreach

Don’t just rely on email.

Mix things up by reaching out on other channels like LinkedIn. With Reply.io’s LinkedIn automation feature, you can easily connect with prospects on that platform too, which helps you stay visible and boosts your chances of conversion.

Pro tip: If you want to learn more about using different outreach channels, check out our Multichannel Cold Outreach Course.

Apply changes to your Reply account

How Reply.io is tackling the problem?

At Reply.io, we’re all about helping you adapt to these changes.

We’re working on a new way to track engagement that goes way beyond just open rates. This new approach will combine things like click tracking, spam rates, bounce rates, and reply rates (when someone is actually interested).

It’ll give you a clearer, more complete picture of how your emails are really doing.

Plus, we’re brainstorming some cool new features to help boost your multichannel outreach, so your emails keep landing in the right inboxes and getting real responses.

What you should do next?

We’re keeping a close watch on these changes and tweaking our tools as we go.

In the meantime, it’s a good idea to stay in the loop and be ready to switch up your email strategies as needed. The online world is always changing, and staying ahead means being flexible and planning ahead.

Here at Reply.io, we’re here to help you succeed, no matter what comes up.

Keep an eye out for updates on our new tracking metric and other exciting tools we’re cooking up to make your outreach even more effective!