What actions count as negative signals?
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Not all negative signals hit your sender reputation equally. Some are a mild nudge. Others are the kind that can flip a good sending streak into a spam folder problem fast. Knowing which is which helps you decide where to focus.
The ones that actually hurt
Spam complaints are the most damaging thing a recipient can do. When someone clicks "Mark as Spam" or "Report Junk," that signal goes directly to the mailbox provider as explicit feedback that your mail is unwanted. Gmail and Outlook both weigh this heavily. A complaint rate above 0.1% (Gmail's published threshold) is when things start getting uncomfortable. Above 0.3% and you're in real trouble.
Moving a message from inbox to spam is arguably worse than a standard complaint, because it means your email made it through filters and a human still actively rejected it. That's a strong signal that something about your content or targeting is off.
Deleting without opening tells providers the recipient recognized your name or subject line and wanted nothing to do with it. Do that enough across your list and it starts pulling your sender reputation down quietly.
The softer signals
Consistent ignoring is what happens when emails sit unread for a long time. Individually, it's not dramatic. Across hundreds or thousands of subscribers over months, it chips away at your engagement rates and tells providers your mail isn't worth prioritizing.
Unsubscribing is the healthiest way a recipient can say "no thanks." It doesn't carry the same weight as a spam complaint, and it's genuinely better for your reputation than staying subscribed and ignoring everything. A high unsubscribe rate is more of a content or targeting signal than a deliverability crisis on its own.
The order of concern
If you had to rank these by how much to worry, it goes: spam complaints first, then moving to spam, then deletions without opens, then long-term ignoring, then unsubscribes. The first two demand immediate attention. The others are slow leaks worth watching over time, especially as you look at how long-term trends shape your reputation across campaigns.
Now if your complaint rate is spiking, that's not a "monitor and wait" situation. Check your list hygiene, review who you're sending to, and make sure every contact actually opted in. Our SOS hotline is free if you need a second set of eyes on what's happening.
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